Darrelle Revis Signs with New York Jets: Are They Now the AFC Favorite?

Darrelle Revis! WOOOO!

If you’ve seen the latest Dick’s Sporting Goods commercial airing promptly every five seconds on ESPN, then you have a good sense of how loud Jets' cornerback Darrelle Revis can be. In the ad, Revis is often seen hollering his name at the top of his lungs for every helpless customer in the store to hear.

Darrelle Revis! WOOOO!

The commercial is eerily similar to the situation that has been transpiring in Revis’ personal and professional life over the last few months. The rising star corner has been screaming his name for his franchise, the New York Jets, to hear. But the problem is they haven’t been listening.

Now it seems all that has changed.

According to developing reports, it appears the Jets and their star defender have reached a contract agreement. The deal comes on the heels of a near seven-month dispute between Revis and the team that got ugly in the media during training camp.

The fourth-year Pro Bowler out of PITT finished the 2009 season with 87 total tackles, 3 INTs and 17 pass breakups as he played a crucial role in the Jets’ defensive success.

For this efforts, Revis felt like he should be the highest paid player at his position and earn top dollar as the team’s most important member. The only problem being that the Oakland Raiders had grossly overpaid for Nnamdi Asomugha and set the market value for corners far too high.

A struggle ensued between the two parties for months and things looked they had hit a real rough patch during the heart of training camp. But now word comes from ESPN’s Adam Schefter that after a meeting with coach Rex Ryan, the resolution has finally taken place and Revis will sign a multi-year extension with the club for an unknown amount.

During his holdout, Revis was hit with over $500,000 worth of fines, but something tells me the Jets will find a way to help him repay it.

So now that Revis is indeed back with the team, what does that mean for the Jets and the AFC conference as a whole?

For starters, it means the Jets just got a whole lot better. This is a team that we’ve gotten to watch all throughout training camp on HBO’s Hard Knocks, and we’ve seen the many highs and the many lows that they’ve gone through. The addition of Revis is a mighty big boost for a team that was stockpiling experienced talent for a run at the Super Bowl.

Does this make the Jets the favorites to win the conference?

It’s enough to put them firmly in the conversation.

That conversation also includes a powerful Ravens team, a tricky Texans bunch and a few eye-catching yet unknown commodities like the Chargers, along with a few others.

It’s true Revis gets an awful lot of publicity, and I could live without every having to hear the term “Revis Island" again, but when you see the way that Jets defensive unit plays with Revis in there, you realize just how much of a factor he can be.

Now that factor could be ready to make the Jets a factor in the AFC title race.