2020 was a nightmare for reasons infinitely more important than football. Hopefully, the destructive health and economic consequences from the COVID-19 pandemic can be halted in the coming months with the rollout of the vaccines.
If only there was a cure-all for what ails the Jets.
Sunday’s 28-14 defeat in New England was the template for the Adam Gase/Sam Darnold error – a second-half collapse precipitated by Darnold’s two interceptions, and an overall failure to adjust to the Patriots’ adjustments. However, the organization took a meaningful first step when it announced the firing of Gase, whose 9-23 record (including 2-14 this season) in his two years as head coach required meaningless late-season victories to avoid Rich Kotite-ish ignominy.
For the Jets, this is the easy part. Not so easy: righting the ship amidst the stormy waters created by a mandated structure where both general manager Joe Douglas and the team’s head coach separately report to ownership. It has wreaked havoc on every rebuilding plan in this last decade of dysfunction, and with Cleveland’s victory on Sunday, New York’s 10-year playoff drought is now the NFL’s longest.
Compounding matters what happens when older brother Woody Johnson returns from his duties as Ambassador to the United Kingdom later this month, and takes control of the franchise from Christopher, who fumbled his opportunity by buying the Gase hype and then sticking too long with incompetent prior general manager Mike Maccagnan.
While Douglas reportedly will have major input into the new coaching hire, the final sign-off belongs to the Johnsons. What will they be looking for? Some media analysts think Woody will be overly attracted to flashy objects, even if they’re not sensible. Recent reports that Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh and the Eagles’ Doug Pederson will be spared the axe after underwhelming seasons seemingly removes them from consideration.
Will this Gase experience sour the Johnsons on another coach with an offensive bent and lead them back to defensive gurus like Rex Ryan and Herm Edwards, with whom they’ve had some success? Or will they search for a CEO type who can build an NFL staff?
The preliminary candidate list is lengthy, ranging from long-time NFL assistants like Kansas City’s Eric Bieniemy to a college head coach like Iowa State’s Mike Campbell. Some who consider this a bad job, made worse by the Jets blowing their tank for the rights to Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, will recoil. Others, intrigued by the prospect of developing the second-best college QB and the Jets’ bundle of other picks and salary cap space this offseason, will be somewhat eager.
From a purely speculative viewpoint, here are three of the more likely finalists, plus my pipe dream candidate, which means the Jets won’t get him:
1) Don “Wink” Martindale
Martindale benefits from a Douglas link, having won a Super Bowl together during their three-year overlap in Baltimore. Standing on his own, Martindale has been an NFL assistant since 2004, the last three seasons as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator. SI.com called him a “Ryan lite” for his penchant for blitzing and his personality, though reports indicate he holds his players more accountable than “let’s go get a snack” Rex. Martindale, who interviewed for the Giants opening a year ago, has no head coaching experience, which could scare Johnson, since he’ll need to be paired with a high-powered offensive coordinator who can mold a rookie quarterback.
2) Brian Daboll
It is expected that Daboll will be a hot name this offseason, but if Douglas is looking for a candidate who can actually coach where football is going, he could ask Johnson to throw a ton of money at the Bills’ offensive coordinator. Daboll has overseen Josh Allen’s development from a raw athlete to an All-Pro quarterback in three seasons, his schemes and play-calling have drawn raves from experts, and, he is familiar with the Johnsons, having served as the Jets’ quarterback coach under Eric Mangini from 2007-08. Again, the one potential knock on him is that if he’s this good, how come he hasn’t gotten a head coaching gig after 20 seasons in the business, the first nine as a limb on the Nick Saban/Bill Belichick tree?
3) Doug Pederson
I am not buying that Pederson is safe in Philadelphia, especially after Sunday night’s debacle. I previously anticipated this scenario, and figured his connection to Douglas, the former Eagles VP of Player Personnel, would at least put him on the Jets’ interview list. However, given what Christopher Johnson just went through with Gase, hiring him just weeks after he exited Miami in disgrace, Peterson might be a harder sell for Douglas.
Pipe Dream candidate: Joe Brady
The NFL is all about offense, specifically passing offense. If you can pair a skilled quarterback with a bright coach, success is right around the corner. Therein lies the danger of hiring a defensive specialist as head coach – with success, the more vital offensive coordinator will be poached. Ergo, the Jets should be looking for the next Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay, not the next Rex who outsources the offensive side of the ball.
That candidate is Brady, the Panthers’ 31-year-old offensive coordinator who, with a lesser QB talent in Teddy Bridgewater and mostly the backups to injured All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, increased Carolina’s average yards per pass attempt by a full yard from the prior season. ProFootballFocus.com ranked Brady as the NFL’s top offensive play-caller through Week 16, using a metric based on expected points added per play, with adjustments for factors like opponent strength. A disciple of Saints mastermind Sean Payton, Brady designed one of the greatest college offenses ever at LSU in 2019 before Panthers rookie head coach Matt Rhule scooped him up.
Brady would be a high-risk hire, and from what we know of the Johnsons, I would be shocked if they took it.
For a FAN’s perspective of the Nets, Devils and Jets, follow Steve Lichtenstein on Twitter: @SteveLichtenst1
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
January 05, 2021 at 01:08AM
https://www.radio.com/wfan/sports/jets/hiring-right-successor-for-gase-wont-be-easy-task-for-jets
Firing Adam Gase was easy, but hiring the right successor will be harder task for Jets - RADIO.COM
https://news.google.com/search?q=easy&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
No comments:
Post a Comment