What went wrong? Now that the season is in the books, the coaching search is on the front burner. We have an update on that at the end of this post. But first, trying to diagnose the patient that was the 2008 Jets. Sirius NFL Radio Jets reporter Lisa Zimmerman did some reporting in the wake of Eric Mangini?s firing, and several players and two high-placed Jets staffers told her that after the loss to the Denver Broncos, Mangini panicked. She reported on air that Mangini tore up the defensive schemes that the team had been using and installed a new set that defensive players weren?t comfortable with. Despite objecting, the players were told they were to learn the new system. Several pointed to problems in the secondary given the way the Jets rotated defensive backs with S Kerry Rhodes and CB Darrelle Revis. The communication problems, she reported, extended to the offense and even within the coaching staff itself. The unsuccessful tinkering and internal problems would explain why Mangini was fired immediately after the loss to Miami, when Brett Favre?s interceptions seemed a large part of the problem. On the coaching front, a reporter the NFL Network is saying that former Ravens Brian Billick will interview with the Jets this week. In a story that could have an impact on the Jets coaching staff, Mike Shanahan told the NFL Network he will coach again. Bill Cowher told the CBS audience for the wild card pregame show that he was going to stay with the network for the final year of his contract. For those of you scoring at home? Bill Callahan?in Brian Schottenheimer?in Steve Spagnuolo?in Rex Ryan?TBA Russ Grimm?not yet official Jeff Jagodzinski ?neither confirmed nor denied to protect recruiting interests Brian Billick?NFL Network source says this week Lastly: For all those who thought the Favre vs. Chad Pennington battle was settled the last day of the regular season, Pennington?s four interceptions muddied the water a lot.
Finally, a legitimate reason and some closure to why Mangini was fired so quickly. Very, very interesting, and somewhat disturbing.
it sounds like he cracked like an egg after the Denver game. Which is interesting...because the guy shows absolutely no emotion on the sideline...and aside from some smartass remarks, his post-game news conferences are quite uneventful as well.
It isnt surprising considering his history here. We all have said he seemed to be unable to tweak the scheme to accomodate players' talents, and was unable to make competent adjustments during the game. So, rather than "coach up" the guys to make adjustments within the existing system, he tried to install a different one- what a dumbass move. The communication issues arent a big surprise either. Vilma's biggest complaint with how his situation was handled was a lack of communication. Mangina had poor skills, and his phony exterior was a coverup for that. Lack of honesty and poor communication fed into the Kendall fiasco too. It's no wonder they lost all their WC trip games after being stuck on a plane with him for 5 hours. He was no angel to be around, that's for damn sure. So much of what happened ultimately falls on the HC. It was up to him to make sure the entire team and the CS was on the same page, and not having everyone on the same wavelength is an epic fail on his part.
I don't think we'll ever actually get the whole story. This is definitely an interesting report though.
The general consensus feels that Mangini is a clone of Belichick in regards to coaching tendencies...but i'm sure Belichick would never have attempted to change the coaching system. This is certainly a glaring difference between the two....Belichick would've "coached up" his players, IMO.
To me, this explains ALOT. This could be the reason why the run defense, which was a strength all season, went to shit after the denver game. It also explains why the report of the "defensive meeting/dinner"after the SF game, in which players were said to be clueless about the scheme as a whole...were indeed so confused. There are 2 things I will never understand about this year's team. 1. W/ a top 5 coverage corner, and a top 10 cover safety..how we couldnt figure out SOME way to have success in pass coverage. Revis concievably shut down one side of the field...and w/ Rhodes over the top, teams were reluctant to go deep. How could we not take advantage of this, and use it to cover up personell deficencies elsewhere? 2. W/ all the problems getting pressure on the qb, and w/ all the money VG is making...why not let him try to work out the kinks by rushing the QB all game long? It's not like the pass rush could get any WORSE. I had alot of faith in mangini as an x's and o'x guy and as an overall HC...He really dissapointed me after the Denver game.
yes very interesting indeed,,,, You could tell something happened internally,,, it was like someone threw a switch after that game... they never had the same heart, So he did lose his team it seems... I thought so,,,
maybe somebody from the board could take the initiative and send a copy of this report to Randy Lerner (owner of the Browns)..i'm sure the "fascination" with Mangini would quickly fade.
This is the most interesting post I've read on here since Mangini was fired. Surprised more people haven't responded... www.jetsdaily.com
After watching Baltimore/Miami today, I really would love to see Rex Ryan as our head coach. Anybody hear any news about the Jets planning to interview him?
I hear SO much conflicting garbage coming out of the "anonymous Jet players" that it's hard to take much anything seriously any more. Unless your comment is, why people have not talked about the defense's atrocious performance this year. That mystifies me as well, I ask that all the time, and ... people just keep talking about Favre and Mangini (and occasionally Coles). It's like some people change go to the Fridge every time our D is on the field or something, and have no idea what they do ...
This is very interesting in deed!!! It does explain quite a bit. I'm very interested to see and hear what comes out in the coming weeks...if more does... I'll certainly be glued! Peace! The Mezz
There's almost always more than what meets the eye. These "internal problems" arent as obvious on the TV screen as throwing a pick or missing a tackle- sometimes you have to read the tea leaves (and be somewhat good at it) to get the story behind the story. It's clear this team was not playing with a unified purpose the last five games. Now it is clear to me why the defense was playing on its heels during that period. When he tore up the existing schemes, he destroyed the chemistry.
I just hope we get an experienced coach like billick or shanhan, dont make the same mistake with mangini however i think spagnola would be a good fit.
I read numerous times how Mangini would speak with veterans of the club and this season, took theri suggestions to heart. I know he personally visited Coles about his contract status so I don't really know about that part of your argument holding water. I agree with the rest of your argument though. I believe the title of the thread throws off some posters. I passed it by a few times. I'm glad I read it though. Good stuff. It shines a light upon what most players won't talk about. Now, can we get the doubting Jets fans to buy into some of this argument?
Not to toot my own horn (but I am) but... I've been posting this same information on this message board for several days now. Rich Cimini's article in the New York Daily News from 12/30/08 (which I have quoted from several times) said the exact same thing: ""The biggest thing I heard from upstairs (the front office) was that he (Mangini) didn't trust anyone," one player said. "He wouldn't let his coaches coach. He had his hand in everything." Former Jets assistants have complained over the years that Mangini, known for his rigid rules and cloak-and-dagger paranoia, created a difficult working environment." There's even more information in Cimini's article. He's a great reporter and he wrote a very interesting article in the Sunday Daily News about what it has been like to cover the Jets' coaching changes over the years. Really, why several of you are suddenly interested in this stuff after Sirius Radio reports it when it was available all along in New York's daily newspapers puzzles me a great deal. New York City is the Media Capitol Of The World for a good reason, don't you know.
