NFL analyst defends Jets owner Woody Johnson's teenage sons with Jay-Z story

FOX Sports and NFL Network's Peter Schrager believes Brick and Jack were unfairly 'killed' in the New York Jets expose and questions Madden ratings credence.

Dec. 15, 2024: Son of Jets co-owner Woody Johnson, Brick Johnson, 17, with mother Suzanne Johnson / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

And to think it couldn't get any worse for the New York Jets.

Just when it seemed like the Jets had hit rock bottom, The Athletic came in with a hammer that reverberated throughout social media, even beyond NFL circles. Catching the most heat besides owner Woody Johnson were his two teenage sons: Brick, an 18-year-old freshman at Harvard, and younger brother, Jack.

FOX Sports and NFL Network analyst Peter Schrager, always plugged into the Jets and Giants especially, pushed back on some of the most damning anecdotes from The Athletic story on "The Bill Simmons Podcast," most notably that Johnson would often reference Brick or Jack's anecdotal online reads in team decisions or didn't want to trade for then Denver Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy because his "Madden NFL" rating wasn't high enough.

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“You go to these Jets games, you see the sons pregame," Schrager said when talking to Simmons. "And they’re on the sidelines, and they look cool. And they got the blazer on. And they got the sunglasses on. And they’re walking the sidelines. And it’s like, this is a freshman at Harvard, and a kid in boarding school. And their dad and mom own the New York Jets, and they have all access.

I don’t spite the kids. And I don’t spite the owner. But what it is. It is true. These kids are around. And I actually, I feel bad for Brick, the older one, because everyone says he’s actually a good kid, and he’s getting lambasted in this article. The Madden thing. I’m not going to discredit that things like Madden ratings could come [into play]. I’ve spoken to sources. The Jerry Jeudy trade wasn’t happening because the Cleveland Browns offered something better. It’s wasn’t because his Madden rating wasn’t what it was."

Schrager then goes onto to say that the Johnsons have had their share of bad decisions, like notably letting Joe Flacco walk out the door. He then went onto win NFL Comeback Player of the Year with the Cleveland Browns in 2023.

“I know the owners. It’s true. I know that Woody, was like sometimes in the draft, will show displeasure if it’s a pick he doesn’t like. That is fact. I’ve heard that from ex-employees. And that’s a lot of this. There are a lot of ex-employees from the Jets right now… At the end of the day. This ain’t the Pittsburgh Steelers. This isn’t the Kansas City Chiefs. There certainly is some fissures and issues with some of the ways things go down, but I think all they want to do is win. It’s not like they’re not giving the GM the green light to get Aaron Rodgers or to go trade for Davante Adams. But I can’t discredit the article.”

From there Simmons, who loves the NBA even when its ratings continue to tank, meanders the conversation to NBA owners vs. NFL owners before bringing it back to many of these multi-billion dollar franchises are nothing more than family-run businesses. Schrager then brings it home with this story from the Super Bowl.

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“Which is why I want to give a pass to Woody’s kids, who got killed in this Athletic article… I remember before the Super Bowl in Arizona [between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs], and I don’t know if I should share this, but I will. We were walking around the field, and it was a FOX [Sports] Super Bowl, so I have all access. And I’m walking around with Michael Vick, Charles Woodson, and Sean Payton. And Goodell comes over. And Jay-Z’s there. And there’s this conversation, and I like eek to the back, because I know my place in these things. No one wants to see my dumb a**. And I see Woody’s kids on the field, and they’re taking pictures with Jay-Z. I would do the same thing if I was a 17-year-old kid at the Super Bowl, and my dad owned the Jets. Do you spite them for that? No. It’s the job of everyone else to say, ok, we have to put up some walls here to see what we’re going to do.”

It's a fair counter. Don't blame Brick or Jack. It's a family-run business, like most NFL franchises. Usually the most successful ones are when the families stay out of the way, and they surround themselves with smart football people and business executives.

But that's easier said than done.

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