Despite making a few big moves in free agency to acquire players like Brandon Marshall and Darrelle Revis, the New York Jets still have a lot of holes to fill on their roster. The quarterback position is taking priority as doubt remains in both Geno Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick, but New York is also making moves at other spots eyeing deals for running backs and wide receivers as well.
According to ESPN's Rich Cimini, the Jets are eyeing Stevan Ridley in free agency, bringing in the former New England Patriot for a workout. The Jets' run game as taken a steep fall from grace in recent season. They opted to release Chris Johnson after just one season which leaves the team with Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell. Both players are average runners which makes signing someone like Ridley a priority.
Ridley is not an every-down back. The rusher suffered an ACL injury in October causing him to miss the remainder of the season. He has struggled with fumbling issues as well since his breakout year in 2012 where he put up 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns. If Ridley turns out to not be an option, the Jets could eye a trade for Doug Martin down in Tampa Bay.
Pat Yasinskas of ESPN reported that Martin is being shopped to teams heading into the draft as the Buccaneers would like to acquire a mid-round pick for the running back. Martin could be a strong asset to the Jets. He is coming off a down season, but he did have 1,454 yards and 11 touchdowns in his rookie season. There is potential there, but the Jets are unlikely to deal away a draft pick from someone coming off a few bad seasons.
The Jets are also looking at top wide receivers. With the No. 6 pick in the draft, the Jets are being linked to Marcus Mariota. However, if they miss out on the quarterback the team might look to get a top wide receiver instead. According to Newsday, the Jets are preparing to host Amari Cooper before the draft along with Kevin White. They are considered the best two wide receivers in the draft and New York would like to add to the Marshall, Eric Decker, Jeremy Kerley rotation. It will not help their quarterback problems, but would give whoever starts some talent to work with.
New York's priority should be figuring out their quarterback position. The team has Geno Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick, but neither scream success. If the Jets can acquire Mariota, would Smith or Fitzpatrick get released? The team technically only needs two quarterbacks entering the season. If Mariota arrives and wins the starting job, New York will need to make some decisions.
