FanPost

Wilfork top JEP, Tebow jersey not an option

Long lines were formed early as fans showed up to exchange their Hernandez jerseys. Over 1000 jerseys were exchanged which was more than double expectations. The second and last day of the exchange will be on held on July 7th.

Per Tedesco, the most popular jersey that fans are getting in return for their Hernandez gear is Vince Wilfork. And Tedesco says he overheard this gem from one of the customers: ”If Wilfork gets arrested for murder now I’m going to kill that MFer.”

The selection is fairly limited; for the high-end “authentic” jerseys, the options are only Wilfork, Tom Brady, and Rob Gronkowski.

Tim Tebow isn’t among the various options for the four types of jerseys: replica, authentic, replica women’s, and youth.

The Patriots hit a home run with the plan but many fans wanted to use this opportunity to pickup a cheap Tebow jersey. It will take time to see if other teams cash in on the PR opportunities the JEP yielded.

Hernandez was beyond a DA in his actions and I was curious how the Pats would react to such a negative media story. They cut Hernandez as-fast-as it could have been done. And then this:

The New England Patriots are offering anyone with an Aaron Hernandez jersey the opportunity to exchange it for a free jersey of comparable value, the team announced.

"We know that children love wearing their Patriots jerseys but may not understand why parents don't want them wearing their Hernandez jerseys anymore," Patriots spokesman Stacey James said in a statement. "We hope this opportunity to exchange those jerseys at the Patriots Pro Shop for another player's jersey will be well received by parents."

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via www.trbimg.com


And then they announce that they are not going to pay another penny to Hernandez. They will most likely have to pay the guaranteed part of the contract but they sure can make it tough to collect.

According to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, whose article is unfortunately trapped behind a pay wall, the Patriots have "voided" all remaining guaranteed money due and owing to Hernandez.

This includes $2.5 million in future guaranteed base salaries and the final $3.25 million installment of his already-earned $12.5 million signing bonus. Per Volin, the Patriots also will refuse to pay $200,000 for workout and roster bonuses earned this year.

A nice jester for the Pats and it sure sheds a positive light on what they can control. As for the Vikings, I looked through the Viking's arrest records and nothing comes even close to the "Pats Jersey Exchange Program" known as P-JEP. Teams will always take a chance on talent (Harvin, Moss, Underwood) but they may look a little bit deeper after this ordeal as it has cost a considerable sum of money to cut ties. This week could not have ended soon enough for Roger Goodell. Do you think he is looking forward to next week?

What does this mean for our favorite team? The only Viking jersey I own that I would even consider replacing is the Percy Harvin #12. I just don't see teams going down that road and in no way am I suggesting the Vikings should replace Harvin jerseys. The Pats open a narrow window with the P-JEP and time will tell if other teams attempt to follow suit in the future. I looked on ebay and the long gone Viking jersey's sit with no bidders.

How successful will the the program be with ebay in the mix, John Lamothe, a Patriots fan from Florida, put his jersey on the auction site with the thought that it would maybe fetch $15. The item sold on Sunday for $289. One seller listed theirHernandez jersey with a starting price of 99 cents "because we just want it the *bleep* out of this house". On Monday morning, the jersey had received 36 bids and was up to $207.50.

Poll: Weigh in on the newest move in the Patriots JEPing.

Write it down, Whose Jersey would you dump, any jersey you have, any team. List it! Maybe they got cut, traded, didn't perform well and now you just want to get rid of that players Jersey, The player has under -delivered and you feel jilted by the fact you own his jersey. Your pissed and never going to wear it again. Whose jersey is it?

This FanPost was created by a registered user of The Daily Norseman, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the staff of the site. However, since this is a community, that view is no less important.