Eric Decker Gives Up On Super Bowl Dreams; Signs With Jets

Eric Decker — the prolific wide receiver who has been a favorite target for Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning over the last couple of seasons — has apparently decided to leave Denver and instead become the newest member of the New York Jets, according to a report on ESPN.com.

Decker apparently has agreed to a 5-year deal that is worth a total of $36.25 million — with $15 million of that being guaranteed.

Rumors about the Jets’ and Decker’s mutual interest started to fly Tuesday evening after Decker arrived in Florham Park to meet with head coach Rex Ryan and other personnel from the team.

For the Jets, the signing of Decker is undoubtedly a step in the right direction. After the up-and-down rookie season from Jets’ quarterback Geno Smith, the Jets knew they needed to surround the young play caller with some high-quality receivers if he were to succeed. Decker certainly fits that bill.

Eric is coming off of a career year with 87 receptions and more than 1,200 yards during the 2013 season. Of course, much of this success can be attributed to being on the receiving end of one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.

The Jets certainly made an offer to Decker that would be hard to refuse, but one has to wonder if Eric will question leaving the highest-scoring offense in the history of the NFL and instead moving to a team that finished 31st in the league in passing offense last season.

The Jets seemed to be pretty confident that the deal with Decker was going to work out. The team had previously released top receiver Santonio Holmes just a couple of days before signing Decker.

Despite Decker’s successes, questions certainly still remain about his abilities. Some believe that Decker’s stats were simply a product of playing alongside Manning. Naysayers point to the fact that Eric was a non-factor in the Broncos blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the 2014 Super Bowl.

While some have questioned Decker’s ability to play against aggressive defensive backs, it is difficult to argue against the numbers he has put up in recent years. Decker is one of only a handful of players to catch double-digit touchdowns in the last two seasons.

Now that Eric is part of the Jets, he will have the chance to prove that he can be the dominant receiver on a team that is in desperate need for playmakers.

Image via Fox Sports