In a surprising franchise tag deadline move, the New York Jets have extended the contract of defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson. The move was announced 29 minutes after the extension deadline of 4 p.m. ET. CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora announced via Twitter that Wilkerson would be getting $85 million over a span of five years. Mo was the third tagged player to have their contract extended, the others being Von Miller and Justin Tucker.
This is a fairly surprising move, as Wilkerson himself publicly stated that he didn’t feel that the Jets wanted him. Because of this, it was well expected that he wouldn’t re-sign with the team. In spite of this, he chose to take a deal that will make him the third-highest paid defensive player in the league.
Wilkerson has racked up 36.5 sacks in five seasons, and has been a dominant force on New York’s d-line. He is just coming off of a broken leg suffered in the last game of the season. However, the Jets must have faith in him to rack up this hefty sum of cash.
