INDIANAPOLIS — The nights in Indianapolis at the NFL combine are long and full of wonder. They’re also full of team and league sources willing to have long conversations. Here’s what I heard about the Jets over the past week:

Breece Hall negotiations

We already know that the Jets won’t be letting Hall hit free agency because general manager Darren Mougey said as much at the podium last week. The questions coming out of that revelation are: How much will it cost to re-sign him, and what type of tag will the Jets use on him if they can’t re-sign him in time? Tuesday is the last day the Jets can tag Hall, so the clock is ticking.

The conversations between the team and Hall’s representatives are ongoing. His agent is Nicole Lynn of Klutch Sports, who negotiated Quinnen Williams’ massive extension a few years ago.

According to league sources, the expectation is that the Jets will use the cheaper transition tag on Hall if they can’t come to a contract agreement in time. (The transition tag carries a tender of $11.3 million, while the franchise tag would come in at $14.3 million.) The Jets would like to sign Hall to a multi-year deal and league sources believe that number would come in somewhere between the transition and franchise values on a per-year basis. If that lands around $12-13 million, Hall would be one of the five or six highest-paid running backs in the NFL. The Jets tagging Hall ahead of Tuesday’s deadline wouldn’t preclude them from signing him to a new contract at a later date. There is confidence from team and league sources that a new contract will get done at some point, possibly even before Tuesday’s deadline.

The Seahawks, I’m told by league sources, don’t plan on using the franchise tag on running back Kenneth Walker, the Super Bowl MVP, and are working to sign him to a new contract. If that doesn’t happen ahead of free agency, he’ll get significant interest elsewhere — the Giants have serious interest in pursuing him, according to league sources. The contract Walker signs could help settle Hall’s negotiations numbers-wise.

Quarterback chatter

The Jets truly don’t know who they will target at quarterback yet.

Here’s the reality: They are taking their time to figure this out because they have the time. Leading up to the NFL combine, nobody in the building knew what Aaron Glenn or Darren Mougey were thinking at quarterback, including the offensive coaches working on the new scheme with offensive coordinator Frank Reich (Reich will be heavily involved in the process of choosing the next quarterback). Mougey, Glenn and Reich are speaking daily, having conversations about the possibilities. Quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave has been involved too.

The Jets are truly exploring all of their options. The goal in Indianapolis was to find out who will be available in free agency, who is available via trade and how much either route would cost in terms of cap space and/or draft picks. That includes, I’m told, the Jets at least having conversations about quarterbacks on other teams that are currently perceived to be unavailable.

As for Justin Fields: He’ll be released at some point, though the Jets say they are in no rush to make that move. Tyrod Taylor is open to returning if the Jets want him as a veteran backup again — and keep an eye on Andy Dalton for that backup role too. I predict that the Jets add two veterans and a rookie this offseason.

Let’s run through some of the more popular starting options being tied to the Jets (I’ll be diving deeper into the likeliest quarterback options later this week):

Kirk Cousins: The sense I get is that Cousins doesn’t consider the Jets to be a desired destination unless there aren’t any other starting options out there for him. I’m not sure the Jets are especially interested anyway.

Malik Willis: The Jets will surely look into Willis but the expectation is that his salary will be somewhere in the range between Justin Fields ($20 million average) and Baker Mayfield/Sam Darnold (around $33 million). Even if the Jets were willing to pay Willis $25 million a year (unlikely), he is more likely to take that sort of deal with the Cardinals or Dolphins than the Jets considering his familiarity with those coaching staffs. The Browns will also pursue Willis, and other teams likely will too. I just can’t see the Jets paying $20 million-plus per year on an unknown for the second straight year.

Mac Jones: I don’t know if the Jets are interested in trading for Jones or not, but I do know his price tag is higher than people might think. As in: More than just a second-round pick, which had been the buzz. That’s a high price to pay unless the Jets viewed him as a potential long-term solution.

Kyler Murray: There’s an assumption that Glenn wouldn’t want him because of his personality quirks, but I wouldn’t make any assumptions. People often point to Glenn’s “celebrity quarterback” quote as a reason for why he wouldn’t want someone like Murray, but that quote was more directed at people who carry themselves like, as a completely random example, Aaron Rodgers.

