It looks like Santonio Holmes will indeed be with the Jets in 2012.
Holmes, whose season ended with a benching in Miami, is guaranteed $7.5 million of his $11 million 2013 salary because he was still on the Jets’ roster this morning.
That means the Jets owe the wide receiver $15.25 million of guaranteed money, an amount that means he won’t be going anywhere. The Jets have said publicly since the season ended they would keep Holmes, but parting still seemed like something the team had to consider after the way Holmes’ 2011 season went.
Holmes fought with quarterback Mark Sanchez at the end of the season then had no catches in the finale against the Dolphins. Former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer benched Holmes with two minutes left in the game. After the game, one of his teammates called him a “cancer.”
In his second season with the Jets, Holmes was far less effective than in 2010. He had 51 catches for 654 yards and eight touchdowns.
Even after the meltdown in Miami, Jets management defended Holmes.
“I think first off, to dismiss some of the good things that Santonio has done for the two years he’s been here, he’s been a tremendous player for us,” coach Rex Ryan said Jan. 2, the day after the season ended. “He’s won a ton of games for this franchise. And he’s been a good teammate. … Are there some things that we need to get corrected? Absolutely. And it’s not just with him, but others as well; myself, I’m the first one that looks at we have to change some things and we will change.
“Those are things we will look at in the offseason, and we will find a way to get this done, but I believe Santonio will be back next year.”
Ryan said last week Holmes and Sanchez are planning to get together to hash out their issues from last year.
Holmes’ contract is one of several that hold a large amount of guaranteed money and could restrict how active the Jets can be in free agency.
“I think the Jets are tied together by a lot of guaranteed contracts,” NFL Network analyst and former league executive Michael Lombardi said last week. “I don’t know how you could ever go about fixing it. If Santonio [Holmes] is on the team in [February], he’s guaranteed the next year. I think whenever you have a locker room controlled by guaranteed money it’s tough to fix.”
* The Jets signed wide receiver Patrick Turner to a one-year, $650,000 deal, according to a source. Turner was scheduled to become a restricted free agent.