The New York Jets‘ success in the 2024 NFL season will determine whether or not they need to post a job opening for their head coaching role next winter.
On paper, the Jets look like they’ll be in the mix to contend for a Super Bowl. However, the NFL has seen some of its most talented teams fall short over the course of a regular season, which leaves nothing out of the realm of possibility for next season, and that includes the bitter with the sweet.
If the Jets make good on a wave of offseason projections forecasting them to win as many as 14 games and capture the AFC East crown, head coach Robert Saleh will be propped up for his efforts on the campaign and likely gain the confidence of owner Woody Johnson moving forward. On the opposite side of the coin, if the Jets scrape by and underwhelm, it may necessitate the search for a new head on their sidelines, and one analyst sees no better pairing for New York than six-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick.
Jets: NFL great wants Bill Belichick coaching Gang Green
On the “Boomer and Gio” show, former NFL great Boomer Esiason recently said this about the Jets and Belichick (h/t Evan Massey of Fan Nation’s Jets Country):
“That’s gotta be a little dig at Robert Kraft and the Patriots, right? But if there’s only one team that goes after him, because Woody Johnson is sick and tired of losing. And that’s only if they [Jets] lose this year, of course,” Esiason said.
Belichick is widely regarded to be the greatest head coach in NFL history. He holds the record for most Super Bowl wins by a head coach in league history. The three-time AP NFL Coach of the Year also owns a 302-165 record in his 29-year career.
In addition to his winning acumen, the 72-year-old also has a history with the Jets. He served as their assistant head coach and defensive coordinator from 1997-99. Belichick knows the franchise. He knows how to win. He knows what championship rosters look like. The Jets in turn should know what a power move looks like when it presents itself.
New York will field an A-grade defense next year. Cornerback Sauce Gardner will spearhead the secondary while LB Haason Reddick and DT Quinnen Williams will have charge over the defensive line. Belichick has proven that he can take elite defenses all the way, and could do the same with that bunch.
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Robert Saleh has a lot to prove to fend off a potential Jets chase of Belichick next year
In the same breath, Saleh owns an 18-33 record in three seasons as Jets head coach. He has not won more than seven games in any of those three years. Perhaps his most promising outing came in 2023, where his secondary and defensive line worked in concert to establish themselves as what many viewed to be the best defense in football.
However, in 2024, he’ll have four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers passing to newly acquired former 1,000-yard wide receiver Mike Williams, behind a stout offensive line including No. 11 overall pick Olu Fashanu and a returning cast of elite pass-catching and ball-carrying options at his disposal. Expectations are high for their unit.
Seeing that Belichick couldn’t land a role ahead of the 2024 campaign, his outlook for 2025 remains unclear. Albeit, if the circumstances call for it, Johnson should explore every avenue to bring Belichick on board. It could be the missing link in the chain of championship-caliber moves they’ve made leading up to this point.