Glenn has a self-belief that he can bring anyone into the building, coach them up and make them a positive part of his culture. In terms of skill set, Murray is the kind of quarterback Glenn likes — and he personally knows Murray’s father well due to their Texas A&M backgrounds (Kevin Murray was a quarterback at A&M before Glenn’s arrival at the school).

Murray will generate interest — particularly if the Cardinals release him, which is how most think it will go because of the financial commitment. But I wouldn’t rule out the Jets, especially if Murray is available as a free agent. If the Jets were willing to absorb his contract, which they have the space to do, the Cardinals might be motivated to give them a draft pick for their trouble. (If the other Cardinals quarterback, Jacoby Brissett, is available, the Jets will likely have some level of interest.)

Tanner McKee: As with Jones, I think people are underestimating how much it might cost to get McKee. Yes, he’s unproven, but the Eagles are very high on McKee. I don’t know if they’re trading him away for anything less than a third-round pick — and even that might not be enough. The Jets also don’t currently possess a third-round pick, though they do have one in 2027. Reich has enough ties to McKee: He coached at Stanford, McKee’s alma mater, and is close with Eagles coach Nick Sirianni. If the Jets do opt for a young backup QB in the McKee mold, other options they might look into include Spencer Rattler (Saints), Will Levis (Titans), Anthony Richardson (Colts), Davis Mills (Texans) and Tyson Bagent (Bears). Though I’ve heard the asking price is higher than you’d think on Bagent and Mills too.

Derek Carr: The feeling around the league is that Carr really wants to unretire and play in 2026. He has said that he only wants to return if he’s playing for a contender. The Jets were prepared to sign him (and he was prepared to sign with them) in 2023 before Aaron Rodgers became a possibility. Some still in the building now were big fans of Carr then, and Glenn has known him for a long time — Glenn and David Carr, Derek’s brother, were teammates on the initial iteration of the Houston Texans in 2002, and Derek used to spend a lot of time at the Texans facility as an 11-year-old. The Saints hold his rights but it sounds like it would only take a Day 3 draft pick to get him in a trade. The question is whether Carr wants to be a Jet; I don’t see this happening as of now.

The Jermaine Johnson-T’Vondre Sweat trade

The Jets have been getting positive reviews for their deal with the Titans, which won’t become official until the start of the new league year on March 11. It’s a win-win for both sides — Johnson gets a fresh start with a coaching staff (former Jets head coach Robert Saleh and defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton) that knows how to get the best out of him. The Jets add a high-ceiling nose tackle who will be a better fit in their new defense than Johnson was.

There wasn’t as much interest in Johnson around the league now as there was at the deadline, so Sweat isn’t a bad return. The Jets believe in Sweat’s potential — and in defensive line coach Karl Dunbar’s ability to get the most out of him.

The Jets have shown a willingness to listen on trades involving holdovers from the previous regime. That does not include wide receiver Garrett Wilson — he’s not going anywhere.

Is there anyone else who could be traded? League sources suggested linebacker Jamien Sherwood. He had a rough season after signing a big contract ($45 million over three years) and league and team sources feel he missed C.J. Mosley’s veteran leadership in the linebacker room. He was benched for the first quarter of the Bengals game for disciplinary reasons.

This isn’t to say the Jets are actively shopping Sherwood — they aren’t — but the Jets would save $1.5 million by trading him while incurring a $10 million dead cap penalty.

Free agency pursuits

The Jets lacked veteran leadership on both sides of the ball last season, so Glenn and Mougey are well aware that they need to bring in more experience and leadership. Mougey said as much at the combine. Last offseason, the Jets made a concerted effort to get younger. One veteran name to keep an eye on is an obvious one: Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone. One quote in particular from Glenn (about calling plays) drew my attention last week as it relates to Anzalone:

“I missed being the playcaller,” Glenn said. “I missed being able to be in the fire with those guys, being able to talk to the MIKE linebacker, being able to be in the meeting rooms and trying to put a game plan together to be successful against another team.”

