New York Jets Owner’s Firing of General Manager Top Storyline of Week

The New York Jets did everything possible to keep themselves in the spotlight during the team’s bye week.

Feb 28, 2023; Indianapolis, IN, USA; New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas during the NFL combine at the Indiana Convention Center. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The New York Jets’ firing of general manager Joe Douglas earlier this week was deemed the team's top storyline of Week 13, according to a compilation of storylines by the On SI NFL staff earlier this week.

A writer for each On SI NFL site provided the storylines. Naturally, for the Jets, it was Douglas losing his job.

Jets owner Woody Johnson fired Douglas on Tuesday, a surprise move considering the team was off this week and Douglas’ contract was set to run out at season’s end.

Phil Savage, a former general manager, will serve as the interim general manager until the Jets hire new leadership.

In a statement, Johnson indicated that he wanted to get a head start on the hiring process for a new general manager, who in theory will hire a new head coach.

It was just the latest in a tumultuous season for the Jets, one that held an incredible amount of promise going into the campaign, only to fall apart by the bye week.

New York (3-8) has lost seven of its last eight games after a 2-1 start to the season.

Five games into the campaign, Johnson unilaterally fired head coach Robert Saleh, effectively rendering Douglas' leadership unnecessary. Yet, Douglas held onto his job for a couple more months as the Jets tried everything they could to get their season back on track.

That included trading a conditional third-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders to acquire wide receiver Davante Adams. He says produced, but his chemistry with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, which was such a huge part of their success in Green Bay, clearly hasn't translated in the Big Apple.

Earlier this week, The Athletic did an in-depth piece on Johnson's increased involvement in the franchise and it reveals a dysfunctional front office in which Johnson had repeatedly usurped the authority of his general manager.

That included nixing a contract extension for defensive lineman Bryce huff last year, stopping a potential trade that would have brought wide receiver Jerry Jeudy to New York instead of him landing in Cleveland and a Week 4 meeting with the football staff in which Johnson asked them to bench Rodgers and start Tyrod Taylor in his place. The staff said no.

Two weeks after that conversation, Saleh was fired.

It's not clear how long the hiring process will take. but Douglas’ firing, combined with pulling back the curtain on Johnson's decision making over the past 18 months, certainly made the Jets news even while the team was off.