Quinnen Williams Signs Contract Extension

Edition #425

Good morning! ☕

Well, that was the perfect birthday present. As I was tucking into a pretty tasty beer from Devon, my phone went off with the news that Quinnen Williams had signed his contract extension with the Jets.

So there really is only one thing we can talk about today, but before we do that, there are a couple of quick throws to get to.

Thank you for your patience this week while I took a short break from the daily newsletters. We’ll be back with a full slate of newsletters from next week.

🙌 Here is my first piece as an official freelancer for the New York Jets UK website - Highlighting 5 impact moves the Jets made this off-season. As you’d expect, I wrote this before the Quinnen Williams extension was confirmed, otherwise, that would have certainly been in there. If you have any Facebook groups or WhatsApp chats with Jets fans, I’d appreciate any help spreading the word about this article.

🏆 Ronde Barber ranked the top 7 secondaries in football, and he had the Jets flying high at #1. I always did like Barber. Having appeared in 241 games, Ronde knows a thing or two about what it takes to be successful as a corner in the NFL. But if you listen to Asante Samuel, it’s all just NY media hype.

🏈 My colleague over at Last Word on Sports wrote this AFC East Preview on the New York Jets and it’s well worth your time. “The Jets have a very fun schedule, which will showcase Rodgers in primetime early and often. In this scenario, the Jets ended up tied with the Bills atop the AFC East, which sounds very realistic. That makes the Week 1 showdown between the two teams even more impactful. The winner of that game (Jets in this scenario) will have a big leg up in what should be a fascinating division to watch.”

💪 Carl Lawson was talking to the official site this week and was asked about the whispers that he was going to be a cap casualty this off-season: "I didn't really understand the hysteria," Lawson told team reporter Eric Allen on this week's edition of "The Official Jets Podcast." "I guess it's just things for people to talk about. I want to be here. If they didn't want me here, no gripe, they gave me the opportunity of a lifetime to provide for my family and play. It's all I've ever wanted -- to be a starter in a big market. I got another opportunity to prove myself. I have an opportunity, that's it.

🏗️ PFF selected three players for each AFC team to build around, and I don’t think the selection for the Jets will come as a surprise. Quinnen Williams, Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson. Here’s what they had to say about Wilson: “Garrett Wilson could erupt in 2023 with Rodgers in the fold, already displaying elite separation ability at every level of the field and forcing the most missed tackles in the NFL among wide receivers with an average depth of target over five yards (22). It may not be hyperbole to say Wilson could be Rodgers’ next Davante Adams.”

Earlier this off-season Robert Saleh was convinced that the Jets and Quinnen Williams would agree to a contract extension before training camp.

"It's going to get done. He'll be here for camp, he'll be ready to roll and once he is, I'm sure he'll be the same guy he was a year ago." - Saleh on June 6th

Daily readers of TJW would have read countless pieces where I backed that assessment up…then this week I lost my nerve.

I posted a piece on GGN about time running out. What if a deal didn’t get done? What if the HBO cameras turned up and started rolling, and Quinnen was nowhere to be seen? The story would dominate the airwaves and maybe all those good vibes would melt away into the ether.

Shame on me for questioning this front office during an off-season of immaculate vibes.

Yesterday Quinnen signed his deal to remain a Jet for the foreseeable future…with 6 days to spare.

That deal also snapped a first-round curse for the Jets. Quinnen Williams became the first Jets’ player selected in the first round to sign a second contract with the franchise since Muhammad Wilkerson, who we drafted in 2011.

That’s a long decade of absolute futility.

Times are changing for the Jets, and this is just another example of how the organization is heading in the right direction.

The Deal