On March 8, Day 2 of “soft free agency,” an NFL investigator visited the Jets’ facilities Florham Park, N.J., to interview GM Mike Maccagnan and other Jets front office members about their pursuit of Darrelle Revis, the New York Daily News’ Manish Mehta reports.
Mehta, who said owner Woody Johnson was not interviewed, called this investigation a “witch hunt” stemming from the Patriots’ tampering charge based on Johnson’s pro-Revis sentiments expressed in a December 2014 interview.
Mehta’s sources indicated New England was out on Revis a full day before the Jets eventually reacquired the dominant cornerback on a five-year, $70MM deal, while he goes on to cite New York’s financial and location advantages before delving into the Patriots’ rapid 2014 signing of Revis hours after his release from the Buccaneers.
CSN New England’s Tom Curran disagrees, calling the Patriots’ accusation legitimate with the Jets owner clearly violating the tampering rules with his desire to see Revis return. Johnson’s December comments about the then-Pats employee displays “blissful ignorance” of the rules, Curran asserts.
It’s clear the soon-to-be 30-year-old corner’s latest transaction didn’t exactly soothe tensions between the rivals.