Things have changed for the New York Jets.

Originally, the organization seemed all-in on the Aaron Glenn head coaching tenure. Ownership, fans, and analysts bought into the bravado and confidence instilled by the former Pro Bowl cornerback heading into the 2025 season.

General manager Darren Mougey was seen as the “sidekick” of sorts, as chairman Woody Johnson called him at the introductory press conference. Besides, New York hired Glenn first.

Mr. Johnson also confirmed that the organization’s structure returned to the double-avenue form: both the head coach and the general manager report individually to ownership. This is how things were set up in the past — until Joe Douglas was hired in 2019.

When the chips are down, speculation runs rampant about each side’s power, thanks in large part to this structure.

Initially, of course, the needle pointed more towards the head coach. After a disastrous first season at the helm, a reshuffling of sorts has occurred.

No longer is Glenn the Jets’ sole representative face (when analyzing the bulk of on-screen media time).

One of the biggest takeaways from the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Ind., has been the apparent shift in the balance of power between Mougey and Glenn.

Jets front office breakdown

When Aaron Glenn was first hired as head coach of the New York Jets, he was celebrated as a man who could bring in an excellent coaching staff thanks to his connections around the league. The team went on to win just three games.

Glenn refused to remain stagnant, however, by revamping the original staff. It changed the perception of his overall connections around the league.

It also left him turning to Mougey for help in the hiring process.

“Part of the process we had going through this coaching search, Moug was a huge part of it,” Glenn said while at the NFL Scouting Combine this past weekend. “I wanted to get their opinions on what they thought.”

Mougey is not the first general manager to aid assistant coaching searches. This is very common throughout the league. But for a man who was perceived as nothing more than a second fiddle to Glenn, the fact that the team is willing to trust his connections shows he was far more respectable than anyone could have thought.

That reality was evident in Indianapolis, as evidenced by the general manager’s conversations about the Jets’ quarterback room.

“We’re having discussions about the quarterback position every day,” Mougey said after the season. “I was actually talking to Frank this morning, and it’s myself, AG, Frank, [QB coach] Billy [Musgrave], and just discussions about all the different options and the opportunities we may or may not have. But for the time being, Justin’s in all of those conversations. So, we’ll see where that goes as we go through the process.”

Mougey speaks as a confident executive who understands it’s best to operate in the shadows, unlike Glenn’s openness. It’s worked well for him so far, and he remains arguably the best part of the Jets’ rebuild.

Still, Mougey’s impressive start doesn’t absolve him from New York’s struggles.

Biggest questions

Darren Mougey may be running the show in New York now — well, Northern New Jersey, technically — but there are still plenty of questions left to answer.

Gang Green has a brand new coaching staff, over $90 million in salary cap space, and four draft picks in the first 50 overall selections. There’s enough capital, both in free agency and the draft, to drastically improve the roster from where it was last season.

There are also fair questions about the pecking order in the front office. Most analysts agree that Glenn will be firmly planted on the hot seat this year. He’ll need to improve his roster’s win total and quality of play if he hopes to survive a third season as head coach.

Does Mougey have the same kind of pressure on him in 2026? That remains to be seen.

Of the two leaders in the front office, the Jets’ general manager has shown the most potential. Conversations with people around the league in Indianapolis highlight Mougey’s impressive start with the team.

Those same conversations are less impressive when it comes to Glenn.

Will that mean their fates are tied together? Or, are the Jets really willing to move on from one to better reinforce the other?

After the combine, there are legitimate questions about the New York Jets’ changing pecking order within the organization.