New York Jets and Tennessee Titans Making Bad Decisions with Young Stars

The New York Jets and the Tennessee Titans owe Darrelle Revis and Chris Johnson more.

I'm not talking about money.

I'm talking about respect.

In the NFL, which is both a game played by men and a business, those two things often get confused. A player wanting to be represented as the top at his position does so by asking for the top contract at his position.

Is it really about about the monetary value of a $4.2 million contract over a $4 million one?

Not really.

But if some other guy makes $4.1 million, you can be sure that the former will be accepted while the latter will piss a guy off faster than a Chris Johnson 40-yard dash.

It is about respect.

Not money.

Well, it is a little about the money.

An average NFL career is three to four seasons long. That means most NFL players are retired before they hit their prime. Most NFL players don't retire multi-millionaires; they retire comfortably at 27 or 28 with a lifelong laundry list of medical bills.

After a few years, that player's NFL pension (if he even qualified for one) and medical benefits (which aren't even up to MLB standards) run out. Regardless of how wisely he invested his money, it is going to end up in the hands of doctors and specialists.

For many NFL players, it is an easy step into coaching or broadcasting. For others, injuries have left them in chronic pain or with a debilitating brain injury.

A young player like Revis or Johnson hopes to play in the NFL for another 15 years and settle into a cushy network gig, but the maxim has always been, "hope for the best, but prepare for the worst."

Each hit might be their last in a Jets or Titans uniform, and that hit might leave you struggling to work the remote control, let alone land a nine-to-five job.

So, yes, it is a little about the money. But not just money—insurance for a player and his loved ones. It isn't about the latest bling or the newest ride.

NFL fans gravitate toward the biggest deals and assume every NFL player is rich beyond their wildest dreams.

In fact, the vast majority of NFL players make less than a million dollars.

The average NFL player's take-home pay (after taxes, agent, publicist, etc.) is about three times the average salary in America.

Still doing pretty good.

But, again, how big of a concussion risk does a CPA face on a daily basis, or a school teacher?

Yes, Darrelle Revis and Chris Johnson want to get paid (by the way, who doesn't). But, they also want insurance and, most of all, respect.

The New York Jets and Tennessee Titans Lack Respect

Want to see a team that has respect for its players?

The San Francisco 49ers have a great young linebacker in Patrick Willis. This year, Willis was not a free agent, restricted or unrestricted.

Why did Willis get a new deal?

Because other linebackers, Karlos Dansby and Demeco Ryans in particular, got new deals.

Neither of those players deserve to be paid more than Patrick Willis.

Now, the 49ers did not have to give Willis a new contract. Do not think for a minute that is the case. Regardless of how ornery he got (see: Albert Haynesworth) that player is under contract.

But, Willis didn't get ornery. The 49ers simply rewarded him because he had outperformed his current contract.

In fact, not only did they reward him, but the 49ers front office actually got creative. They circumvented various rules in place that prevent the game's youngest players from getting outlandish contracts after one or two good seasons.

Picture yourself in Willis's shoes—not only are you not expecting a raise, but your boss explains to you he found real and legal ways to give you more money than he should be able to, much more than you could have expected.

That is respect.

Respect brings loyalty.

The New York Jets Showed Darrelle Revis No Respect

The Jets are looking to make it over the hump and win an AFC Championship.

Currently, that window is closing. With LaDainian Tomlinson and Jason Taylor brought on board and expected to play big roles this year, and with Shaun Ellis, Kris Jenkins, and Damien Woody not getting any younger, the time is now.

The Jets had no problem jettisoning a player like Thomas Jones, who had performed for them. No one should question the team wanted to get younger and had a good player in Shonn Greene.

Darrelle Revis, on the other hand, is not simply a player who has been good for the Jets.

He's been the best.

No cornerback in the league does what Revis can do. In a culture where "shutdown corner" is used far too frequently, Revis is the only one.

Thus, Revis wants to be the highest paid cornerback. Do the Jets need to offer him a new contract?

No.

Has Revis outperformed his current one?

Yes.

It's a little about the money, but it's mostly about respect.

So when the Jets came to Revis offering him a contract with more money, but came nowhere close to making him the highest paid cornerback, it was taken by Revis to be a lack of respect.

When that same contract contained no guaranteed money, Revis got mad.

Understand what no guaranteed money is. It's a contract an NFL team uses to tell a player, "we own you." The team can cut that player at anytime (if he underperforms or gets injured) and never actually pay him a dime.

Meanwhile the opposite is still in the team's favor. If a player outperforms that contract, like Revis has for his current deal, there aren't any structures in place to pay that player any bonuses for that success.

Low guaranteed money is a slap in the face for a player like Revis; no guaranteed money is a kick to the groin.

The Tennessee Titans Showed No Respect to Johnson and Are Liars

Chris Johnson, the reigning AP Offensive Player of the Year, is the best running back in all of football (apologies to AP, but it's true). Next year, he is set to earn about $550K.

As a running back, the league's most tenuous position, this isn't just about the money.

It's easy to make jokes about a new set of gold teeth, or claim Johnson is just another kid looking to hamstring his team with contract demands.

But, remember, each run might be his last in a Titans uniform. Running backs don't last very long in the NFL, and the contract he wants this year could be his last big deal.

He wants that deal before he gets a concussion, tears a ligament, or worse.

The Titans could have rewarded Johnson for his play. Again, they didn't have to, but they could have.

They say they can't.

Clinging to the same rules that the 49ers broke to pay Willis, the Titans say they can't possibly offer Johnson any more money.

Um, fellas?

Again, the money is one thing, but to lie (or at least play stupid) to a player (your best player) just isn't good business.

That isn't respect.

That doesn't breed loyalty.

Different Strokes for Different NFL Personnel Folks

There are different types of front offices in the NFL. The New York and Tennessee molds fit in with the New England model—create a system and a culture and plug players in, let "loud" players leave, and get paid elsewhere.

The Patriots have had success with that.

The Green Bay Packers are a good team as well. The Packers continually take care of a core group of their players. Many Packers are Packers for life for a reason.

Loyalty.

As fans of different NFL teams, it's easy to become so enamored with the brand name and think it can do no wrong.

Revis is petulant, Johnson is greedy, Mangold this, Mankins that, etc.

Let's not forget Woody Johnson, Bud Adams, Robert Kraft, and others are not exactly struggling to make ends meet. The NFL is not a non-profit organization.

Players like Revis and Johnson can put their health and (yes, even) life on the line and never make one-tenth of what those men have made, thanks to the success of those players.

So, Stop Focusing On the Money

Yes, Darrelle Revis and Chris Johnson want to get paid.

Yes, the contracts they want will give them more money than you and I could ever dream about spending.

But the New York Jets and the Tennessee Titans have not erred by not paying the two talented, young stars.

The Jets and the Titans have made very bad decisions by planting seeds of disrespect and disloyalty with two of the best young players in the game.

At a time when the 49ers have locked up their linebacker for the rest of his life by showing him exactly what his play in their jersey means to that franchise, the Jets and Titans are showing everyone how little they value that talent.

The Jets and Titans didn't have to pay Revis and Johnson.

But they could have.

Cutting those checks would have sent messages to those locker rooms, and around the league, about the respect and loyalty those teams have.

Instead, offering your best player no guaranteed money, or lying to him like he and his agent are idiots, sends the exact opposite message.

No respect in New York.

No loyalty in Tennessee.

And two of the game's brightest and youngest stars are hoping to stay healthy, so they can catch the next-free agency train out of town.