Jets Sign CB Trumaine Johnson

The Jets have made their first huge splash of free agency. They’ve agreed to sign cornerback Trumaine Johnson, 28, formerly of the Rams, to a deal that (as of current details) will tie him for the largest annual value at the CB position.

Johnson was graded as PFF’s 68th-ranked corner this year; though he did primarily match up against opposing top receivers. I had Johnson listed on a recent article as one of three big-name free agents for the Jets to steer clear of. $15M per year is a ton of money. We’ll see the guarantees and exact numbers soon, but as of right now that 15 number would tie with Josh Norman at the top of the list for corners.

I don’t think Johnson is in the conversation for the best cornerback in the league, and therefore I don’t think this is a good value move. He has been an above average, but not shutdown corner. However, the Jets had money to spend and a dire need at the cornerback position, and they got the top player on the market at the position. Johnson is also a prototype fit for the Todd Bowles defense with his tremendous size, at 6’2.

Here’s a really great informational tweet from Bleacher Report’s Ian Wharton with numbers backing up Trumaine’s fit as a press corner:

At the end of the day, the Jets had more money to spend than anyone else, more need at corner than anyone else, and they got the market’s most talented and proven corner who fits their scheme. I’ll take it after everything else that transpired today.