Michael Pallas | Aug 28th, 2019
The New York Jets are about to embark on their 60th season. Adam Gase is the 21st head coach in franchise history, and he comes in immediately after being fired by the Miami Dolphins. Some have said playoffs or bust, and many have said nine or ten wins is a must to keep his job.
Let me first preface what I am about to say with this. I have high expectations for this team — much higher than most. In fact, I expect this team to be much more than a fringe playoff team, but rather, clinch in Week 16.
That being said, the feeling that he needs nine wins to keep his job is a little bit too high, even for someone going from one head coaching job to another without a gap in between, and the reason is simple — Sam Darnold.
For me, a 7-9 record is good enough for Gase to keep his job, especially if Darnold has taken huge strides by the end of the season. Unless the Jets complete fall off the table, like a second straight 4-12 season, Gase gets a mulligan as long as Darnold is progressing with the arrow squarely pointing up.
If Darnold is taking strides — say like Jared Goff did in year two — there could be other circumstances outside of Gase’s control that lead to a 7-9 season (like the defense giving up late scores to lose). If you simply fire the head coach because of record, it may be detrimental to the continued growth of Darnold, as he would be on his third head coach in as many seasons.
You have to look at the season as a whole, and not just the results to see if the team could take the necessary strides. A 7-9 season with a drastically improved young quarterback and questionable play at corner could be enough to for Gase to keep his job.
In 2019, it’s a results-oriented world, but the whole picture needs to be looked at, and not only the final results.
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