The holiday season keeps giving for the New York Jets, as the Jets extend coach Todd Bowles and general manager Mike Maccagnan, per Adam Schefter. The new deals will keep the duo in New York through the 2020 season.
Jets Extend Coach Todd Bowles, GM Mike Maccagnan
Bowles first arrived in New York in 2015 after as successful stint as the defensive coordinator for the Arizona Cardinals. After dealing with the Rex Ryan circus, Bowles first season was a huge success. The Jets went 10-6, missing a wild card birth by just one game. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw 31 touchdown passes, and things were looking promising heading into 2016. However, the wheels then fell off the wagon. New York had a miserable 2016, going 5-11 before sending most of their veterans away the following offseason.
With little in terms of established and talented players, the Jets were thought of as arguably the worst team in the league heading into 2017. It was assumed the team was blatantly tanking, and predictions of 0-16 weren’t uncommon. With that in mind, pulling a 5-10 record out of this squad is pretty impressive.
Maccagnan joined the Jets along with Bowles in 2015. After two seasons of trying to build a contender with veterans, he went for a full rebuild this last offseason. So far, Maccagnan’s plan appears to be working. Young players like receiver Robby Anderson have broken through, and the 2017 draft class, led by safety Jamal Adams, has shown promise.
The duo has yet to reach the playoffs, so there will be some backlash to the extensions. However, the fact that this team has remained competitive for most of the season despite the prognosis of doom shows that the Jets have the right team in place. Is Todd Bowles the best head coach in the NFL? Of course not, nobody is confusing him with Bill Belichick. More of the same with Maccagnan. While they do have their limitations, they have shown to be capable of leading the Jets in the right direction. Today, they made sure that leadership doesn’t go anywhere.
Main Photo:Embed from Getty Images
