New York Jets coach Robert Saleh suggested on several occasions that reporters get their answers to personnel questions from general manager Joe Douglas while speaking to media members during the AFC coaches breakfast at the NFL’s annual meeting this week.

Saleh passed on inquiries about the progress of trade talks to acquire quarterback Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers and about quarterback Lamar Jackson if the Jets didn’t land Rodgers.

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But when asked if New York was considering parting ways with defensive end Carl Lawson this offseason, Saleh fielded that one himself.

“I’ll speak for Joe on this one,” Saleh said. “You know, pass-rushers, they don’t grow on trees, and Carl has a commodity in this league that’s gold, so he will be here as long as he can walk and play and rush the passer and affect it the way he does. He’ll be here.”

Why the question about releasing Lawson?

It’s been a subject of speculation since the season ended, with pundits positing that it made financial sense for the Jets, particularly if they end up taking on Rodgers’ contract. A Cincinnati Bengals-centric website even carried a piece about the possibility of bringing Lawson back to the team if New York let him go.

After joining the Bengals from Auburn as a fourth-round choice in the 2017 NFL Draft, Lawson led the NFL’s first-year players with 8.5 sacks and made the Professional Football Writers of America’s All-Rookie team. Over the next two seasons, Lawson missed 13 games with injuries and totaled six sacks.

In his fourth season, Lawson recorded 5.5 sacks and ranked second in the NFL with 32 quarterback hits in 2020.

That landed Lawson a three-year, $45 contract with the Jets as an unrestricted free agent.

But before he played a game for New York, Lawson suffered a torn Achilles tendon during a joint training-camp practice with the Packers on Aug. 19, and the injury sidelined him for the 2021 NFL season.

In 2022, Lawson returned to start every game for the Jets. He recorded seven sacks and 24 quarterback hits.

Among the NFL’s edge rushers, Lawson ranked tied for 11th in quarterback hits and tied for 33rd in sacks in 2022. In 2023, his $15 million base salary is the eighth-highest among edge rushers.

Lawson is scheduled to count $15,333,333 on the Jets’ salary cap. If New York released him, he would count only $333,333 in dead money – a $15 million reduction.

The presence of promising pass-rusher Bryce Huff also supported the possibility of releasing Lawson. The former St. Paul’s Episcopal standout is a restricted free agent, and the Jets put a second-round tender worth $4.304 million for the 2023 season in an attempt to keep Huff on the team.

But Saleh trumped those arguments with his assessment of what Lawson could do for New York as it strives to end the longest postseason drought in the NFL in 2023.

The Jets haven’t been to the playoffs since the 2010 campaign and have had only one winning record in those 12 seasons. In 2022, New York looked as though it was on its way before it lost its final six games to finish at 7-10.

The Jets are scheduled to start their offseason program on April 17.

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