Jason Vander Laan

AFC East Notes: Jets, Bills, Glenn, Patriots

By Zachary Links | at May 8, 2016 12:51 pm

A decorated Division II college quarterback, Jason Vander Laan is attempting to make the Jets as a tight end, as Brian Costello of the New York Post writes.

“It’s a different perspective,” said Vander Laan, who has never played tight end before. “It’s different being in the huddle and not calling out the play. It’s different lining up and not touching the ball every play. But I’m having a great time and having fun out here. There’s still plenty of learning to be done. I’m just trying to get the hang of things and pick up the system.”

The former Ferris State star won D2’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy in each of the last two years. In 2015, he threw for 2,626 yards and 27 touchdowns and rushed for 1,542 yards and 24 touchdowns. Now, he’ll try and apply that athleticism to a brand new position.

Here’s more out of the AFC East:

• Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap was surprised by the big money contracts given to Terron Armstead and Cordy Glenn. While both players came away with sizable deals, Fitzgerald believes that Glenn is the bigger winner of the two with cap hits in ’17 and ’18 that could very likely be restructured. As for the Bills‘ side of things, Fitzgerald isn’t sure why the team traded its future financial flexibility for immediate cap relief when it wasn’t necessary.
• Malcolm Butler‘s rise from undrafted free agent to Pro Bowler has made other UDFAs want to join up with the Patriots, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes. This year, the Pats signed three undrafted corners in Illinois’ V’Angelo Bentley, Auburn’s Jonathan Jones and Florida Atlantic’s Cre’Von LeBlanc. “Clearly when a tryout guy like Malcolm Butler ends up where he does, it’s an example of how they play the best players and it’s truly an open competition, no matter how you got there,” said Joe Linta, who represents Jones. Jones is a particularly interesting prospect – he posted a 4.3 second 40-yard-dash time, but teams were concerned about his 5’9″ height.
• On Saturday, the Dolphins and Cameron Wake reached agreement on a two-year, $15MM extension. The seven-year veteran made only seven appearances last season due to a torn ACL, but the team ostensibly believes that he has fully recovered from that injury.