The New York Jets caught endless heat when they handed Brandon Stephens a three-year, $36 million contract in March, and it wasn't hard to see why. Analysts hated it. Fans hated it.
Even neutral observers couldn’t understand how one of the most targeted, and candidly one of the least worst, cornerbacks in football somehow landed the longest free-agent deal the Jets gave out this offseason.
Stephens had talent, sure, but his Baltimore Ravens tape was littered with maddening inconsistency. It looked like an overpay the moment it was announced. Nine months later, the Jets look brilliant.