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Jets Reportedly File Tampering Charge Against Patriots: Latest Details, Reaction
Who says the AFC East rivalry between the New England Patriots and New York Jets has to stay between the lines? The Jets filed tampering charges against the Patriots regarding comments from owner Robert Kraft on cornerback Darrelle Revis.
Continue for updates.
Cole: NFL Execs Believe Patriots Tampered With Revis In 2014
Wednesday, March 25
Jason Cole of Bleacher Report passed on what he has been hearing regarding potential allegations of tampering regarding Darrelle Revis and the New England Patriots:
Jets File Tampering Charges
Tuesday, March 24
Pro Football Talk reported Tuesday that the “Jets have filed tampering charges against Patriots based on Robert Kraft's Monday comments about Darrelle Revis, per league source.”
Ben Volin of The Boston Globe passed along Kraft’s comments on Revis from the NFL’s owners meeting:
I speak as a fan of the New England Patriots; we wanted to keep him, we wanted him in our system. We had hoped it worked out. It didn’t.
We have to factor that we don’t just look at this year, we look out at the next few years. We’ve done OK doing that.
Bill [Belichick] wanted him. When you’ve got a budget, there’s certain things you can’t do, and we have a budget. And in the end we’ll judge it by what the results are.
I think each side in the end did what was right for them.
Kraft also noted that the Patriots made a “very competitive offer” for the superstar cornerback.
Revis was a major part of the New England secondary that helped the Patriots win the Super Bowl. He appeared in all 16 games and often blanketed the opponent’s best receiver.
The cornerback played the first six seasons of his career with the New York Jets before being traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2013 and then signing with the Patriots in 2014. He was the face of the New York defense during those years, when the Jets made two AFC title game appearances.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk added some context to this development, noting that this isn't the first time tampering charges have come up between the two teams.
"In December, Jets owner Woody Johnson publicly expressed interest in bringing back cornerback Darrelle Revis, who at the time was under contract with the Patriots," Florio wrote. "The Patriots later filed tampering charges against the Jets."
CSNNE.com's Tom Curran passed along more comments from Kraft regarding Revis (via Florio):
We have certain disciplines and we had hoped it would work out. It didn’t. We just don’t think about the short-term decisions. For example, next year we have three very good young defensive players coming up [for contracts] and we have to factor that we just don’t look at this year, we look out at the next few years. We’ve done okay doing that.
[The Jets] are the team that drafted him. I think he feels a great commitment there, so we understand his going back and we’re sorry he didn’t stay with us.
Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News commented on the tampering concerns:
The comments may seem fairly harmless on the surface, but there is never a dull moment in the rivalry between the Jets and the Patriots.