Jets GM Joe Douglas wasn't going to let his first day at the helm for NFL free agency go without a signing, and he did just that with former Seahawks OT George Fant agreeing to a three-year deal that could be worth a maximum of $30 million, SNY's Ralph Vacchiano confirmed. Fant gets $13.7 million guaranteed in the deal.
The Jets watched as players like Jack Conklin, Graham Glasgow and others fell off the free agency board. But Douglas still comes away with a tackle option -- one that he may believe in more than others.
Fant wasn't a first-stringer for the Seahawks in his three seasons there, but rather backed up Duane Brown at left tackle. He did appear in all 16 games, but only had seven starts. Also, per Michael Nania, Fant was ranked 75th out of 84 qualified tackles in pass blocking last season, which was worse than Brandon Shell and Chuma Edoga -- two players the Jets were trying to upgrade from this offseason.
However, there could be something that Douglas, a former offenisve lineman himself, sees in Fant. Either way, it is a very intriguing signing.
Fant's NFL story is an interesting one. At 6-foot-5, 322 pounds, he was a former basketball player at Western Kentucky that played two college football games at tight end -- not on the line. But the Seahawks took a chance on him in 2016 anyway when they signed him as an undrafted free agent project.
In three seasons, he's started in 24 games, tore his ACL in 2017, and is still a work in progress. According to The Post's Brian Costello, the team is viewing him as a left tackle that could move to right tackle if need be.
But, with the NFL Draft full of options at tackle in the first round, the Jets could definitely be looking at one of them with their No. 11 overall pick to go along with Fant.
