A New York Jets big man got paid this offseason.
ESPN NFL Insider Dianna Russini announced on Wednesday, March 15 that veteran defensive lineman Nathan Shepherd was signing a deal with the New Orleans Saints.
Rich Cimini provided the specific contract details on Twitter saying it was a three-year deal for $15 million and featured over $10.1 million of that in total guarantees.
It didn’t take long for Jets fans to share their take on this new deal via social media.
“Overpay city. He’s a nice rotational piece but that’s bonkers. Good for him though.”
Social Media Shares Blunt Response to Nathan Shepherd’s Saints Deal
“Thank God, we did not pay him that he is average at best” one fan responded.
Another fan took a shot at Shepherd’s propensity for flags saying, “hope the Saints like a lot of penalties.”
In 2021 Shepherd committed seven penalties. Now that seems like a lot but it is even worse when you consider he only played 42 percent of the snaps that season. That means with fewer opportunities than most defensive linemen, he still racked up the penalty count.
Another fan simply said, “overpaid.”
“No f****** way” was the stunned response from one fan.
While there were a lot of negative responses to either his penalty history or disbelief with how much money he got, there were also plenty of Jets fans who raised a glass to Shepherd.
One fan said he was “happy for him, small school, great story.”
Shepherd went to two different colleges in Simon Fraser and Fort Hays State. Rich Cimini of ESPN wrote a great column if you want to learn more about his incredible journey from the factory to the NFL football field back in 2018 after he was drafted by the Jets.
One fan said “good for him. Was a good guy here in some real sown years. Sorry, he won’t be here for the turnaround.”
Shepherd joined the Jets in 2018 as the No. 72 overall pick in the third round. Gang Green went 24-46 in his five seasons with the team.
It appears in 2023 that the Jets have a chance to turn things around with the potential addition of superstar QB Aaron Rodgers. However Shepherd won’t get a chance to be a part of that with him heading to New Orleans.
This is a developing story and we’ll provide new details when they become available.