Santonio Holmes said he will be take a pay cut to return to the Jets.
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Santonio Holmes wants to come back to the Jets next year, and he’s willing to make the dollars and cents make sense.
Holmes said on Wednesday he is willing to take a pay cut to return to the Jets next year, even after taking a similar pay cut this past offseason to reach a more cap-friendly number for the team. After a season-ending Lisfranc injury in Week 4 last year, Holmes missed a good chunk of training camp as he rehabbed from the injury. He’s missed five games this year with a hamstring injury which has led to a decrease in production.
He said he’d be willing to take a pay cut to return to the Jets next year.
“Anything for the team,” Holmes said.
He was asked again if that meant even taking a pay cut and his answer was word-for-word the same.
“Anything for the team,” Holmes repeated.
This has been a down year for Holmes by every standard, with just 18 receptions for 395 yards and a touchdown. Holmes does lead the Jets with an average of 21.9 yards per reception.
It wasn’t a topic he liked talking about, but Holmes understood the business of the NFL and that if he wants to extend his stay in New York, something has to be done with his contract. Holmes would reportedly be a $10.75 million cap hit next year.
“I wouldn’t agree with it because you can’t do anything about injuries. They occur,” Holmes said. “First time I’ve been injured in my career. Like I said for the team, sacrifices need to be made.”
Despite the Jets’ obvious deficiencies this year, Holmes would like to see head coach Rex Ryan return for a sixth year with the Jets. Holmes sees the rest of his career playing out with Ryan, and a retirement in green and white.
“I would love to play for him; he brought me here,” Holmes said. “He gave me the opportunity for me to play for him and I would love to play for him for the next couple years and even retire here, he and I both.”
Follow Jets beat writer Kristian Dyer on Twitter @KristianRDyer.
