Todd Bowles is entering his third season as head coach for the New York Jets. This will be a difficult season to say the least.
The Jets have tanked the season by releasing or trading some of their players from last year, so that they can be in a position to draft a quarterback in April by getting one of the top three picks. Looking at the roster, there are names unrecognizable. This should be good enough to win no more than two games this season.
Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan had Jets owner Woody Johnson’s blessing to execute tanking for UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen, USC quarterback Sam Darnold or Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen, but it’s a good bet Bowles won’t be coaching that quarterback next year. The Jets coach will likely be fired after accumulating all those losses. The Jets can cite a need for an offensive-minded head coach to lead the new quarterback. Think Lions offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter.
If the Jets go winless, Maccagnan could join his head coach in being fired. Why not? Might as well have a new administration to go along with a new coach and a new quarterback. Starting anew makes sense for the Jets if they go in that direction.
Bowles is playing the role of a loyal soldier since he has no choice, but he’s not stupid, either. He knows the deal. Someone has to take the fall for the losses. It’s the way professional sports work, which is why no one can blame him for not liking what he is going to endure this season.
That’s no way to treat a head coach or any employee for that matter. The Jets were better off just firing him rather than keep him to take all the losses. They might as well hire an interim coach to take the losses this year and hire a new coach next year.
To judge Bowles on this year is wrong. He should be getting a chance to coach the Jets with better players and a better quarterback next year. That’s the fair way to judge him. Three years is not enough since it’s hard to know what to make of him. He did a fine job in his first year by having his team overachieve by winning 10 games, but he could not do well with the same team last year by only winning five games as the players showed their age by being on the decline.
We will never know what to make of him as a head coach when his tenure is over. Yes, he did a terrible job last year in not disciplining his players enough by not being assertive in dealing with Sheldon Richardson (saying he couldn’t care less about the Dolphins/Jets game and late to team meetings), Mo Wilkerson (miss team meetings and being late to team meetings) and Brandon Marshall (yelling at his teammates). He deserves to be accountable for having his team unprepared on game day. He and his staff did not make adjustments. With that said, he is still learning on the job. He deserves a chance to redeem himself.
Bowles likely won’t get that opportunity with the Jets. There’s a good chance he may not get an opportunity ever again for an NFL team once he is fired. The chances of losing African-American head coaches getting a second chance are not very good based on past history.
It’s a shame. Bowles can’t do anything about it since he has no power to do so. He is in no position to say anything after a terrible season. All he can do is deal with it by coaching the best he can this season.
It could be easy for him to quit, but he would risk career suicide by doing that. Not only would he not get a second chance to be a head coach, but he may not get a chance to be a defensive coordinator ever again.
Bowles has no choice but to deal with it. He will handle it in a dignified manner, which we all expect him to do. Deep down, he has to be fuming, and no one can blame him.
Jets fans don’t care. They want to make sure their team is so bad that they get Darnold, Rosen or Allen. If Bowles somehow gets five or six wins out of the Jets, fans will be mad at him.
This whole thing stinks no matter how anyone feels about it.
Bowles is not asking for sympathy. He knows the average Jets fan is not interested to hear his plight.
It does not change the fact what the Jets are doing to him is wrong and cruel.
