Jets made a big mistake signing Thomas Rawls

The New York Jets came to terms with free agent running back Thomas Rawls. In the grand scheme of things, they made a big mistake bringing him into the mix.

When the New York Jets announced they were bringing free agent running back Thomas Rawls in for a visit, it was mostly met with negative reviews. While Rawls is an experienced running back spending three years with the Seattle Seahawks, he’s mostly known for being injury prone.

In an article written by Ethan Greenberg of NewYorkJets.com, he confirmed the Jets have signed Rawls to the team. At this point in time, there are no contract details on how much they gave him or how long it’s for but needless to say, the Jets made a big mistake here.

Instead of focusing on perhaps giving Bilal Powell starting duties while mixing in newly signed Isaiah Crowell and Elijah McGuire, the Jets now have Rawls in the mix. They would have been better off using a mid or late-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft on a running back instead of taking a chance on a running back that’s spent more time being injured than actually on the gridiron.

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Ideally, the Jets most likely signed Rawls as depth but again, they should have focused on who they currently have instead of taking another risk on a player that hasn’t proven he’s worth playing. Last season with the Seahawks, Rawls had another shortened season due to a severe leg injury.

Rawls totaled just 157 rushing yards, 58 attempts, and zero touchdowns. It’s expected that just like on the Seahawks, he’ll be used in a rotational role on the Jets but it just doesn’t make sense.

For a team that should have learned from last season by overusing an aging and often injured Matt Forte when Powell and McGuire were easily available, this latest signing doesn’t make any sense whatsoever.

Overall, Rawls might hopefully turn out to be a good signing but this could very well be a move the Jets might regret depending on how much money they’ve invested and for how long. Those details haven’t been released as of yet so hopefully, it’s an inexpensive/one-year deal that is low risk and high reward if things pan out for the best. There’s nothing to prove, however, that this was a wise signing thanks to his past.