The New York Jets are releasing veteran wide receiver Allen Lazard, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press.
The person, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the team didn’t announce the move, said the decision was mutual.
Lazard’s role with the Jets had diminished significantly this season, even as the offense struggled to produce. With three games left in the regular season, the 30-year-old wide receiver will be able to sign elsewhere.
Pro Football Talk first reported that Lazard would be released at his request.
Lazard had only 10 catches for 70 yards and a touchdown this season while playing in just 10 games after he was buried on the depth chart.
Lazard came to the Jets as one of the team’s biggest offseason moves in 2023, signing a four-year, $44 million contract — a month before he was reunited with Aaron Rodgers, his former quarterback in Green Bay who was acquired in a trade by New York.
The two showed instant chemistry in training camp that summer, but the connection never materialized in the regular season when Rodgers was lost for the season with a torn Achilles tendon. Lazard finished with 23 catches for 311 yards and a touchdown in 14 games.
With Rodgers back, Lazard was a bit more productive last season, with 37 receptions for 530 yards and six scores in 12 games, but never quite made the impact the Jets expected.
Rodgers was released by the Jets in the offseason after Aaron Glenn took over as coach and Lazard agreed to restructure his contract to remain on the team. But he didn’t have a role in new coordinator Tanner Engstrand’s offense this season, even though New York was in desperate need of a playmaker with Justin Fields struggling as the starting quarterback.
Lazard is regarded as an excellent blocker, but he also had a reputation for dropping passes — something that hurt him at times with the Jets. Top wide receiver Garrett Wilson has been on injured reserve since last month with a knee injury, but that didn’t boost Lazard’s opportunities. Instead, Adonai Mitchell and John Metchie III — both acquired before the trade deadline last month — have emerged as regulars in the offense.
Lazard joined Jacksonville in 2018 as an undrafted free agent out of Iowa State and was signed later that season by Green Bay off the Jaguars’ practice squad. He gradually became a trusted target of Rodgers in their five seasons together with the Packers. Lazard had career highs with 60 catches and 788 yards receiving in 2022 before signing with the Jets as a free agent.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
