IFWT_Darrelle Revis Jets Patriots

AFC East rivals, the New York Jets and New England Patriots are at it again.  In December, Jets owner Woody Johnson publicly expressed interest in bringing back cornerback Darrelle Revis, who at the time was under contract with the Patriots.  The Patriots later filed tampering charges against the Jets.  On Monday, Patriots owner Robert Kraft spoke about the departure of Revis for the Jets.  The next day, the Jets filed tampering charges against the Patriots.

Shay Marie

The tampering rules prohibit “[a]ny public or private statement of interest, qualified orunqualified, in another club’s player to that player’s agent or representative, or to a member of the news media.”  The rule includes this example of prohibited statements:  “He’s an excellent player, and we’d very much like to have him if he were available, but another club holds his rights.”

In December, Johnson said he’d like to bring Revis back, at a time the contract Revis signed with the Patriots was nearing its conclusion.  On Monday, Kraft said he wanted to keep Revis, two weeks after Revis signed a multi-year deal with $39 million fully guaranteed to play for the Jets.  While the Jets may see this as a goose/gander situation, the circumstances are fundamentally different.

Indeed, Johnson said he wanted to bring back Revis at a time when Revis was under contract with the Patriots.  Kraft merely said he had wanted to keep Revis after Revis left for another team.

ProFootballTalk