Some New York Jets members might not be part of the project for the long-run if this year isn’t successful, Albert Breer has claimed.
The New York Jets last year had a lot of pieces together that could very easily make a run at winning a Super Bowl title, including a tough defense that came 5th in yards and 4th in points (via Pro Football Reference) and a lot of talented weapons on offense including Offensive Rookie of the Year Garrett Wilson at wide receiver.
The only thing missing from the lineup was a decent quarterback, as they were forced to try and make it work with Zach Wilson as he continued his struggles in the NFL. Now though they have Aaron Rodgers, and with the moves that they’ve made this offseason, it’s pretty clear that they are going all in to win it all in 2023.
And according to Albert Breer, if they don’t make serious progress, then there might be some serious changes taking place at MetLife Stadium.
Some of the New York Jets looking for new jobs in 2024?
Writing in a mailbag column for SI.com, in response to a question about whether head coach Robert Saleh and GM Joe Douglas would be fired if the team didn’t reach the playoffs, Breer claimed that it was a distinct possibility:
I’d say it’s fair to say so.
In many ways, the availability of Aaron Rodgers provided a lifeline for Robert Saleh and Joe Douglas. Few would survive taking a quarterback with the No. 2 pick and seeing him crash and burn as spectacularly as Zach Wilson has the past two seasons. But while that happened, Saleh and Douglas managed to build a roster, and program, strong enough to attract Rodgers to New York.
Which is to say the Jets are in this gray area where team builders rarely are, where success at the other positions has bought them a second big swing at quarterback, and not even really because their boss recognizes that success so much as that second quarterback saw it as a reason to come. And I think that success combined with the quarterback creates a breakthrough for the Jets, just as Tom Brady created a breakthrough for the Buccaneers’ young core three years ago or Peyton Manning got Denver over the hump a decade ago.
If it doesn’t work? Well, then, you’re probably starting over in some areas, including finding a quarterback, and few coaches or GMs get the chance to do that after missing the playoffs in three consecutive years.
It really is all or nothing for the New York Jets with Aaron Rodgers?
Rodgers has spoken about this not being a ‘one and done’ in his mind, hinting that the Jets might still be able to keep ahold of him for 2024, and if the Jets do make some progress, even if it’s just making the playoffs and getting bounced in the first round, so long as Rodgers is playing well and feels he can come back again, then it would make sense for him and the rest of the team to stick around.
But if things go so badly for the Jets that they miss the playoffs (we don’t think it will happen, this team is far too talented to not make the playoffs at least), you would understand if they decided that they needed to make the best out of a bad situation and start again, bringing someone in that can get them to a Super Bowl with Rodgers at the helm.