NY Jets make first move of free agency signing OT George Fant

The NY Jets have finally made their first signing of free agency reportedly agreeing to a three-year, $30 million deal with offensive tackle George Fant.

The NY Jets have ended their free-agency vow of silence with the reported signing of Seattle Seahawks swing tackle George Fant.

After missing out on a number of big-name free agents earlier in the day, the Jets jumped on the versatile Fant to complete their first and so far only signing of free agency.

As first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Fant was given a three-year, $30 million contract with $13.7 million guaranteed at signing. That’s a relatively sizable contract for a player who has never been a full-time starter.

Fant entered the league as an undrafted free agent back in 2016 after attending the University of Western Kentucky. But it’s safe to say that he didn’t follow the same sort of path that many other NFL players follow.

Fant excelled as a college basketball player at Western Kentucky before joining the football team in his senior season. And even then, Fant joined the team as a tight end and played in just two games.

That was his college career — two games played at tight end.

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Fant expectedly went undrafted but was able to sign on with the Seattle Seahawks who saw potential for him as an offensive lineman. Due to an injury to starting left tackle Bradley Sowell, Fant would go on to start 10 games during his rookie year.

That’s an amazing accomplishment for someone who hadn’t played the position a year prior and just two years before had never played football at even the high school level.

Unfortunately, Fant would tear his ACL in the 2017 preseason forcing him to miss the entire season. Over the next two seasons, Fant would fill a backup swing tackle role starting 14 games while playing in all 32.

Just this past year, the 27-year-old was given a 62.2 Pro Football Focus grade which ranks below average among tackles in the NFL. He ranked as the 62nd best offensive tackle in the league while allowing 23 pressures on 266 pass-block snaps.

In reality, he appears to be a downgrade from Kelvin Beachum.

But the deal has been made and the Jets have officially made their first signing of the offseason. It’s not the Jack Conklin, Joe Thuney, or Graham Glasgow deal that Jets fans were likely hoping for — but it’s something.

After a quiet Monday, expect the Jets to be more active in the coming days.