Marcus Maye has signed his franchise tag with the Jets, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, and now the clock starts ticking.
With Maye officially accepting his franchise tag, the two sides now have until July 15 to work out a long-term deal before he is locked in at his $10.6 million salary, and won’t be able to try and negotiate a new contract again until after the 2021 season.
The Jets and general manager Joe Douglas have said they want to keep the star safety long term, and the team has already made plenty of moves as they look to rebuild into a competitive team, signing wide receiver Corey Davis for $27 million and defensive end Carl Lawson for $30 million. Maye will require big money himself, especially after fellow safety Justin Simmons reportedly agreed to a four-year, $61 million deal with the Broncos after being franchise tagged.
Maye was the Jets’ team MVP last season, leading the team in snaps played and was the fourth-best safety in the league, per Pro Football Focus’ ratings. He set a career high in tackles (88), tackles for a loss (4), sacks (2), passes defended (11) and forced fumbles (2) to go along with his two interceptions, which tied a career high.
Maye’s agent Erik Burkhardt was vocal in his frustration with the team not negotiating a deal earlier in the offseason, tweeting about the team’s excessive cap space that wasn’t being used to lock up Maye. That could still happen in the coming months, but it will have to get done by July. If not, Maye could wait to try and sign a long-term deal with New York next offseason, or more Jets safety drama could be brewing, like it did with Jamal Adams last year.
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