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NFL Network's Kimberly Jones reported this morning that the New York Jets and free agent DE Jason Babin have agreed to terms on a two-year deal:
Jason Babin has agreed to terms with Jets, according to someone familiar with negotiations. Two-year deal.
— Kimberly Jones (@KimJonesSports) July 23, 2014
Others later confirmed the agreement, including ESPN's Adam Caplan:
Veteran DE Jason Babin has agreed to terms with the #Jets, according to his agents, Eastern Athletics Agency.
— Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) July 23, 2014
Here is what Big Cat Country wrote of Babin last month before his release:
Babin was really the only (Jaguars) end who consistently got pressure last season and played a ton of snaps.
Babin just turned 34 years old and is right at that threshold where his play can suddenly just fall off a cliff. He was still productive last season and re-signed at a cheaper rate this year and will likely be a back up/rotation player... but if it begins to go with Babin it will likely go fast.
Babin has stayed relatively healthy, so really just age catching up to him is where he could regress this season.
Here are Scott Salmon's thoughts on this:
Babin is a defensive end who is primarily a pass rusher. With the look at Quentin Groves yesterday, clearly the team wanted someone that can apply pressure to opposing offensive lines.
Babin is mostly a Wide-9 defensive end, which means he’s outside of the tackle, pinning his ears back and going after the quarterback. Last year, for the Jacksonville Jaguars, he had 7.5 sacks, which was the third most in his career. He had 18.0 in 2011 and 12.5 in 2010. Fun fact, when I mentioned this to my friend, he asked if the Jets are trying to build a "Great Wall of Death." He is currently thirty-four years old, so I expect this to be a short-term deal for pretty cheap.
As Babin is getting up there in age, he should provide good relief pass rushing skills, as he shouldn’t, and won’t, be a starter anymore. I would have preferred to have gotten an outside linebacker that can do what he does, but Babin is still a good player. Let’s see if he can do it again for another year.