Quinnen contract standoff not a big concern for coach

The Jets’ contract impasse with first-round pick Quinnen Williams highlighted the first day of training camp Wednesday, prompting many to wonder why this star-crossed franchise would be picking such an odd fight with one of their young cornerstone players.

The 6-3, 303-pound defensive lineman was a no-show on the first official report day as both sides haggle over the signing bonus payment schedule on the No. 3 overall pick’s guaranteed four-year, $32.53 million contract. The Jets have curiously taken a hardline stance on deferred payments on Williams’

$21.68 million signing bonus.

“This is part of the end of the draft process,” Adam Gase said Wednesday. “When he’s ready, he’s ready. When they’re ready to get it done, whenever it happens, it happens. And we’ll coach the guys that are here.”

“This is the norm,” Gase added. “This happens when you get Top 5 picks. It takes time to go through these sometimes. … We’ll be alright. … When he gets here, he gets here.”

Williams and 49ers’ No. 2 overall pick Nick Bosa are the only two remaining unsigned drafted players.

It’s the second consecutive year that the Jets have had standoffs with their firstround picks. Sam Darnold missed three practices last year while fighting over a few wrinkles in his contract. The Jets will have two nonpadded practices on Thursday and Friday before putting on the pads this weekend.

“At the end of the day, those few practices that I did miss, I don’t know how much of an impact that had on the season,” Darnold said. “For Quinnen, it’s really about staying patient and understanding

what your agency needs to do for you. And that’s really it.”

At a time when it’s common practice to pay a top pick’s full signing bonus in the first year, the Jets want to defer more than 30 percent of Williams’ money to the second year. For tax purposes, Williams wants the money in the first year. Not doing so would cost the player about $100,000.

Since there are no salary cap implications for the team, this appears to be an attempt by the organization to establish a new precedent for signing bonus payment schedules. Truth be told, the Jets are needlessly taking a rigid stance on an issue that should have been resolved long ago.

Five of the seven players taken in the Top 10 of this year’s draft will have their signing bonuses paid in full in the first year. The Jets have given their last five first-round picks an average of 88 percent of their signing bonus in Year 1, including paying Darnold’s full bonus ($20.1 million) within 15 days of signing last year. History and the numbers are on Williams’ side.

He’s making a fair and reasonable request.

“When he gets here, he’s going to be rockin’ and rollin’,” veteran defensive lineman Steve McLendon said. “He’s going to be ready. … The coaching staff and the other fellas in this locker room, we’re going to help him … give him all the answers to the test, because we know we’re going to need him this year.”

The Jets have an estimated value of $2.85 billion, according to a recent Forbes study. In other words, the Johnson brothers should be able to pay Williams this year.

It’s time for general manager Joe Douglas and/or Christopher Johnson to end this ridiculous stand-off.