Joe

Douglas

Rosenblatt and Russini report now-fired general manager Joe Douglas “had already lost some power midway through last season when Johnson took a more active role”. After a Week 4 loss to the Broncos, Johnson “suggested to coaches that they bench Aaron Rodgers”. A week later, he made the decision to fire head coach Robert Saleh “without consulting his general manager”. Johnson also made decisions on player signings and front office firings over the offseason, decreasing Douglas’ power as general manager and pressuring certain decisions, like nixing a trade for Jerry Jeudy and a contract extension for Bryce Huff. Douglas has now been fired as the Jets will hit reset in the offseason. Johnson returned to run the Jets in 2021, after serving as the United States’ Ambassador to the United Kingdom - his brother ran the team when the Jets hired Douglas in 2019.

Phil Savage, a former general manager for the Browns and a member of New York’s front office, will serve as the Jets’ interim GM. Douglas is out after five and a half seasons as New York’s general manager. It hardly comes as a shock after the front office’s gamble on 40-year-old Aaron Rodgers turned out disastrously on every front. The Jets are 3-8 in another lost season without any clear path forward outside a total teardown and years-long rebuild. Douglas bet on Rodgers and lost badly. The Jets were 30-64 with Douglas as GM. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reports the team’s GM search would begin immediately.

This means both general manager Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh are safe for at least one more year, barring a surprise change of heart from Johnson. Rapoport added that even offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett will return for the 2024 season. The Jets were dealt an unwinnable hand with Aaron Rodgers’ Achilles injury a few snaps into the season, though a better investment at backup quarterback could have helped mitigate the damage. Either way, this didn’t get to see their Rodgers experiment play out and will get their chance to do so in 2024. If the season isn’t a rebounding success, we expect Johnson to clean house and start fresh.

It’s unclear what position new GM Joe Douglas had in mind for his former college teammate. McShay’s role has been in a bit of a holding pattern at ESPN, but he remains a big part of their college football coverage. Opting for the security of Bristol over the insecurity of an Adam Gase-led football team was probably a wise career move.

New GM Joe Douglas will also meet with former Browns GM Phil Savage, who more recently served as the executive director for the Senior Bowl before joining the AAF’s Arizona Hotshots. McShay does not have any front office experience, but he played with Douglas at the University of Richmond in the mid-90s and clearly has a relationship with the new GM.

Although McShay has no experience working in an NFL front office, he previously spent two years with new Jets General Manager Joe Douglas as teammates at the University of Richmond. It’s currently unclear exactly what role McShay is being considered for, but it likely falls under the player evaluation umbrella. The current ESPN analyst would follow the recent footsteps of Mike Mayock as a television personality who jumped ship to the league when the opportunity arose.

Douglas was the favorite to replace Mike Maccagnan all along, but the Texans firing of GM Brian Gaine forced the Jets to speed things up. He beat out Seahawks co-director of player personnel Scott Fitterer, Saints director of pro scouting Terry Fontenot and Chicago’s assistant director of personnel Champ Kelly for the job. In New York, Douglas will be tasked with improving the Jets’ pass rush and finding a playmaking receiver to pair with Sam Darnold. The Jets’ post-draft firing of Maccagnan means Douglas will have to wait for next offseason to bring in his guys.

Douglas is the current frontrunner to replace Mike Maccagnan in New York. The Texans requested to interview him before hiring Brian Gaine, so it’s likely they still have interest. In addition to Douglas, Houston was also linked to Cowboys assistant director of personnel Will McClay, and Patriots execs Nick Caserio and Monti Ossenfort last season.

Douglas has been widely considered the frontrunner to replace recently fired GM Mike Maccagnan since Douglas has worked with Adam Gase and has had plenty of success with the Eagles, but the Jets have hosted interviews with other candidates including Seahawks co-director of player personnel Scott Fitterer. A final decision will be coming in the coming days but Bears assistant director of player personnel Champ Kelly is scheduled to interview next.

The Jets already met with Seahawks co-director of player personnel Scott Fitterer, and plan to sit down with Saints director of pro scouting Terry Fontenot and Chicago’s Assistant Director of Personnel Champ Kelly. Douglas is widely considered the frontrunner to replace Mike Maccagnan. The Jets should wrap up their GM search early next week.