Mangold's class gets him contract before Revis

Nick Mangold and Darrelle Revis were in similar boats this offseason. Both wanted new contracts; Mangold because he was entering the final year of his and Revis because he outperformed the $1 million he was set to make.

But they went about it in different ways and for once, it's nice to see somebody rewarded for being a team player. Unlike Revis, who is holding out and hasn't stepped on the field for the Jets this preseason, Mangold was a good soldier and reported to camp despite his contract issues.

Mangold obviously understood the high hopes this team has and knew that without arguably the NFL's best center at training camp it would be tough to develop chemistry along the offensive line, especially with the Jets introducing a new left guard to replace Pro Bowler Alan Faneca (either rookie Vladimir Ducasse or Matthew Slauson).

Mangold put the team first and as a result the team put him ahead of Revis in terms of getting a contract done. Mangold got his 7 years, $55 million and now it's time to see what the team does with Revis, whose ridiculous demands are starting to irk even his biggest fans (count me in that boat).

Everyone knows Revis has a lot of leverage in the situation, especially considering the performance of the Jets' secondary backups against the Giants nine days ago. Peyton Manning carved up the Jets secondary in the AFC Championship Game last season, leading New York to trade for Antonio Cromartie and draft Kyle Wilson to shore up those holes. But without Revis, those holes behind Cromartie and Wilson, namely Drew Coleman, still exist.

But maybe Revis should look in the mirror. The Jets aren't budging and the two sides are still far apart. The team is prepared to play the season without him, whether they like it or not. They seem to have moved on to paying the players who want to wear a Jets uniform, and rightfully so.

If Revis really wants to get paid, he will report to camp and start proving his undeniable worth on the field once again. That seems unlikely at this point, as it would be an admission that he was wrong to hold out and misjudged the leverage he thought he had.

With Mangold now signed, the Jets will likely turn their efforts toward middle linebacker David Harris, who is also in the final year of his contract. And as nice as it would be to get Revis back, I'm starting to realize it just may not happen. It's too bad he couldn't have taken the classy road like Mangold and Harris. Maybe then, the Jets brass would've stretched their budget to keep him around and fans could continue talk about a potential deep playoff run.

But for now, we sit and we wait to see which side budges first. My gut still believes Revis will play this season, but I've been wrong before and I wouldn't be terribly surprised if I was wrong again. I just don't want to be.