RB Michael Turner on Jets' Radar?

You probably have heard of LaDanian Tomlinson, but you might not know his backup, Michael Turner. Apparently the Jets have interest in the 24 year old Northern Illinois University Graduate as their running back of the future. Turner is a 5'10" 237 pound punishing between the tackles speedster, who has shown some big play ability in the past, notably against the Colts last year in Week 15, when Turner ran for 113 yards, 83 of which came on one carry.

Turner is an interesting option, and might be a good value for the Jets. Clearly no one thought he could be a franchise player out of college, otherwise he wouldn't have been drafted in the 5th round. The holes in Turner's game are in his ability to catch passes, elude defenders and consistently reach the second gear he has exhibited at times in flashes. One would hope playing behind Tomlinson could have provided Turner some 'life lessons' that he can bring with him wherever his career takes him.

Here are a few reasons why this would work for the Jets:

Curtis Martin has all but retired, and the current group of Jets' running backs don't have a future 'feature' player amongst them.
Turner will be a restricted free agent in 2007.
Jets' Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer should knows him well enough to get a real evaluation from his San Diego days.
San Diego can ill-afford to pay Turner what the market will bear as a backup.
This isn't an accidental leak. The Jets are trying to get the word out to Turner, without getting slapped with tampering.

It's an interesting scenario, which I hope could be productive for the Jets for a few years at the least.