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Jets Rumors: Brian Winters Released After 7 Seasons with NYJ
August 2, 2020
Offensive guard Brian Winters has been with the New York Jets his entire career since they selected him with a third-round pick in the 2013 NFL draft, but that will reportedly change in 2020.
On Sunday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the Jets will cut the starting right guard.
Schefter also suggested "as a starting guard, Winters is not expected to be without a job very long."
Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News noted the move clears $7.28 million off the 2020 cap for the AFC East team, pointing out Winters was rehabbing from shoulder surgery and set to enter the final year of his contract.
The Kent State product played just nine games during the 2019 campaign, ending his streak of playing at least 13 games at four years after he appeared in six games in 2014.
Pro Football Focus gave Winters a solid but unspectacular 62.4 overall grade for his efforts last year, and he was part of a Jets offensive line that Football Outsiders ranked as the 31st-best run-blocking unit and 30th-best in pass protection.
Leaving the Jets means Winters could sign somewhere that gives him a better opportunity to make the playoffs for the first time in his career. New York has not made the postseason since the 2010 campaign when it lost the AFC Championship Game to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Winters is just 29 years old and figures to have multiple years of prime production remaining for whichever team signs him if he can remain healthy.