5 players the NY Jets should not re-sign this offseason

The NY Jets enter this offseason with decisions to make on 18 unrestricted free agents and five restricted free agents. Some of those decisions will be rather easy, while others will require a bit more consideration.

The Jets will likely look to bring back players like Bryce Huff, Greg Zuerlein, Mike White, etc., but given the team's tight cap situation, difficult decisions will have to be made.

Fortunately, not every decision is difficult. Some players set to hit the open market are obvious candidates to move on from. Whether due to age, performance, or a host of other factors, the Jets should not look to re-sign any of the five players on this list.

Let's take a look at five pending free agents the Jets should definitely part ways with this offseason.

5. Joe Flacco, QB, NY Jets

Simply put, there is no place for Joe Flacco on the Jets' roster in 2023. Flacco has spent the majority of the last three seasons with the Jets serving a role as an experienced backup and veteran mentor.

The 15-year NFL veteran started the first three games of the season this year with Zach Wilson dealing with a knee injury. It became abundantly clear, however, that Flacco was a shell of his former self. In fact, he looked like a shell of that shell at times.

The Jets will be adding a veteran quarterback this offseason, and there's no scenario that they can bring back Flacco as the primary backup. It doesn't make sense for him to be rostered as a third-stringer either, especially if Wilson is still hanging around.

The Jets will not re-sign Flacco this offseason. Even if he doesn't opt to retire, he won't be back with the Jets.

4. Vinny Curry, DE, NY Jets

Another veteran who seems unlikely to return is Vinny Curry. Curry deserves a ton of credit for how he was able to bounce back from a rare blood disorder that cost him the entire 2021 season.

The Jets originally signed Curry in March of 2021, reuniting the longtime Philadephia Eagles defensive end with Joe Douglas and providing the Jets with much-needed pass rush depth.

Unfortunately, Curry didn't play in 2021 because of his aforementioned health issue, and many expected him to simply retire as a result. That wasn't the case, however, as Curry returned in 2022 after the Jets re-signed him.

Curry would go on to appear in 11 games for the Jets in 2022, although he failed to record a sack for the first time in his career. The 34-year-old was a replacement-level player. There's nothing wrong with that, but given the depth on the roster, it doesn't make much sense to bring him back.

The Jets should be focused on giving more snaps to young players like Bryce Huff, Jermaine Johnson, and Micheal Clemons. Handing Curry 20-30 percent of snaps a game just isn't best for that defense.

Huff, Johnson, and Clemons all outperformed Curry in 2022, so as much as the Jets love his veteran leadership in the locker room, it's probably best for the Jets to get their best players on the field.

If the Jets want to add to their defensive line depth this offseason, they can, especially if they part ways with Carl Lawson. But they could do better than Curry, given his production this past season.

3. George Fant, OT, NY Jets

Few players on the Jets' roster had more disappointing seasons in 2022 than George Fant. It's easy to forget now, but Fant was one of the best pass-blocking left tackles in football in 2021.

Fant was a revelation for the Jets in 2021, transforming from a fringe starter into a legitimate Pro Bowl candidate as a full-time starter at left tackle. There were talks about a possible extension, and not many rejected the idea at the time.

Fortunately for the Jets, they waited on an extension, and now Fant is set to hit free agency coming off an injury-riddled disappointment of a 2022 season.

Fant underwent offseason knee surgery prior to the start of the season, and he never really recovered. The 30-year-old switched back and forth between left and right tackle in the summer before starting the first three games of the season, during which he clearly wasn't 100 percent.

Fant struggled mightily, and the Jets officially opted to place their veteran tackle on the injured reserve after just three games with the hope that some rest would help matters. It didn't.

Upon returning from the injured reserve, Fant took over for the injured Max Mitchell at right tackle and started four more games before ending the season on the IR again — a fitting end to what must have been an incredibly frustrating season for the former Seattle Seahawks lineman.

The Jets will be making some changes to their offensive line this offseason, and that will likely include upgrading at offensive tackle. Fant doesn't appear to be in their plans for the future.

What a difference a year makes.

2. James Robinson, RB, NY Jets

Speaking of disappointments, running back James Robinson fell well short of expectations in his brief stint with the Jets in 2022.

Following a season-ending injury to Breece Hall, the Jets decided to send a conditional sixth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars for the former 1,000-yard rusher. Robinson was coming off an Achilles tear and had seen his role in the offense decrease significantly following the emergence of Travis Etienne.

The Jets traded for Robinson with the hope that he could provide a stable one-two punch alongside Michael Carter. They weren't supposed to replicate Hall's production, but they were expected to be a more-than-competent duo.

Unfortunately, both players disappointed significantly, with Robinson falling out of the offensive game plan entirely. The former undrafted free agent played just three games before he was rendered a healthy scratch in favor of undrafted rookie Zonovan Knight.

Robinson played just one more game after that, only due to a Michael Carter injury. He finished the season with just 85 yards on 29 carries in four games with the Jets.

On the bright side, the sixth-round pick the Jets gave up didn't become a fifth-rounder as Robinson fell well short of the 250 yards required for an escalator.

Robinson is set to be a restricted free agent this offseason, meaning the Jets could bring him back for very cheap. The right of first refusal RFA tender in 2023 is projected to be roughly $2.6 million this offseason.

That said, it seems unlikely the Jets go that route. Knight essentially took Robinson's role in the offense, and with Carter and Hall returning in 2023, not to mention the possibility of Ty Johnson re-signing, it makes little sense to re-sign Robinson.

1. Lamarcus Joyner, S, NY Jets

There was no weaker link in the Jets' starting lineup in 2022 than Lamarcus Joyner. The Jets re-signed Joyner in the offseason after his first season in New York was cut short by injury just nine plays into the year.

The hope was that Joyner would be able to rediscover the promise he showed as a full-time free safety before he was forced to play as a nickel cornerback with the Raiders, but again, much like the others on this list, that didn't happen.

Joyner started 14 games for the Jets this past season, but while he mostly stayed healthy, he was a liability on the field. The nine-year NFL veteran finished with a Pro Football Focus grade of 57.0 grade that ranked 71st out of 89 qualified safeties.

He was one of just four qualified safeties in the entire NFL to finish with a PFF tackling and coverage grade below 55.0. He missed a whopping 14.5 percent of his tackle attempts this past season. Joyner was one of the worst safeties in football in 2022, starter or not.

The Jets will undoubtedly look to upgrade at free safety this offseason, especially with Joyner set to be a free agent. There really isn't a feasible scenario in which they opt to bring him back.

There's a chance the Jets even decide to move on from Jordan Whitehead and make him a cap casualty, but even if Whitehead is kept, there's no possibility that Joyner is the Week 1 starter in 2023.

Whether it's through the 2023 NFL Draft or free agency, the Jets will search for an upgrade over Joyner this offseason.