The Devils introduced a new head coach on Tuesday, the 22nd head coach in franchise history.
I thought that was fitting when I started thinking about Nathaniel Hackett this week. I have compared the job security of being the Jets offensive coordinator in the past to being the head coach of the Devils or the drummer in Spinal Tap.
There is constant change at those positions. A Jets offensive coordinator has not spontaneously combusted yet, but give it time.
Hackett is entering his second season as Jets offensive coordinator, meaning he is a veteran of the position. The last Jets offensive coordinator to make it past Year 2 on the job was Brian Schottenheimer, who held the post from 2006-11.
Since Schottenheimer, Tony Sparano lasted one year, Marty Mornhinweg held it for two years, Chan Gailey went through two years, John Morton and Jeremy Bates each lasted one, Dowell Loggains made it two and then Mike LaFleur lasted two before being fired and replaced with Hackett.
Decorating the office is not a good idea.
So, can Hackett buck the trend and make it to a third season in 2025?
One could argue Hackett is the biggest question mark around the Jets entering this season.
If Aaron Rodgers is healthy, he will be expected to regain his old form. Joe Douglas has added to the offensive line and the wide receiver room through free agency and the draft. The defense is expected to maintain the high level it has shown in the past two seasons.
But what about Hackett?
Hackett oversaw a Jets offense in 2023 that finished 29th in the NFL in points per game at 15.8. The year before that, he was the head coach of the Broncos, a club that finished 32nd in points per game at 16.9.
These struggles are not all on Hackett, of course. The situation in Denver was clearly a mess with Russell Wilson. Last season, the Jets hadn’t even played a quarter before Hackett had to scrap his plans for a Rodgers-led offense and try to navigate a season with Zach Wilson, Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian at quarterback and an offensive line that was in constant flux.
Still, there was not much evidence that Hackett had answers to the Jets’ problems in 2023.
That leaves everyone wondering whether he will be a liability in 2024. Rodgers says no.
“You should trust me, and I trust Nathaniel,” Rodgers told Adam Schein on SiriusXM last week. “So, to me, that’s end of story. There’s been a lot of BS that’s been said out there. There’s a lot of things that have gone on the last couple years that he’s dealt with that I think he’s handled very professionally. And at the end of the day, I think you gotta trust his and my working relationship and the conversations that we have. You gotta trust the staff.”
Rodgers added that their partnership has “been fruitful in the past and it’s gonna be fruitful again” this year.
It is true Hackett was the Packers offensive coordinator in 2020 and ’21, when Rodgers won back-to-back MVP awards, but Packers head coach Matt LaFleur was running that offense.
So color me skeptical when Rodgers talks about how fruitful the partnership has been.
The Jets and head coach Robert Saleh definitely interviewed some experienced offensive coordinators in January. What is up for debate is exactly what role those coaches would have had if the Jets hired one of them. They went on to become offensive coordinators with other teams, which indicates to me they would not have been calling plays over Hackett.
Saleh has said he was just looking for another voice in the room, not someone to essentially replace Hackett. I also don’t think the Jets could have done that and gotten Rodgers to sign off on it.
“This is what I would tell you: I don’t know what those reports are, and I don’t know where those sources came from,” Hackett said about the stories the Jets were looking to hire someone over him. “I know what happened with us, and it was great. We had a lot of conversations, got to talk with a lot of different people, and it’s that simple.”
He also emphatically answered, “Yes,” when asked if he believes Saleh still has faith in him.
“I think it’s business as usual,” Hackett said. “I look at the whole offseason. I was involved in every single conversation, and it was great. I think having Robert around, being able to work with him has been very good for our offense.”
This feels like a no-win situation for Hackett. If the Jets offense performs well with Rodgers, guess who gets the credit? No. 8.
If the Jets offense falters, Hackett will join that list of former Jets offensive coordinators.
There are high hopes for the 2024 Jets, with some people even predicting a Super Bowl. But there are also still questions about this team, none bigger than Hackett’s ability to lead a high-powered offense.
Safety dance
There are not many position battles on the Jets this spring and summer, but the only one I think that could get interesting is at safety.
Chuck Clark is returning from an ACL injury he suffered last spring. Tony Adams is entering his second season as a potential starter. Ashtyn Davis re-signed and has shown he can be an effective player in a small role, but do the coaches think he deserves a bigger role?
At the moment, it is clear Clark and Adams are the leaders at the position.
But I would not be shocked if Davis gets opportunities in OTAs and in training camp to make his case as the starter.
Clark also may be on a pitch count this summer as he comes back from the knee injury, which would open the door a bit.
Stat’s so
The Jets have not had a potent offense in eight seasons. Is this the year they can get back to scoring touchdowns in bunches? If so, they can complement a defense that should be stingy again and maybe have a positive point differential for the first time since 2015.
Here are the top 10 Jets seasons by points differential.
1. 1998: 416 points, 266 opponent points — 150 point differential
2. 1968*: 419 points, 280 opponent points — 139 point differential
3. 1985: 393 points, 264 opponent points — 129 point differential
4. 2009: 348 points, 236 opponent points — 112 point differential
5. 1969*: 353 points, 269 opponent points — 84 point differential
6. 1982**: 245 points, 166 opponent points — 79 point differential
7. 2015: 387 points, 314 opponent points — 73 point differential
8. 2004: 333 points, 261 opponent points — 72 point differential
9. 1981: 355 points, 287 opponent points — 68 point differential
10. 2010: 367 points, 304 opponent points — 63 point differential
*14 games
**9 games
Source: Stathead
Credit: Source link
