Woody Johnson wasn’t shy about speaking out last week.
The Jets owner stopped by the NFL Honors red carpet last Thursday to speak with me and another New York reporter. Johnson clearly had a point.
Johnson didn’t just attack Zach Wilson, he reminded everyone that this season needed to be different.
He didn’t say the Jets need to make the playoffs in order for coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas to save their jobs, but he said he would change his mind if 2024 ends in a disappointing year. announced that it is prepared to add.
“In the conversations I’ve had over the last few months, they viewed me as as angry as I could be, especially with what was going on on offense,” Johnson said. “We have this much talent, so we have to put that talent in place. I think they all got the message: This is it. It’s time to go. We have to produce this year. No, we have to produce it this year.”
In other words, 2024 will be a competitive season for Douglas and Saleh. Johnson has been patient with both during his time with the Jets. It’s natural for him to want results this season.
There’s pressure on everyone on this year’s Jets to end their teenage playoff drought, but I think it’s a sliding scale.
Who do I think will be the most notable in the coming months:
1. Joe Douglas
The GM was appointed in June 2019. He inherited a bad roster, spent four drafts and four offseasons trying to fix it, and while it’s much better, there are still glaring holes.
The biggest thing is the offensive line. Douglas used two first-round picks on offensive linemen (Mekhi Becton, Ariya Berra-Tucker) and spent a lot of money on another lineman (Laken Tomlinson), but the line Still one of the team’s biggest weaknesses.
Douglas has to get it right this offseason. We can’t afford to make the same mistakes we made in free agency and the draft. He needs to fix his offensive line and bring in a No. 2 wide receiver. He can’t afford to make the same mistakes as Allen Lazard.
In addition to targeting the No. 10 overall pick, you need to find hidden gems on Day 3 of the draft, and that hasn’t worked out in the first four drafts.
2. Robert Saleh
It’s true that fan sentiment is so hostile to Saleh that it’s hard to find many Jets fans who still believe in him.
I don’t know why it went south so quickly. Saleh faced a very difficult situation last year, losing his starting quarterback four plays into the season. Any team would have struggled to deal with that. Still, the Jets won seven games, and Saleh kept the locker room from collapsing.
However, Saleh will not be able to earn points outside of the matches he wins in 2024. he knows it. He went 18-33 in three seasons as the Jets’ coach. He has a terrible record no matter how you look at it. He needs to put together a 10-win season that ends with a playoff berth by 2025. If that’s not enough, Johnson will try to make a change.
Still, the negative perception of Saleh has gone too far these days. He’s a great leader and deserves credit for building a top-five defense. He needs his quarterback to stay upright this season, which gives us…
3. Aaron Rodgers
Unlike the first two, no one is considering firing Rodgers. But there’s a lot of pressure on the quarterback to contribute for the Jets. He was seen as the franchise’s savior when he arrived via trade last April. Then, his season was ruined by an injury in Week 1. Mr. Rogers must feel some guilt over what happened.
Going into his second year with the Jets, the common refrain is that everything will be better if Rodgers becomes QB. Even if you’re a four-time MVP, that’s pressure. Rodgers can still throw the football. Anyone who saw him in practice late in the season can attest to that.
But can the Jets protect him? Will they give him a strong supporting role? Will age start to catch up with him once he turns 40? Will the Achilles injury hinder him at all?
These are all big questions and Rodgers has to answer them.
4. Nathaniel Hackett
The offensive coordinator had a disastrous first season with the Jets, but there was also the excuse of losing Rodgers and having to adjust the offense without him. But that process took too long and his play-calling was painful to watch.
But I don’t think there’s that much pressure on Hackett. Because his fate is tied to the three men above him. If Douglas, Saleh and Rodgers fail, there will be nothing that Mr. Hackett can do to save his job. If Hackett does well, Rodgers will get the credit, but the offensive coordinator will return in 2025.
No Jets offensive coordinator has returned for a third season since Brian Schottenheimer, who served as OC from 2006 to 2011. Can Hackett break that trend?
5. Backup QB to be named later
Well, this is a bit of a reach, but I can’t help but think that whoever the Jets sign to back up Rodgers, there’s going to be some pressure on him. The story of the 2023 season was that the Jets didn’t do a good enough job as a backup quarterback. Wilson took a shot from Johnson last week.
Obviously, the Jets are going to spend a lot of money on a veteran backup this time around. Maybe Jacoby Brissett, Ryan Tannehill, Gardner Minshew.
If that quarterback has to play in Rodgers’ place, you’ll either expect him to win or you’ll hear, “They should have used Zach Wilson.”
I wish you many years of happiness.
Of course, the Super Bowl ended with Mecole Hardman catching the game-winning touchdown. It always comes back to the Jets.
Hardman had one of the strangest stories I remember while covering the Jets. They were really excited when they signed him as a free agent. Then they didn’t play him.
It wasn’t that he was a bad teammate or a bad player, it was just a bad fit. That’s what you kept hearing from people.
The Jets did the right thing when they traded him in October. He was able to finish the season with a Super Bowl ring and will now forever be part of NFL legend.
It was a strange season.
That’s the status
I was watching the Super Bowl and wondered who had the most passing yards for the Jets in the playoffs. He thought he would make a top 10 list, but there are only nine players who have completed a pass in the playoffs for a franchise.
Here are the top nine in passing yards in the playoffs.
1. Chad Pennington: 1,166 yards (5 games, 2002-06)
2. Mark Sanchez: 1,155 yards (6 games, 2009-10)
3. Richard Todd: 1,026 yards (4 games, 1981-82)
4. Vinny Testaverde: 908 yards (4 games, 1998-2002)
5. Joe Namath: 641 yards (3 games, 1968-69)
6. Ken O’Brien: 504 yards (3 games, 1985-1991)
7. Pat Ryan: 340 yards (6 games, 1981-86)
8. Brad Smith: 45 yards (6 games, 2006-10)
9. Freeman McNeil: 14 yards (8 games, 1981-91)
Source: Stathead
