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Two things to consider about some of the candidates in the Jets’ GM search.
Some of them might not be candidates for the GM job, but might be candidates or other jobs, in lets say a Joe Douglas administration.
So while Douglas, the presumptive favorite, isn’t in the interviews with these candidates, Gase is, so he can get a feel for these guys, and whether he’d like to work with them.
True that Gase won’t have final say on the roster, but he will have a lot of input, so it’s good for Gase to get a feel for some of these guys.
Look, I don’t know Champ Kelly, and I’m not looking to cast aspersions on his candidacy, but it’s almost unheard of for a team to hire an assistant director of player personnel as their GM. That is his current position with the Bears – assistant director of player personnel. He probably needs to work his way up the corporate football ladder a little more before he’s a bonafide GM candidate. He not only does he work for Bears GM Ryan Pace, but also director of player personnel Josh Lucas. You could also make the argument that the team’s director of college scouting, Mark Sadowski, is higher on the Bears food chain that Kelly.
Once again, I’m not criticizing Kelly, just dealing with the reality of how guys often ascend to GM spots, and it’s usually not from the assistant director of player personnel office.
But, Albert Breer announced that if Joe Douglas becomes the GM, there is a good chance that he hire Kelly to his staff. And if that happens, Kelly will get a more prominent job than his current position and a big pay raise.
And once again, by him coming in to Florham Park to talk to Gase, Christopher Johnson and company, it will give the coach and owner a chance to know him better, though they did cross paths with Gase in Denver and Chicago.
Ian Rapoport announced that the Saints director of pro scouting Terry Fontenot has been asked to interview for the job.
With all due respect to Fontenot, who I’m sure brings a lot to the table, the Jets aren’t going hire a pro scouting director to be their GM, especially a guy who has no background with Gase. To bring in a stranger who is going to tell Gase who is players are going to be is a recipe for disaster. And it’s very rare that you hire pro scouting directors to be GM’s – it almost never happens.
But Fontenot could be in line for another job in a Douglas administration – a better job than in New Orleans and more money.
Aside from perhaps interviewing certain guys for probably other positions in the new football administration, there’s another reason you bring in a bunch of people for interviews, even if you maybe
have your mind made up.
The more guys you interview, the more outside perspectives you get on your roster. It’s free information. Al Davis loved to bring in a lot of candidates, for whatever football position, to pick their brains.
May 29, 2019
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