The New York Jets announced that they have tendered restricted free agents Damon Harrison and Jaiquawn Jarrett. This means the Jets have the right of first refusal to match any offers these players receive. It also means the Jets will receive compensation should either player get signed by another team.
We've tendered RFA Damon Harrison (2nd round) & Jaiquawn Jarrett (original).
— New York Jets (@nyjets) March 9, 2015
By league rules, because Harrison was tendered at 2nd round level, #Jets would receive 3rd round compensation if another team signs Jarrett.
— New York Jets (@nyjets) March 9, 2015
Daryl Slater explains exactly what this means on NJ.com:
If another team wants to sign Harrison, and the Jets decide not to match what that team offers him, the Jets would get a second-round draft pick in return, upon Harrison’s departure. The pick would be for this year’s draft, as is the case with all restricted free agent compensation every year. Harrison got a standard second-round tender.
Teams aren’t allowed to tender two restricted free agents in the same round in the same year. Even though Jarrett was originally drafted in the second round, the Jets couldn’t give him a second-round restricted free agent tender, and then do the same for Harrison. So if Jarrett is signed away from the Jets, after they decide not to match what another team offers, the Jets would get a third-round pick in return, not a second-rounder.
Any restricted free agent tendered an offer sheet — which is what the Jets gave Harrison and Jarrett on Monday — has until April 24 to sign, and that player’s current team has until April 29 to exercise its right of first refusal on any offer sheet the player may get from another team.
