According to multiple sources, the Jets have re-signed nose tackle Sione Pouha to a three year deal. Financial details aren’t currently available. Pouha is 33, so three years sounds like a lot, but Pouha didn’t join the league until he was 26, and so doesn’t have all the miles other linemen have at 33.
[caption id="attachment_522" align="alignright" width="300" caption=""Jet for life" Sione Pouha flexes his guns. // Photo by Ray Stubblebine, Reuters."]
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Pouha isn’t a great pass rusher, but he was great against the run. He had 58 tackles last season, the most among defensive linemen, while usually playing on first and second down and only being on the field for 60% of defensive snaps. Pouha is also a locker room leader, which the Jets desperately seem to need. He endorsed embattled quarterback Mark Sanchez, saying Sanchez deserved the three year, $40 million extension he received last Friday.
"I was excited for him when I heard he was going to get that extension," Pouha said. "And I was way more excited when I found out I'd be playing with him for the next three years."
The Jets took Pouha in the third round of the 2005 draft. He was a stand out last season, and it was important to lock him up because his backup, nose tackle Kenrick Ellis, entering his second year out of Hampton, isn’t ready to play full time yet. He appeared infrequently last season and didn’t make much of an impact. This deal locks Pouha up for most of what’s left of his career.
"This is something I always wanted," Pouha said. "I'll be a Jet for life."
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