Oftentimes, things are much bigger than sports. For the New York Jets and general manager Darren Mougey, that was something he had to factor in on Tuesday.
On Oct. 25, former Pro Bowl center Nick Mangold passed away after battling chronic kidney disease.
His funeral was held on Tuesday morning, just hours before the Jets decided to move on from players like Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams.
According to Albert Breer, the Jets and Indianapolis Colts had the deal in place before the funeral, but the Jets' general manager asked if they could wait to announce it and tell reporters due to the situation with Mangold.
“The GM was headed for Nick Mangold’s funeral in the New Jersey suburbs later in the morning,” Breer wrote. “He knew that the service would be filled with Jets people, both past and present, and the last thing he wanted was for everyone paying their respects to the beloved former New York center to have their phones buzzing in church. So he asked Ballard to keep their agreement under wraps for just a few more hours. Ballard quickly pledged to Mougey that he would.”
It's a positive thing that both were able to respect each other enough to understand that things are a lot bigger than a football trade.
While it was one of the biggest blockbuster deals that we've seen in quite some time, it doesn't come close to the real impact of life.
It also goes to show that football and the NFL in general are a big fraternity, and ultimately, while rivals on the field, everybody still has a level of respect for one another.
As the Jets continue to try to figure things out under a new general manager, front office, and coaching staff, moving players like Gardner seems like it had to happen, unfortunately.
The Jets will now have an opportunity to make things right over the next few months, particularly with the draft approaching.
While things still aren't great, the Jets seem to be in a better position than they were on Tuesday morning, mainly due to the moves they decided to make.