Trumaine Johnson and AJ McCarron among PFF’s free agents to avoid

Last week Pro Football Focus put together a list of free agents to avoid. On it were a few free agents some have suggested for the Jets.

One is Trumaine Johnson, a player many consider the top cornerback on the market. The Jets have a need, a lot of money, and Johnson’s old position coach.

PFF argues, however, he might not be a great investment on big money.

Johnson has all the traits of an elite corner, and the fact that he was franchised twice already might suggest he is one, but nothing in our grading agrees with that evaluation. In fact, it can be argued that Johnson was the weak link in the Rams’ secondary at times last year. He gave up at least 79 yards in four separate games and his 759 yards allowed were fifth-most among all corners. He’s a solid starter, but is not worth near what he got paid the past two seasons.

Another player to make the list is Bengals quarterback AJ McCarron.

Brock Osweiler, Mike Glennon, A.J. McCarron. Rinse. Repeat. There is nothing in McCarron’s 201 career dropbacks that suggests he’s ready to be a franchise quarterback. At the same time though, he wasn’t dreadful and hasn’t seen the field for a meaningful stretch of time in three years so he has to be better now, right? Right? The allure of potential at quarterback gets GMs all hot and bothered, but he was a fifth-rounder for a reason and has done nothing to change our minds on that.

This article is a good read that makes compelling cases against certain players. PFF leaves its 1-100 grading system at home, focusing instead on facts and relevant skills.