When the Jets made their aggressive trade-up move into the first round Saturday to draft tight end Dustin Keller, it left many people around the league scratching their heads in bewilderment.
Count Jets starting tight end Chris Baker as one of them.
Baker, who recently left the Jets’ offseason conditioning program in protest over the team’s apparent unwillingness to renegotiate his below-market contract, told The Post in an exclusive interview today that he wants to remain a Jet for the rest of his career, but finds it hard to believe the team wants him here based on the way he’s being treated.
Unless the Jets re-do Baker’s contract, he’ll find himself as the third-highest paid tight end on the team despite the fact he’s the starter and coming off the best season of his career with 41 catches.
The Jets signed veteran free agent Bubba Franks to a one-year, $1.65 million deal this offseason and, as the 30th draft pick in the first round, Keller will be signed to a contract that’ll pay him even more than that.
Baker is due to make $683,000 this season.
What galls Baker most is the fact that, dating back two years, promises have been made to him by the Jets about reworking his contract. According to Baker’s agent, Jonathan Feinsod, “Jets management has acknowledged that Chris has outperformed his contract.”
“I’m angry about the fact that they said, ‘We’re going to do something for you,’ and nothing’s being done,” Baker told The Post. “It doesn’t make any sense. I’ve been here six years and I’ve always done what they’ve asked me to do.”
Baker said he never wanted to leave the offseason conditioning program, but felt he had no choice.
“What else can I do?” he said. “I don’t think I’m being unreasonable. I needed to let it be known that I’m not happy and nothing is being addressed with my contract.”
Baker, in the third year of a four-year, $6.6 million contract, has quietly watched this offseason as the Jets have not only spent more than $140 million in free-agent contracts, but also taken care of a couple of his fellow veterans who were still under contract.
When receiver Laveranues Coles boycotted the beginning of the offseason program because he was unhappy with his contract status, the Jets appeased him by guaranteeing the final two years of his contract worth $11 million.
Then they re-signed safety Kerry Rhodes, who had a year remaining on his contract, to a new deal with $20 million in guarantees.
“I was happy for both of those guys because they’re both deserving,” Baker said.
One NFL source said the drafting of Keller was a clear “cat-and-mouse” move to avoid the Baker situation becoming similar to the messy Pete Kendall ordeal of a year ago.
“This is their insurance policy to make sure what happened with Pete doesn’t happen again,” the source told The Post. “They figured if they can get a high-round [draft pick] then they won’t be stuck [like they were last year without a starting guard to replace Kendall].”
Oddly enough, Baker recently signed on to be represented by Feinsod, the same agent as Kendall.
Feinsod, a week ago yesterday, formally asked the Jets to trade Baker, a request that was declined.
“Chris Baker will be on our team,” Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum has stated firmly.