Throughout most of this off-season, I have remained optimistic about Antonio Cromartie returning to the New York Jets. However, considering how the market for cornerbacks could shape up and his recent comments, that optimism is rapidly dwindling.
This past week when talking with Adam Schein on Sirius XM Radio, Cromartie was adamant about not taking a hometown discount for the Jets and listed Arizona, Dallas, Houston, Jacksonville, Oakland, and Tampa Bay as other potential destinations. He also said he would wait to see how much money Nnamdi Asomugha is paid before making any type of decision, which means don't expect the Jets to get a deal done with him in their window of exclusivity to negotiate with their own free agents.
Clearly Cromartie has a short memory about the Jets fronting him $500,000 dollars for his child support problems before last season and has no desire to return the favor. He is going where he receives the most money and whatever team loses out on the Asomugha sweepstakes will likely offer him a deal the Jets won't be able to match, considering that Santonio Holmes and maybe even Braylon Edwards will be a higher priority.
Other cornerbacks the Jets could look at to replace Cromartie are Jonathan Joseph, Richard Marshall, Chris Carr, and Carlos Rogers. They may also decide to simply hand the starting job opposite Darrelle Revis to second year player Kyle Wilson, although that could be a risky move considering his struggles last year.