Haven’t we been here before?

The New York Jets, after just a single season with a young play-caller, have chosen to go in a different direction. This year, the play-caller was Tanner Engstrand. Just a few years ago, it was Mike LaFleur — the very same man who’s now receiving head-coaching looks around the NFL.

Both LaFleur and Engstrand brought in a modern schematic approach to the Jets’ offense. While the results weren’t always there, both LaFleur and Engstrand were pushed to try and make things work with young quarterbacks from the 2021 NFL draft.

For LaFleur, it was Zach Wilson. For Engstrand, it was Justin Fields.

The common denominator? Coaches and front office leaders who refuse to learn their lessons.

It’s all about the context

Engstrand was not an elite offensive coordinator last season. New York finished in the bottom half of the league in every single statistical category, including passing, points, and total yards.

But it’s not like the Jets had plenty of support for their first-year play-caller.

It’s hard for any offense to produce well when they use three different quarterbacks, have their best receiver out from Week 7 on, and don’t have consistent secondary weapons on the outside either.

In a way, the Jets forced Engstrand to coach with one arm tied behind his back.

Just as they did with LaFleur a few years ago.

Following a 2022 campaign that saw the Jets win seven games — four more than the previous year — New York got rid of LaFleur because he wasn’t able to turn Zach Wilson into a competent and consistent quarterback quickly enough.

Instead, they chose a veteran play-caller in Nathaniel Hackett with the hope that Aaron Rodgers would soon follow. Well, Rodgers did follow … and nothing changed.

LaFleur was nothing more than a scapegoat for a defensive-minded coach trying to keep his job. Just as Engstrand was for Aaron Glenn this time around.

Doubling down on mistakes

Arguably, the most frustrating part about the Jets is their inability to learn from prior mistakes.

They fired a defensive-minded head coach who preached a culture change, only to bring in the same type of coach the very next year. On offense, they hired an inexperienced play-caller, did not put him in a position to succeed, and were somehow flabbergasted by the results.

Time is a flat circle.

No one would have blamed Glenn if he chose to hire a veteran offensive play-caller to stabilize the group last season. If he hired someone like Frank Reich (the current favorite for the new OC opening), it would be easily explained.

Glenn didn’t, though. He chose the inexperienced route in hoping the youthful scheme would work.

He then made every variable as difficult as possible for Engstrand.

From Fields to injuries, to nonexistent player development, the Jets were a mess in 2025. Tanner Engstrand didn’t change the franchise’s fortunes, but he was clearly not the problem.

Yet, the team has made him the scapegoat on the offensive side of the ball — just like they did to Mike LaFleur all those years ago.

Haven’t we been here before?