Ranking the top ten Jets departures of the offseason

A few days ago, we ranked the 10 most important additions of the offseason. However, today, we're headed for the departure lounge.

Before we start, it's important to clarify how we're ranking these moves. We could rank them in terms of which ones will benefit the Jets most of all in terms of being an addition-by-subtraction. Alternatively, we could seek to determine which will have the biggest negative impact on the team.

Let's settle on those losses which it will be most important to replace. In some cases an apparent replacement is already lined up, whereas in others the replacement is uncertain.

(10. RB Isaiah Crowell

Crowell was brought in because of his durability but was banged-up and inconsistent before missing the second half of the season. Adding Le'Veon Bell gives the Jets a good chance to wipe the slate clean. Crowell's record-breaking performance against the Broncos could stand for some time, but - as a measure of his inconsistency - Bilal Powell rushed for 50 yards more times than Crowell did, despite missing nine games.

(9. CB Buster Skrine

Many people were glad to see the back of Skrine, not least the media, many of whom seemed obsessed with the fact that Todd Bowles was relucant to bench him. The Jets hope that Brian Poole or Parry Nickerson will fill his role but still lack depth on the outside, which was somewhere Skrine was able to contribute at times.

(8. C Spencer Long

Long's disastrous season saw him rendered incapable of doing his most important job and snapping the ball reliably due to a measly finger injury. However, despite everyone identifying center as being a key need for the 2019 Jets, they somehow made themselves even weaker at that position by letting him go to their divisional rivals in Buffalo.

(7. G James Carpenter

Carpenter is viewed by Jets fans as a player who didn't have much left, but the Falcons obviously felt otherwise as they gave him a four-year deal in free agency. Carpenter, who only turned 30 a few months ago, had an uneven year but the running game immediately got markedly worse once he was ruled out for the season, so perhaps his contributions were more important than believed. The Jets will hope Kelechi Osemele will provide an upgrade here.

(6. HC Todd Bowles

The Jets hope that Adam Gase will eradicate some of the issues tied to Bowles' biggest deficiencies. Bowles was thought to be too loyal to veteran players, didn't have much success in developing young talent and had problems with insubordination and accountability. Many of the coaches that departed with him won't be missed, but a few of them - Stump Mitchell, Kevin Greene and Karl Dorrell - were felt by some to have a promising future.

(5. GM Mike Maccagnan

Fans seemed to like Maccagnan's last few drafts and some of the moves he made in the offseason, but it sure sounds like his departure was necessary if the Jets were going to have a harmonious regime this year. Whether they live to regret this remains to be seen. Joe Douglas inherits a team that Maccagnan put together, so it will be interesting to see how long it takes him to put his own stamp on things.

(4. The Old Uniforms

Public opinion is divided on the new uniforms, which will probably take some getting used to. A winning team will help in that regard. Is there any combination as classy as the all-whites look in the old uniforms? Perhaps not, but at least the ugliness of the all-green pickle pants look seems to have been improved upon.

(3. K Jason Myers

He's only a kicker, but how often do you see a Jets team let a pro bowler walk? (Actually, it's not all that rare, as the Jets have done it with LaRon Landry, Chris Ivory and Antonio Cromartie over the past several years). The Jets will expect Chandler Catanzaro to be a slight downgrade, albeit at a cheaper cost. However, if that costs the Jets just one game, that could be crucial in terms of their playoff hopes.

(2. KR/PR/WR Andre Roberts

Myers wasn't the only pro bowl special teamer the Jets let go this offseason. Roberts scored two touchdowns and led the NFL in total return yardage and average yards per punt return (and was second in kick-off return average). With no obvious replacement for either role, the concern is not just that the Jets will miss out on his playmaking to keep them in games, but also that his replacement could make some costly mistakes.

(1. LB Darron Lee

Lee apparently became surplus to requirements once the Jets added CJ Mosley but moving him may also have been motivated by other factors. Otherwise, it seems a little reckless to trade away your most athletic coverage linebacker - especially with Kevin Pierre-Louis also hitting the waiver wire. The Jets will hope rookie Blake Cashman can contribute in this role - otherwise they might need to go DB-heavy in some packages to match up adequately.