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Former Denver Broncos coach Ryan Slowik posing for a headshot.
The New York Jets have made another coaching hire.
Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic revealed that the Jets are hiring “Ryan Slowik as their defensive passing game coordinator, per source.”
The Jets are hiring Ryan Slowik as their defensive passing game coordinator, per source.
Has been with the Dolphins since 2022. Coached outside linebackers and then was the defensive backs coach/pass game specialist.
Ryan is the brother of Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik.
Ryan has been coaching football since 2003. During his 23 years in the league, Slowik has served in a variety of roles, mostly on the defensive side of the ball. This is a reunion for Ryan because he served as the assistant defensive line coach for the Jets back in 2015.
Most recently, he has been with the rival Dolphins. He joined Miami in 2022 as a senior defensive assistant. In 2023, he became the outside linebackers coach. Over the last two seasons, he served as the defensive backs coach and as a pass game specialist.
National NFL Insider Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports said Slowik is expected to be the new Jets’ safeties coach.
The #Jets are expected to hire Ryan Slowik as safeties coach, sources tell @CBSSports.
Slowik worked for the Dolphins the last four seasons, including most recently as defensive backs coach and pass game specialist.
Massive Praise for New Jets Coach
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport confirmed the news, saying Slowik will be the new “safeties coach.”
“Slowik joins NYJ following four seasons with the Dolphins. Other NFL teams have looked at Slowik as a future defensive coordinator,” Rapoport revealed.
In 2026, Brian Duker will serve as the Jets’ defensive cooridator by title. However, head coach Aaron Glenn is expected to call defensive plays.
Last year, Coach Glenn hired a veteran defensive mind, Steve Wilks, to run the show so Glenn could focus as a CEO type watching over the full team. That was a miserable failure.
It appeared that Glenn viewed the situation as a right church, wrong pew. Wilks failed as a veteran defensive mind, but that didn’t appear to scare off Glenn.
The favorite to become the new DC this offseason was Wink Martindale. Of the nine candidates the Jets interviewed, Wink was by far the most experienced. However, during the month of January, Coach Glenn changed his mind and decided to call plays himself.
This Offseason Has Been a Mess, but That Doesn’t Mean It Was a Wrong Result
The green and white fired their offensive cooridator three weeks after the regular season.
A flurry of Jets assistant coaches were tossed out the door two weeks after the season.
Wink was the favorite; he interviewed twice, with one of those being in person, and he still didn’t get the job.
There have been a lot of jokes written about the Jets and they have been the human punching bag this offseason.
However, despite some choppy waters to start this offseason, there is still plenty of time left to turn this around.
For example, head coach Aaron Glenn’s decision to call plays was the right choice. Regardless of how he got there. He is firmly on the hot seat heading into 2026. Control your own destiny. Call plays and put your fate into your own hands.
Over the coming weeks and months, utilize free agency and the draft to load up on talent. if you combine that talent bump with fresh play-calling, perhaps that can help turn things around.
It’s hard to be any worse than the Jets were last season on both sides of the ball. So, in other words, it’s only up from here.
Paul Esden Jr. covers the New York Jets for Heavy.com. A New York native, he co-hosts a morning show, “The Manchild Show with Boy Green Digital.” Before joining Heavy in 2021, Esden Jr. covered both national and New York sports for FanSided, Elite Sports NY, and The Score 1260. More about Paul Esden Jr.
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