Negotiations between the New York Jets and All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams aren’t going well right now as we enter the midway point of May.
After his brother Quincy announced that he was preparing for a baby in the coming weeks, and recent reports stated the two sides were far off on a lucrative contract extension, Williams has since taken to social media to voice his displeasure.
The former Alabam product changed his Twitter bio to read “Defensive Tackle for ………” in a move that shows his frustration with how talks have been going with the Jets organization. The former third overall selection also last retweeted the announcement that Giants’ defensive standout Dexter Lawrence signed his four-year extension with the team that drafted him for $90 million.
Of course, Lawrence wasn’t the only tackle that received a new deal this offseason. Daron Payne and Jeffrey Simmons both received per-year contracts of over $22 million while resetting the market for the defensive tackle position.
As the last standout tackle to not receive the deal he wants, Williams has since taken to social media to campaign for receiving a higher deal. To his credit, none of the players that signed a deal to this point have been a first-team All-Pro selection. Also, there’s a major gap between the highest-paid defensive tackle (Aaron Donald) and the second-highest (Jeffrey Simmons). An argument can be made that Williams is the best interior defender both against the run and past behind the future Hall-of-Famer.
The longer these public disputes happen between the team and the player though, the murkier the waters will be for when training camp and mandatory minicamp actually begin. The Jets’ top defensive player has already said this offseason that he would not attend voluntary workouts until an agreement was made.
Williams carries a base salary of under $10 million this year and will be a free agent after this season if an agreement is not made and the team decides to pass on the franchise tag.
