Jets All-Pro CB Darrelle Revis sits out OTA practice amid contract dispute

Jets All-Pro CB Revis sits out OTA practice

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — New York Jets All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis sat out of practice Thursday while he seeks a new contract.

Revis was not on the field with the rest of the team during the voluntary session, the first time this offseason he missed a practice. Revis wants to be the highest-paid player at his position, but was initially scheduled to make just $1 million in the fourth season of his six-year rookie deal.

“I love him. He’s a great guy,” coach Rex Ryan said. “The fact that he wasn’t out there today, this is voluntary camp. So you’d have to ask him the reason why he wasn’t here.”

Agent Neil Schwartz declined comment to The Associated Press.

“We remain committed to trying to get something done within reason that’s good for Darrelle and good for the team,” general manager Mike Tannenbaum said. “Hopefully he’ll be here not only for the short-term, but the long-term.”

Ryan added that he hadn’t spoken to Revis, and was uncertain whether the star cornerback would sit out additional practices. The Jets have organized team activities next week, and their three-day mandatory minicamp begins June 14.

“We’ll see what happens,” Ryan said. “When it’s time to react or be frustrated and all that kind of stuff, I’ll react. With Darrelle, he’s been here every day up until this. He volunteered to be here every single day and now he wasn’t here today. These are voluntary camps just like there are voluntary workouts and he’s made every one of them until today. I’ve been impressed with him, to say the least, the way he’s worked.”

All-Pro center Nick Mangold is also looking for a new deal, and wouldn’t guarantee that he would not hold out of minicamp.

“I don’t see missing mandatory minicamp, probably not,” Mangold said. “I don’t think that’s in our plans. I can say we haven’t had any talks about not coming to mandatory minicamp.”

Mangold, who has made two Pro Bowl appearances, is entering the final season of a five-year deal and discusses the situation with his agent at least twice a week.

“My agent and I talk and try to get a feeling for what we want to do, what’s coming from the Jets,” Mangold said. “So we’re always talking and you try to be as informed as possible when you make these kinds of decisions.”

Mangold, a first-round pick in 2006, was the anchor of an offensive line that helped pave the way for the NFL’s top rushing offense last season. He is also widely recognized as the top center in the league.

“We’re just going with the flow,” Mangold said, adding that Revis’ situation won’t affect his own.

“He remains a priority, too,” Tannenbaum said of Mangold. “A top priority.”

Tannenbaum added that the uncertainty of the collective bargaining agreement is a tough factor to navigate around when dealing with prospective long-term deals.

Revis said two weeks ago that the team sent his agents a proposal that was being evaluated. Considered by many the top shutdown cornerback in the league, Revis said that “if everything’s right, the numbers are right, and everything’s good, then I’ll sign on the dotted line.”

Apparently, the numbers were not right, from Revis’ perspective.

“That’s just part of the business,” Ryan said.

Revis said the team has promised him it would take care of the contract by training camp in August.

“What I’d say about that is, we’ve remained committed to getting something done for both sides,” Tannenbaum said.

Revis also believes his request to be the highest-paid player at his position is hardly outrageous. He’s coming off an outstanding season in which he routinely handled opponents’ top receivers, and finished second to Green Bay’s Charles Woodson for the Defensive Player of the Year. Oakland’s Nnamdi Asomugha is currently the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL after signing a three-year, $45.3 million extension last offseason.

“All I can say is that Darrelle is everything we believe in, on and off the field,” Tannenbaum said. “We told him that shortly after the season. We remain committed to that. He’s a foundation for this organization.”