Once the New York Jets drafted tight end Dustin Keller, incumbent Chris Baker’s days were numbered. By trading up to select the Purdue product with the 30th overall pick, head coach Eric Mangini and general manager Mike Tannenbaum’s voices were clearly heard that the team was looking for an upgrade at the position and were tiring of Baker’s demands for a contract extension. On the outset of a mandatory mini-camp, Baker was not thrilled to be there. “It is what it is,” the veteran said. “I have to be here, so that’s why I’m here today.” Baker is in a similar situation as offensive lineman Pete Kendall was a year ago, where the player says that the organization informs him they will renegotiate his current contract after a productive season and a prior reconstruction for salary cap purposes. That soap opera dragged through training camp before Kendall was dealt to Washington, leaving a gaping hole in the team’s line all season long. Looking to avoid a repeat of that disaster, Tannenbaum made the deal to obtain another first round draft pick and add Keller.

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HEMPSTEAD, NY - One week can make a world of a difference, especially if you happen to be one of the players selected at the NFL Draft. The whirlwind of hearing your name read on stage, to getting on the practice field for the very first time as a professional can be exhilarating, to say the least. For the six players selected by the New York Jets, it became business as usual. Last weekend, the team held their first mini camp of the offseason at Hofstra University. Vernon Gholston, the Jets’ first round pick and sixth overall, tried to keep his expectations in perspective at this early juncture. “Just to learn the system,” the former Ohio State defensive end said. “Obviously, being at rookie camp, we’re all rookies here. Some guys are fighting to make the team. The thing is to just learn and grow and to take everything you can from this.”

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