New York Jets Could Be in Salary Cap Jail in 2013, and Other AFC East News

The immediate future doesn't look bright for the New York Jets, but the long-term future doesn't look much better.

They fell to 4-7 on Thanksgiving, clipping the wings of their playoff chances for the season, but Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports that the team could be strapped for cash on the salary cap in 2013.

Just the major notes on their troubles (all salaries listed are for 2013, unless otherwise indicated ):

• Antonio Cromartie is due $4.75 million guaranteed
• Santonio Holmes is due $7.5 million guaranteed.
• Mark Sanchez is due $8.25 million guaranteed.
• David Harris is due $9.75 million guaranteed.

And then these:

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Sources who have studied their contract situation expect Bart Scott and Calvin Pace to be among those not back next season, regardless of who is making decisions there, but the restrictive contract language will limit other options. The Jets project to be over $20 million over the 2013 cap, sources said.

"

Contracts are supposed to be a strength of general manager Mike Tannenbaum, who was hired as the Director of Player Contract Negotiations back in 1997.

Whether the Jets make big changes this offseason or not, it looks like they could be hard-pressed to make major changes to their roster.

If you needed another sign that things couldn't be much worse, look to the (former) No. 1 Jets fan.

Here's some more news from around the AFC East.

New York Jets

Greg Bedard of The Boston Globe lays out his blueprint for how to fix the Jets.

Brian Costello of the New York Post writes that Sanchez needs to prove that he has actually learned something instead of just repeating the same redundant clichés over and over.

New England Patriots

Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston shares his thoughts on the AFC playoff picture from a Patriots perspective.

Dan Hope of NEPatriotsDraft.com lists five reasons why the Patriots have won five games in a row.

Buffalo Bills

According to Tim Graham of The Buffalo News, Bills wide receiver Stevie Johnson thinks the Bills' offense could benefit from more no-huddle with Ryan Fitzpatrick calling plays at the line of scrimmage.

Joe Buscaglia of WGR 550 Sportsradio offers up his sideline reactions to the game, including notes on the turnaround of Bills defensive end Mario Williams and C.J. Spiller's role (or lack thereof) in the loss.

Miami Dolphins

Mike Berardino of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel hands out grades for Miami's 24-21 upset win over the Seattle Seahawks.

Ben Volin of The Palm Beach Post writes that the Dolphins were able to resuscitate both the running game and the passing game.

Erik Frenz is the AFC East lead blogger for Bleacher Report. Be sure to follow Erik on Twitter and "like" the AFC East blog on Facebook to keep up with all the updates. Unless specified otherwise, all quotes are obtained via team press releases.