The Jets are expected to sign former Lions center Travis Swanson, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Swanson will almost certainly join New York as a reserve, as the Jets already signed former Redskin Spencer Long last month to be their starting center. While Swanson could also conceivably play guard, Gang Green is also set — for now — with James Carpenter and Brian Winters. While Winters is under contract through the 2020 campaign, Carpenter is only signed through 2018, and New York could create $4.7MM in cap space by cutting ties with the 29-year-old.
But based on his 2017 production, Swanson may be better served as a depth piece. Although he was a Detroit starter for the past three years, Swanson was not effective last season, as Pro Football Focus graded the former third-round pick as a bottom-five center. Football Outsiders, meanwhile, charted the Lions with the fewest adjusted line yards when running behind its center in 2017.
With Swanson now off the board, the interior line market is now extremely weak. The best unsigned options remaining include Alex Boone, Jahri Evans, Luke Joeckel, Brian Schwenke, and Shawn Lauvao.
I hope this doesnt ward of the Jets from drafting OL. They need as many o-lineman as they can get
I sure hope so too. Swanson has concussion problems. I think the jets won the swap of lineman though(wesley johnson to the lions). As a lions fan, I would rather have Swanson. Although either option has its questions.