After Joe Douglas was fired as general manager of the New York Jets on Tuesday, he was spotted fishing on the New Jersey coast hours later.
The feeling around Douglas was “relief” after a terrible 2024 for the Jets and an overall tenure with the team marked by dysfunction and zero playoff appearances.
“It’s the happiest he’s sounded in a long time,” a person close to Douglas said The Athletics.
Douglas had served as the team’s general manager since 2019 and was one of the architects who brought Aaron Rodgers to the Big Apple.
Rodgers’ stint as the team’s quarterback was a disaster, with demotions and pink slips handed out to those around the soon-to-be 41-year-old, except for the aging four-time NFL MVP.
Douglas’ firing came during the Jets’ bye week to show respect for him as owner Woody Johnson began thinking about his successor.
The New York Jets fired general manager Joe Douglas on Tuesday due to the team’s poor season
Aaron Rodgers may be the next to leave the Big Apple after a terrible stint as Jets quarterback
Douglas reportedly saw the writing on the wall before he was officially fired, as the Jets are 3-8 this season and have almost no chance of making the playoffs.
Robert Saleh was fired as the team’s head coach last month and has since served as an advisor to Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.
Saleh was apparently “very upset and emotional” when he learned Douglas would not be able to finish the season with the Jets.
New York has the longest playoff drought in professional sports at 14 seasons, with Johnson already trying to take steps to end that streak next year.
It is a tough task to get a new general manager and head coach so quickly. Similar upheavals in Washington and Houston in recent years have proven that this can happen.
The big difference between the Jets and the Texans and Commanders is that the latter two have young, efficient quarterbacks.
Rodgers may be the next to see the lights go out on Broadway. The Empire State is undoubtedly low on the Jets and Giants right now.