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Former New York Jets head coach Eric Mangini, once referred to by the Jets’ faithful as the “Mangenius”, believes that the Jets’ front office duo of Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh are facing a playoffs-or-bust season following the acquisition of Aaron Rodgers.
During a recent interview with the New York Post, Mangini — who coached the Jets from 2006 to 2008 — detailed how the pressure is now on for the team to deliver, and that if they fail to make the playoffs, it’ll likely cost Douglas and Saleh their jobs.
“This has changed everything,” Mangini said to the New York Post. “When you’re paying someone $100 million who’s a season removed from being the back-to-back offensive MVP, yeah, this is win or someone else is going to be calling the shots. I don’t even think it’s debatable.’’
“This makes everyone there better. They know they’ve got a chance to win every game now. Unless this is a Russell Wilson disaster, this should change the dynamic of the [AFC East] division. When is the last time the Jets have been significantly more relevant than the Patriots? It’s incredible.’’
Mangini, of course, has personal experience with the Jets pulling this kind of move as the team traded for Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre during the midst of Mangini’s tenure.
While the experiment began successfully — the Jets began with an 8-3 record and looked like one of the best teams in the AFC — they’d ultimately collapse down the stretch and miss the playoffs, which ultimately led to the team firing Mangini and replacing him with Rex Ryan.
“I got fired after starting 8-3 and losing four of the last five and that was after having gone to the playoffs,’’ Mangini added.
The bookies certainly agree that the Jets are a playoff team (on paper), as they currently have the seventh-best betting odds to lift next year’s Lombardi Trophy, which trails only the Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, and Dallas Cowboys.