One of the biggest priorities for the New York Jets in the 2024 offseason is to find a reliable No. 2 receiver alongside Garrett Wilson.
While the quarterback situation after Aaron Rodgers’ torn Achilles in Week 1 did Jets receivers no favors, it was a glaring weakness, as current No. 2 receiver Allen Lazard’s measly 311 yards represented the second-highest yardage total from the Jets receiving corps.
Connor Hughes of SNY reported that significant help could be on the way in the form of a big-name free agent.
Spoke with @Connor_J_Hughes in Indy about the #Jets free agent plans, and he mentioned the team will be interested in the top free agent WR’s and the most likely target is Calvin Ridley.
They will be aggressive in their pursuit, but they know the price will be driven up due to… pic.twitter.com/jqDBxBUkrW
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) March 2, 2024
Hughes reported that Calvin Ridley is the team’s most likely target after posting 76 catches for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns in Jacksonville this past season.
Ridley showed early chemistry with quarterback Trevor Lawrence and looked like he hadn’t missed a step following over a year and a half away from the game following a lengthy suspension.
According to Hughes, the Jets were aggressive in their pursuit of Ridley back when he was in Atlanta.
Ultimately, the Falcons did not want to act in bad faith knowing that Ridley would be suspended, and later wound up shipping him to the Jaguars.
The market for Ridley is sure to be competitive given the NFL’s major increase in cap space and the bevy of teams in need of help at wide receiver.
Ridley is no stranger to playing alongside great wide receivers and appears to thrive in that role.
After thriving alongside Julio Jones for years in Atlanta, there were questions about how Ridley would fit in alongside Christian Kirk in Jacksonville.
He quickly silenced those critics and could look to do the same playing alongside Wilson.
A Ridley addition would be a great welcome-back present for Aaron Rodgers in 2024.
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