If the New York Jets miss the playoffs, Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh could find themselves on the hot seat
When the New York Jets traded for former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, expectations for the Green & White rose significantly. The team will play more prime-time games this season than it did in the last three years combined. For the first time in a long time, they’re expected to make the playoffs.
With increased expectations comes increased pressure. Prior to the NFL draft, I wrote that the pressure is on for Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh going into the 2023 season, and if they aren’t able to live up to expectations, it’s likely the duo will no longer be employed by the Jets going into 2024. As it turns out, I’m not the only one with that opinion.
Speaking to the New York Post, former Jets head coach Eric Mangini said it was “bulls—” when The Post relayed that Charlie Weiss (who was a former OC of the Jets from 1997-99) didn’t believe Douglas and Saleh would be on the hot seat with an underwhelming season.
“This has changed everything,’’ Mangini said. “When you’re paying someone $100 million who’s a season removed from being the back-to-back offensive MVP, yeah, this is win or someone else is going to be calling the shots. I don’t even think it’s debatable.’’
Mangini would know better than most. After being told that his job was safe after the trade for Brett Favre in 2008, Mangini was fired when the team failed to make the playoffs following a Favre injury that derailed an otherwise hot start.
“I got fired after starting 8-3 and losing four of the last five and that was after having gone to the playoffs,’’ Mangini said.
Though it seems like Mangini is predicting doom and gloom, he actually thinks the Jets could be great this season.
“This makes everyone there better,’’ Mangini said. “They know they’ve got a chance to win every game now. Unless this is a Russell Wilson disaster, this should change the dynamic of the [AFC East] division. When is the last time the Jets have been significantly more relevant than the Patriots? It’s incredible.’’
Mangini also believes that a newly inspired Aaron Rodgers on a loaded Jets offense could mean disaster for the rest of the NFL.
“You’ve got a motivated Aaron Rodgers,’’ said Mangini. “A pissed-off Aaron Rodgers is what you want. When he was pissed off about Jordan Love being drafted, he was MVP. When he was pissed off about his contract, he was MVP. A motivated, energized Aaron Rodgers, that’s awesome.”
Mangini continued, “I would think for a person with his personality, this is like, ‘Can I overcome this new challenge? Can I do what Tom [Brady] did [winning a Super Bowl with Tampa Bay]?’. Who’s [Rodgers] going to be? Where’s he going to fit in that? I would imagine for a smart, driven competitive, successful guy like Aaron, that’s like a jolt of competitive caffeine.’’
The Jets struck out spectacularly with Zach Wilson. Missing that badly on a second overall selection (especially at QB) can be enough for some GMs and coaches to lose their jobs. Thankfully for Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh, they built a great team around a poor quarterback situation. Now with Rodgers at the helm in 2023, this could be the team that ends a 54-year Super Bowl drought.
