Will the New York Jets pass on AJ McCarron twice?

Cincinnati Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron will be a free agent when the NFL's 2018 business year starts next month. The New York Jets are among the teams thought to be in the market for a quarterback this offseason.

Does that make the former Alabama All-American and the team that another Crimson Tide QB, Joe Namath, led to its only Super Bowl victory a good match?

According to Rich Cimini of ESPN, the Jets already had a chance to acquire McCarron and passed on the opportunity. But that came last offseason, when New York would have had to have traded with the Bengals to get the quarterback. Because he'll be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, adding McCarron won't cost the Jets a thing -- except his expected-to-be sizable salary.

With the Jets looking for a quarterback last offseason, Cincinnati proposed a trade that would have sent McCarron to New York, Cimini reported. Ultimately, the Jets decided to plug their quarterback hole by signing 15-year veteran Josh McCown to a one-year, $6 million contract.

McCarron's four-year rookie contract, signed after Cincinnati selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft, runs out on March 14, and he'll become an unrestricted free agent then because an arbitrator ruled in his favor last week in a grievance with the Bengals over his accrued service time.

McCarron is not considered the top target for the Jets as they try to solve their quarterback situation this offseason. Cimini reported New York was willing to "pay whatever it takes" to get Kirk Cousins. Cousins is hitting the open market after throwing for at least 4,000 yards and 25 touchdowns in each of his three seasons as the starting quarterback for the Washington Redskins.

Cincinnati also tried to send McCarron to the Cleveland Browns at the NFL trade deadline in October. Cleveland agreed to send a second- and third-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft in exchange for the quarterback, but the Browns botched the technical details of the deal and missed getting it done by the deadline.

Cleveland, with former Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson as its head coach, is among the NFL teams considered to be quarterback-hungry this offseason. But Sports Illustrated NFL reporter Peter King reasoned this week that the best spot for McCarron would be with the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cardinals' top quarterback, Carson Palmer, has retired after injuries limited his 14th NFL season to seven games, and the other two quarterbacks who started games for Arizona last season, Blaine Gabbert and Drew Stanton, will be free agents this offseason.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @AMarkG1.

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