I'm looking at our roster and coaching staff, and I can't help but say, "Is this real life?" If you told me that Big Mac was going to fix the craphole that Idzik dug and turn this team into a potential winner, I would've called you crazy. I'm so glad to know that my team finally has a competent management.
Give him credit for not getting involved in the operational side as well. Just count the gate receipts Woody on the way to the club, then stay out of the way.
The new GM came into a great situation, with all the bad contracts off the books, tons of money to spend, and really high draft picks. But the thing is, based on what happened to the previous regime, Mac has adopted a win now approach, and that's exactly why the Jets won't win the Superbowl for another 40 years or whatever. Look at the age of our core right now: Fitzpatrick, Marshall, Mangold, Brick, Colon, Revis, Cromartie, Harris, Pace are all over 30. How many of them will be done in a couple of years? Our most talented young group is the D-Line, and there is no way the Jets will be able to pay all of them. Wilkerson probably wants a massive contract right now, which is why they can't agree on one. Considering the money Suh, Dareus, Watt and the guy in Tampa got, I am guessing there is someone who would pay Wilkerson a lot of money out there, and Richardson will want even more when his time comes. Snacks also could command a hefty salary somewhere as a run stopping anchor. You can't build a championship contender by loading up on free agents, and we will see what happens when all these acquisitions start getting old in the tooth.
I think so. It took forever to clean things up but we've got a fresh crew in house and they seem to have something special going on right now.
You can argue that the win-now approach was faulty and not be wrong. However how can you not like what you are seeing on the field in front of you right now? Watching Brandon Marshall and Darrelle Revis play football is fun. That's what we're supposed to be getting out of being Jets fans. Fun. And yeah I know sometimes it seems like we're on a long bleeding pilgrimage somewhere but really when the Jets win it's like a picnic in the park instead. We were headed for a big crash when Mangold and Brick and Harris aged out, which is not too far down the road. It's nice to see the Jets winning some before that day comes.
As a fan of this and other NY teams, spending money does not necessarily mean a good team at all. Why don't you ask the Dolans how thats working out for them?
Being a Jets fan over the last few years have been more like the Bataan Death March. When the Jets won, it was simply a rest along the way. Thank God those days are over! Don't sell Mac short on having a longer range vision. He had to plug holes on a leaky ship which he has done admirably. Now he can concentrate on the future which he's doing by filling the Roster from the bottom up. He's only been here ONE draft. Patience is warranted. We have a GM that has a clue.
When Woody Johnson spends money in a burst like this off-season the Jets are generally good and tend to make the playoffs. People who are down on Woody aren't really looking at the big picture or they have other axes to grind. There are owners in the NFL who spend a ton of money and rarely get results. Woody is not one of those owners.
Before you get too excited let me know how he is going to pay Wilkerson the 16-17M it will cost to franchise him next year or keep any of the other talent that becomes free agents then.
I'll believe it when I see a stable offensive line for the forseeable future. A QB would be great too. If the Jets win this year do you think Mac can pull off getting Fitzpatrick signed to a cheap extension so he can keep the defense together?
I agree it's way too early for accolades. That being said, our draft looks pretty good so far and the FA acquisitions look even better. Only FA signing that looks like a total bust is Stevan Ridley but I'm pretty sure this was a zero risk signing. I definitely like the direction we're headed in. The key is going to be finding a long term solution at the QB position. I pray that it's Petty because I'm just not seeing any surefire answers in next year's draft.
If Mac doesn't pay Wilkerson, he'll have Williams already in place. If we lose Wilkerson, the world will not stop spinning. Prior Jet GM's would mortgage the future and pony up. I think Mac has a plan B already on the board just in case Mo walks the plank.
But I think we should just keep drafting QBs anyway until we find our guy. It could be in the later rounds again, but I never want us to get complacent again until we know for certain we have a franchise QB.
I think so with regards to Fitz. It will depend on how much money and interest from other teams is there. The OLine will take a few drafts to replace IF we pay as much attention to it as we've done with the defense over the last 5+ years. The DLine was the Jet equivalent of the Manhattan Project and it produced a stellar unit. We'll have to do something similar with the OLine in the not too distant future.
Bottom line is the new FO inherited an old team and you can't fix all of that in one off season and still expect to be competitive. The vets they brought in are all on shorts deals -- they don't have long money invested in them. In the meantime you draft and sign younger guys to balance out the roster. That will be the challenge. The alternative would have been to purge the roster of everyone over 30 and field a 2-win team this year. I think the FO has struck a reasonable balance where we do have a veteran team but we don't have long term money locked up into anyone over 30. The key is to draft well so younger guys can step in to replace the vets as their performance starts to dip. As far as the D-line, Leonard Williams is already looking like a good insurance policy in the event we can't keep Mo so again the FO has done about all they can within reason.
Spending big money on free agents especially big name free agents doesn't make you a great GM, great GM's are able to spend money and develop contracts that are favorable to the team itself. The Dolphins will witness the terrible unfriendly contract of Suh very shortly. Tannenbaum spent a shit ton of money in the past and got free agents as well but did so with DUMB contracts like the Sanchez and santonio Holmes ones that crippled us for players that weren't worth it. He did it for the sake of giving away money. What makes MAC a very good GM so far is that his contracts seem big money but are very team friendly. Revis contract for example is 5 years 70 mil. Seems like a lot but really only years 1 and 2 guarantees him 16 mil per year, then we are able to cut ties with him with little cap hit. Same goes for Cros contract. Not only this but Mac has made amazing trades for amazing value acquired Marshall for a 5th rounder and Fitzpatrick for a 7th rounder! These are the types of mindset as a GM that has proven Mac at this point. I don't want to anoint him yet because we need to see what he does with Mo, Snacks, and eventually Sheldon, but so far he's done a solid job!
Well, it's the same thing as everything else in life. There is a price to pay for good things. If you want to party all the time and feel good now, you won't go to college, work hard, etc, and end up in a bad situation. Same thing with Jet fans, they want to feel good now with Revis and Marshall, even though both of those are 30+ and likely won't be part of any long-term plan. Jets fans say they are frustrated with not winning a championship in 40 years, but they never want to actually go through proper rebuilding. Every time it's the same song and dance, let's do a quick fix, load up on free agents, have a couple of good years and sink back to shit.
I like that Maccagnan and Bowles seem to be on the same page with respect to their roles. Clearly Idzik and Rex didnt have that same trust between them (or any, for that matter). He spent money and brought in players, but also managed to maintain draft picks. Picking up extra ones where he could. As long as he doesnt blow our draft picks and bring in overpriced guys to destroy the cap, I think the Jets have found a winner.
