The Jets brass delivered a not-so-subtle message during this offseason, a message that was punctuated with an exclamation point during the final day of the NFL Draft.
With all the talk about who was acquired through earlier signings and this weekend’s draft picks, those players purged from the roster will also leave an impression on the upcoming season.
Kerry Rhodes? Gone. Thomas Jones? Gone. Leon Washington? Gone. Alan Faneca? Gone. Four high-profile players will not be with the Jets next year, and those who remain, except for quarterback Mark Sanchez, can’t feel particularly comfortable about their long-term future with the team.
What GM Mike Tannenbaum and coach Rex Ryan have shown this offseason, and this weekend in particular, is they aren’t reluctant to get rid of players regardless of their standing on the team.
Washington and Faneca learned that the hard way yesterday. First, Washington, the popular running back trying to recover from a broken leg suffered last season, was dealt to the Seahawks along with a seventh-round pick for a measly fifth-round selection the Jets used to take Kentucky fullback John Conner.
Then Faneca, the nine-time Pro Bowl guard who would have been entering his third season with the Jets, was released.
Ryan might be regarded as a players’ coach during the season, but when it comes to rebuilding the roster, all bets are off. Ruthless Rex and Merciless Mike struck in full force yesterday, putting the remaining Jets on edge for all of the 2010 season.
“I think the team knows we’re driving to win a championship,” Ryan said, “and we’re not going to be complacent. Everything we do is for the betterment of the team.”
With Fancea gone, second-year player Matt Slauson and second-round pick Vladimir Ducasse of UMass will compete for the job at left guard. Whether that makes for a better offensive line is debatable, but that’s the spin Tannenbaum and Ryan were selling yesterday.
Washington became expendable when the Jets moved up in the fourth round to select USC running back Joe McKnight, targeted to be a third-down specialist. He also can return punts, as can first-round pick Kyle Wilson. Still, Tannenbaum admitted the main reason for Washington being dealt was signing him after the 2010 season would have been “very, very difficult,” Tannenbaum said.
Money also was a factor in Faneca’s release. He was due $7.5 million this year.
“We just felt managing the team both short-term and long-term that this was in the best interest of our team,” Tannenbaum said, later adding, “We have to make the right decisions, not the easy ones.”
Change is inevitable in the NFL, but few could have expected the turnover that has taken place on a team that reached the AFC Championship game last year. Jones rushed for a career-high 1,402 yards in 2009; Washington was an inspiration on the field and in the locker room trying to rehab his leg while hoping for a new contract; and Faneca was a central figure in an offensive line that blocked for the top running game in the NFL. Obviously, none of it was good enough to guarantee another season on the team.
“Are you going to stay the same, get better or get worse? We’re going to get better,” Ryan said. “That’s why we made the moves we’ve made.”
The chemistry in the locker room will change as well with veteran newcomers LaDainian Tomlinson, Antonio Cromartie and Jason Taylor joining four drafted rookies. But Ryan doesn’t foresee a problem.
“We have a lot of great people that have left our building, but we’ve got a ton of them still in it,” the coach said. “I think [chemistry] will be a strength of our team. Everybody has to understand we’re committed to winning a championship here.”
They’ll also understand they’re expendable no matter how well they perform.
george.willis@nypost.com