Damien Woody is be a case study in discussing what makes Mike Tannenbaum an excellent general manager. Woody started his career as a center with the Patriots. He moved to guard and to the Lions. His career there was up and down. He was a Pro Bowl alternate at one point and benched at another. During his final season in Detroit in 2007, he started 6 games at tackle. This was the first action of his career outside. Signing him to a free agent contract to play tackle was a risk.
The Jets liked what they saw on film, though, and determined through their research that Woody would fit there. He stepped in as a starter and gave the Jets three years of excellent play at the position. He stayed healthy in 2008 and 2009. He was playing like an elite right tackle in 2010 until injuries to his knee and Achilles tendon derailed his year.
That Achilles injury was a serious one, though, a torn tendon. That is a difficult injury to recover from for anybody, no less a 33 year old tackle who depends on a quick initial burst to do his job. With $3.24 million potentially to be saved by cutting him, the Jets are likely to give some thought to at least letting him go.