Haason Reddick holding out of Jets training camp as contract drama escalates
The first day of Jets training camp is more about who is not there than who is there.
Haason Reddick, the Pro Bowl pass rusher the Jets acquired in April, is not reporting to training camp on Tuesday because he is unhappy with his contract, a source confirmed.
The Jets traded a conditional sixth-round pick to the Eagles on April 1 to land Reddick.
Prior to making the trade, the Jets had a negotiating window with Reddick’s agent, according to a source. The Jets made an extension offer but Reddick did not accept.
The understanding was that negotiations would continue but Reddick would participate in the spring workouts, OTAs and minicamp in the meantime.
Instead, Reddick did not show up at all in the spring.
Reddick is set to make $14.25 million this season. The reason he was available in a trade is the Eagles did not give him a contract extension.
The Jets have told Reddick’s camp that they are open to short-term solutions, a source said, but they have not received any. Instead, Reddick is set on getting a long-term deal.
The Jets have not ruled out a long-term extension but they want him to be a participant in training camp before they reopen negotiations. The Jets do not want to negotiate with a player who is not in camp or even if he showed up and pulled a “hold in” where he claimed an injury.
By not reporting, Reddick subjects himself to fines of $50,000 for every missed practice and those fines cannot be rescinded. The Jets’ first practice is Wednesday.
Jets general manager Joe Douglas has to be careful with these negotiations. The Jets have a number of players who are in the final year of their contracts like Michael Carter II, D.J. Reed and Morgan Moses. They will be watching how Douglas handles this. If he caves to Reddick, Douglas may have a line outside of his office looking for contract extensions.
