The stalemate between the New York Jets and star pass-rusher Haason Reddick is about to enter its third month, and there doesn't appear to be any resolution coming soon.
One idea that has been floated from analysts and fans has been for the Jets to simply trade Reddick back to the Philadelphia Eagles, whom they acquired the two-time Pro Bowler from in late March.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport explained on Monday why that won't be happening any time soon.
Soon after Reddick began his holdout in late July, he started to rack up thousands in fines for missing mandatory training camp. That was on top of what he was penalized for skipping minicamp, and he has since been docked more money for missing the preseason and first four regular season contests.
Reddick joined the Eagles in March 2022 after spending the first four seasons of his career with the Arizona Cardinals and the 2021 campaign with the Carolina Panthers. He was one of the best linebackers over the past two campaigns in Philadelphia, leading the NFL in forced fumbles (five) in 2022 and finishing second in sacks (16.0) that year as well.
Reddick finished the 2022 season as a second team All-Pro, earning his first Pro Bowl honor and finishing fourth in the AP Defensive Player of the Year voting. The 30-year-old Reddick paced Philadelphia in tackles for loss (13) and sacks (11.0) in 2023 while tying for the top spot in quarterback hits (23).
He made his second consecutive Pro Bowl in 2023 and has been ultra consistent over the past four years, posting between 11 and 16 sacks each season.
Gang Green has the sixth-ranked defense (15.5 points allowed per game) in the NFL and has surrendered just 30 points over the last three games. After losing 32-19 to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1, New York (2-2) has faced significantly easier offenses in the last three contests in the Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots and Denver Broncos. The Titans, Patriots and Broncos are ranked 27th, 31st and 28th, respectively.
The Jets take on a pair of top-five offenses in the next two weeks, however. New York travels to London to play quarterback Sam Darnold's fourth-ranked offense with the Minnesota Vikings in Week 5 before hosting Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills (second in offense) on "Monday Night Football" in Week 6.