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When this happens, there is what they call in college football, “a lack of institutional control.”
The following is from the blockbuster story in The Athletic’s Dianna Russini and Zach Rosenblatt:
“To better understand the issues that contributed to another failed Jets season, The Athletic spoke to 30 sources in and around the organization, some of whom were granted anonymity to speak freely about the inner workings of the team without reprisal. Those sources described a team riddled with excuse-making, a paranoid head coach, an ill-equipped offensive coordinator and an organizational tunnel vision on the quarterback that rubbed some teammates wrong. …
“It’s just such a f—ing mess,” one Jets coach said. “Something has to change.”
Something did change when the story came out, they fired assistant GM Rex Hogan.
When somebody is fired the day a story like this comes out, you do the math.
Remember when Tim Boyle was released after the leak that Zach Wilson didn’t want to re-enter the starting lineup after getting hurt?
Now, I have no idea if Boyle was the leak, but when you juxtapose the release of that story, and then his release, you do the math.
It might not have been Boyle, but perhaps somebody from his camp, who knows, but when you cut somebody, who was in the QB room, the day a leak comes out about a fellow QB not wanting to re-enter the lineup, something is clearly up.
So now fast forward to this week when Hogan was fired yesterday the same day The Athletic blockbuster was published, quoting myriad Jets sources about dysfunction in the building.
The guy that broke the Hogan story ended his tweet by saying, “Hogan is well respected around the league. He will be a sought-after front office free agent.”
I have to be honest with you, I have no idea whether Hogan is “well respected around the league.”
But when a writer tells you that, the first thing that pops into my mind is quid pro quo.
And this thing that, “He will be a sought-after front office free agent.”
I have no idea. He has not worked with many winning teams, with stops in Chicago, Indianapolis and the Jets. Is that a great resume? Who knows.
“He will be a sought-after front office free agent.” That is probably quid pro quo stuff also.
I am not saying that Hogan was the one of the sources in the Russini and Rosenblatt blockbuster, but let me put it this way, he was always very media-friendly.
You can’t hide in plain sight. So often when a major NFL insider was at Jets camp, you would see Hogan at their side chatting.
Aaron Rodgers a few months ago talked about how sometimes sources will give insiders stuff so the insider will help promote the person in the press for a bigger job.
This happens all the time.
I’m not saying Hogan did this, but I’m just telling you that when the heavy hitter NFL insiders visited camp, he always seemed to spend time with them.
Obviously Hogan wanted to be a GM after working in the league for two decades in secondary roles.
But this spin that they are mutually parting way to allow Hogan to pursue other opportunities, why would Hogan want to do that now?
He was well paid by the Jets, has kids in school here, and like I said, his resume, considering where he has worked in recent years, isn’t that strongest.
And also, he’s been heavily involved with the Jets scouting process for the 2024 draft. It’s very unusual for a team to let one of their key draft guys go three months before the draft. Teams usually don’t want to waste all that information and money spent letting somebody travel around the country scouting college players for them. Usually, draft guys are let go after the draft, not three months before.
February 1, 2024
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