Brandon Moore: Stay or Go?

Thinking about Mo Lewis always makes me sad. Lewis had a long and productive career with the Jets. He was one of the few bright spots on some dismal Jets teams in the 1990's. All that anybody remembers about him, though, is he delivered the hit on Drew Bledsoe that collapsed Bledsoe's lung and led to Tom Brady getting a chance to quarterback the Patriots.

I think Brandon Moore is unfortunately set to suffer the same fate. Years from now, few will remember the understated lineman's productive career. They will not remember how productive he was. They will not remember the durability that led to eight straight years without missing a start in the trenches. They will not remember how refined his game was. They will not remember how good he was pass blocking or run blocking. They will not remember how he was an integral part of a dominant offensive line that helped the team make multiple deep Playoff runs. They will remember that Moore's quarterback ran into his rear end and fumbled in 2012.

In the short term, Moore is as close to a must re-sign as there could be. I think bringing him back is second only to getting Darrelle Revis locked up. Right now the offensive line is the only part of the offense that is not in a catastrophic state. If the Jets lose Moore, that will probably change very quickly. Even though he is turning 33 before the season, he is still an extremely effective pass blocker and run blocker. Austin Howard beat modest expectations this year, and a lot of the credit probably belongs to playing next to Moore.

If the Jets were a well-run organization, they would have groomed a young replacement who could provide comparable production at a fraction of the cost, allowing them to let some other team pay Moore. Instead the Jets have Vladimir Ducasse and Caleb Schlauderaff. A right side of the line with either of those guys next to Howard would probably turn into an abject disaster to go with the rest of the offense.

The Jets need to re-sign Moore. I think they just have to figure out a way..