Jets say goodbye to Woody, show 3 others the door

With the impending end of the league year nearly upon them, the Jets are about to do some book keeping.

They plan on releasing right tackle Damien Woody, and are also reportedly set to bid goodbye to linebacker Jason Taylor, nose tackle Kris Jenkins, and defensive end Vernon Gholston.

Woody, 33, ruptured his left Achilles on the first play of the Jets’ final drive during their AFC wild-card victory over the Colts, an injury that came after he missed the final three games of the regular season after undergoing arthroscopic right knee surgery.

He's as classy as they come and was well-liked among his teammates.

“Just informed about my release,” Woody tweeted earlier tonight. “I want to thank the Jets and all the fans out there...it was a great ride!”

Gholston’s career was a bust from the start. He never came close to producing at the level expected for someone selected with the sixth pick. He failed to record a single sack in his three seasons, combining for 42 modest tackles, and was inactive for all three playoff games during their postseason push in January.

Taylor, 36, inked a two-year, $13-million contract with the team he once loved to hate during his time with the Dolphins. But he had nearly $10 million allocated to him for 2011, a number the Jets surely weren’t going to pay for a player whose tank is essentially on empty after mustering five sacks and 36 combined tackles in his lone season with the Jets.

Jenkins is attempting to comeback from yet another ACL tear. The massive 31-year-old nose tackle tore his left ACL six plays into the Jets' season opener against the Ravens, the second time he’s suffered the injury in as many seasons.

He told our Bob Glauber he was aware of the speculation he might be a salary-cap casualty, but didn’t seem overly worried about it.

“I'm an older guy, my [salary] cap number's higher,” Jenkins said. “If they want me here, fine. If they don't, then fine. I'm loyal to the Jets right now. That's who I play for. But if that relationship ends, I'll deal with it as a man and keep moving. It's not the end of the world. I'll be ok.”

There’s always the possibility the Jets could always bring them back at a reduced salary. But that seems highly unlikely in the cases of Taylor and Gholston.