Demario Davis returned to the Jets last season and became a vital piece of the defense. The inside linebacker led the Jets with 135 tackles, nine tackles for loss and five sacks. There was a belief Davis wouldn’t leave the Jets in free agency.
But what he wanted financially and what the team was willing to give him were two different things.
Enter Avery Williamson.
The Jets signed Williamson to a three-year contract with $16 million guaranteed. Williamson will get his 2018 and 2019 base salaries fully guaranteed totaling $10 million. And Williamson, 26, isn’t worried about replacing Davis at inside linebacker because, as he said Tuesday in a conference call, he’s not going to be somebody he’s not.