Jets general manager Joe Douglas opened the door on Tuesday for the chance that the team will trade quarterback Sam Darnold.
Douglas praised Darnold, but he did not commit to the team’s fullback in 2021.
“We have a lot of decisions to make,” Douglas said. “I think Sam will be a good quarterback. I’m excited to get a head coach in here, going through our process. I had a wonderful conversation with Sam yesterday. I will not consider the details, but I think Sam has a very bright future in this league. … I’m excited about Sam. ‘
It was a departure from October 2019, when Douglas said Darnold was the only untouchable player in the team and he would listen to trade offers for anyone else. But Douglas and the Jets now face a major quarterback decision to stick with Darnold, who has had a terrible season, and try to provide him with better talent to employ him or to trade Darnold and a quarter with the no. choose in April’s draft.
Douglas would not make the call himself, and he could not answer the question now. Douglas and the Jets need to find a new head coach before calling on the roster.
“An important decision we have to make in terms of the roster, in terms of free agency, concept, anything, our new head coach will be a big part of that,” Douglas said.
Darnold finishes the season as the best referee in the NFL. He threw 11 interceptions and nine times in 12 games. Adam Gase was partially fired on Sunday for his failure to get more out of Darnold and the offense that had the worst position in the NFL. Douglas made excuses for Darnold on Tuesday.
“I think Sam, like everyone else, faced a lot of obstacles this year,” Douglas said. ‘Handle COVID, and honestly, we had quite a few injuries on the offensive line in the wide receiver position. I think it was difficult for our transgression to really build the sustained chemistry to create success throughout the year. I think we had different attacking line groups during the season. We didn’t really get a chance to have our top three receivers on the field at the same time until week 9. I think all of this not only affected Sam but also our transgression. I think you saw that Sam played very good ball in December. You saw, of course, that we were able to beat two playoff teams, and a lot of that is because of how Sam played. ”
Douglas and the Jets are now starting their search for a new coach. It is known that the team requested interviews with six candidates. Douglas is at the forefront of the search and said he is looking for a ‘good partner’ with high integrity and a vision for what he wants the identity of the team to be.
There are currently six head coaches in the NFL. Most people see the opening of the Jets almost at the bottom of the list in terms of attractiveness, but Douglas said the team has some selling points.
“I think there are a lot of good pieces here,” Douglas said. “I think there are some good, young core players. I think it’s our responsibility to try to rebuild the pieces we have in place. It is our responsibility to make the best decisions in terms of the leader we bring in, the players we choose in free agency, the players we draft. Clearly, we are excited about the resources we have. We are excited about the conversation with a candidate to come to this amazing city, to this amazing market and this amazing support base and to really build something special that has been done here for a long time. I think these are exciting times for this franchise, for this fan base. ”
Douglas said it would be a wide-ranging search and that university coaches would be considered. Douglas said it was difficult to see Gase fired.
“I know people outside this building, they may not see it at the moment, but he has done some good things here that will help us move forward,” Douglas said.
He also takes his own share of the blame for the team’s 2-14 record in 2020.
“I could definitely do a better job of putting together this roster, helping these staff and helping this team succeed,” Douglas said.