First, Robert Saleh. Now, Joe Douglas. Woody Johnson is making changes for his struggling New York Jets during what has been a disappointing season.
Douglas was fired on Tuesday as the Jets’ general manager, marking the latest shakeup for a team that had Super Bowl hopes with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback but now sits at a 3-8 record, likely heading toward missing the playoffs for the 14th year in a row.
Douglas’ dismissal, after a record of 30-64 with no winning seasons, came just six weeks after Johnson fired Saleh as head coach on Oct. 8, following a 2-3 start to the season.
“Today, I informed Joe Douglas he will no longer serve as the general manager of the New York Jets,” Johnson said in a statement from the team. “I want to thank Joe for his commitment to the Jets over the last six years and wish him and his family the best moving forward.”
Johnson also announced that Phil Savage, who has worked as a senior football adviser since 2019, will take over as the interim general manager for the rest of the season. Johnson stated the team would begin the search for a new GM right away.
Douglas, who was in the final year of his contract after being hired in 2019, was not consulted when Johnson made the decision to fire Saleh and replace him with defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich on an interim basis. The Jets are 1-5 under Ulbrich.
Earlier, Johnson had said he believed the Jets had “one of the most talented teams that has ever been assembled” during his 25 years as owner — and that Douglas was largely responsible for that. However, the fact that Johnson did not include Douglas in the decision to fire Saleh indicated the GM’s job could be in danger.
“I come in here every day and just want to do whatever I can to help this team reach its goals and reach its destination,” Douglas said two weeks ago when asked if he was concerned about his job status. “And whatever happens, happens.”
At that time, the Jets were 3-6, and Douglas believed the team still had a chance to turn things around.
“Obviously, it starts with me,” Douglas said. “I can look back and there’s quite a few things that I could have done better. Obviously, when a situation happens like what happened four weeks ago (Saleh’s firing), you have a lot of self-reflective moments on what you could have done better to keep that from happening. But we’ve got an opportunity here with these last stretch of games to change that narrative.”
Since then, the Jets have lost two more games, including a humiliating 31-6 defeat to Arizona and a heartbreaking 28-27 loss to Indianapolis last Sunday.
Johnson appeared to decide that it was time for a major change during the Jets’ bye week, rather than wait until the end of the season — especially since it seemed likely the team would continue its long playoff drought.
Johnson’s possible future outside of football may have also played a role in starting the search now. He served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom during Donald Trump’s first term and could potentially take up that role again if Trump is re-elected, which would likely force him to step away from daily operations of the team in the coming year.
Douglas was initially praised when he traded for Aaron Rodgers, with Johnson’s encouragement. However, Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon just four snaps into the 2023 season, and the Jets were never able to recover, finishing 7-10.
Rodgers had entered training camp healthy and full of enthusiasm, sparking renewed Super Bowl hopes, but instead, the Jets have been one of the most disappointing teams in the NFL. With Rodgers now 41 years old and having one year left on his contract, his future is uncertain.
Douglas’ failure to get Rodgers to perform at his usual level and his inability to build a consistent offensive line will be major blemishes on his record. The decision to trade Sam Darnold to Carolina and draft Zach Wilson with the No. 2 pick in 2021 also didn’t pan out.
However, Douglas made several key moves to build a young core for the Jets, including drafting cornerback Sauce Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson, edge rusher Jermaine Johnson, and running back Breece Hall in the first two rounds of the 2022 draft.
Savage, who will take over as interim GM, has a long history in the NFL, including serving as GM of the Cleveland Browns for four years, and has also worked for Baltimore and Philadelphia.
He was also the executive director of the Senior Bowl for six years and served as the general manager of the Arizona Hotshots in the Alliance of American Football in 2018 before joining the Jets.