Being able to talk to the MIKE linebacker.

Glenn and Anzalone have been close friends dating back to their time together with the Saints. In Detroit, Anzalone, wearing the green dot, has talked about how he often knew what Glenn was going to say before he’d even said it. Anzalone will get interest elsewhere too, but the Jets should be considered the favorite to sign him.

Expect Glenn to pursue other players he has a history with — players who understand what he’s looking for scheme- and culture-wise. Some notable Lions free agents to keep in mind include cornerback Amik Robertson, edge Al-Quadin Muhammad and edge Marcus Davenport. Dolphins defensive back Ifeatu Melifonwu (a former Lion) is another name to keep in mind.

I’d take note of Dolphins defensive backs too — Glenn hired Brian Duker (defensive coordinator) and Ryan Slowik (safeties) off that staff. Their list of free agents includes Melifonwu, cornerback Jack Jones, cornerback Rasul Douglas and safety Ashtyn Davis, a former Jet. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick could be available in a trade; I’d expect the Jets to explore that as an option.

A couple of free agents without ties to this staff to keep an eye on: Rams safety Kamren Curl and Chiefs safety Bryan Cook.

Further, while the Jets have significant cap space — around $90 million after the Johnson trade — that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’ll go big-game hunting. Mougey believes more in building the team through the NFL Draft than free agency. I’d lean more toward the Jets operating in the middle-tier of free agency rather than paying significant money for the players at the top of the market, even if they have the financial capability to do so.

The main positions I’d expect them to invest in via free agency: safety, linebacker and edge rusher. They’ll add a veteran wide receiver too.

As for left guard: Alijah Vera-Tucker wants to test his market in free agency, so the Jets will have to decide if it’s worth the risk of losing him and being left empty-handed, or re-signing John Simpson instead. As of now, the sense is that Vera-Tucker and Simpson will hit free agency — but that doesn’t mean the Jets will not re-sign one of them.

The new offensive staff

Glenn’s handling of the coaching staff this offseason remains a topic of discussion around the league. Various team and league sources felt offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrad was unfairly shoved out the door considering what he had to work with last year at quarterback. However, it has been emphasized by team sources that Engstrand was not fired and that there were discussions about bringing him back in a different role — Glenn just wanted someone with more experience to lead the offense while he turned his focus to the defense, and he felt better about Reich doing that than Engstrand. So Engstrand opted to part ways and he was promptly scooped up to join Kevin Stefanski’s staff with the Falcons.

As for the new-look offense: Reich, according to sources, is building the Jets playbook off his playbook with the Panthers and what he was trying to do there as head coach before he was fired after 11 games. That might not sound exciting considering how poorly that season went in Carolina, though there was a lot of internal dysfunction tied to ownership among other issues. The process for building the offense has involved offensive coaches pitching ideas to Reich to include in the offense, and then Reich decides if those ideas will go into the playbook. Much of what the offense looks like will ultimately be dictated by who is playing quarterback, of course.

One coach who has been especially impressive in the early going, according to team sources: passing game coordinator Seth Ryan.

Ryan was heavily involved with drawing up trick plays for former Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and is lauded for his creativity. Said a Lions source: “Seth is a stud. They got a good one. He knows his stuff.”

Extra points

• About that viral video where Glenn appeared to be sleeping during combine drills, team sources insist that Glenn was looking down at a tablet, not resting his eyes.

• A year ago, Jets owner Woody Johnson called the NFLPA report cards “bogus” and this year, the league announced that the grades would no longer be released publicly. Well, they leaked anyway — and the Jets actually graded out extremely well across all categories other than the quality of MetLife Stadium’s field. Johnson received a “B” grade after getting an “F” last year — likely helped by his commitment to upgrading the locker room at the Jets facility. Glenn received an “A” grade while Mougey got an “A-minus.” Engstrand was given a “B-minus,” while fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks received a “B-plus” and special teams coordinator Chris Banjo got an “A.”

• Guard/center Joe Tippmann is eligible for an extension and would like to re-sign with the Jets, but don’t expect the Jets to look into that until later in the offseason, as they did last year with Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson.