Change is coming for the New York Jets coaching staff. Fans and analysts thought those changes would focus on their disappointing defense, but it turns out that nobody is safe.

One of the names tied to a new role has left many confused about the plan head coach Aaron Glenn has touted for the last year and a half.

Former Buffalo Bills quarterback and former head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers, Frank Reich, has been mentioned as a candidate to become the Jets’ new offensive coordinator.

Reich’s career throughout the decades has focused mainly on the quarterback position. Replacing a somewhat popular play-caller like second-year coordinator Tanner Engstrand, though, brings fair questions to the table.

These are questions that some onlookers believe the Jets may not have an answer to — even if there is some good that could come with Reich’s potential arrival.

The good

It’s important to remember that the Jets have not formally announced that Reich will run the offense in 2026. New York is demoting Engstrand, but they aren’t really sure who will call the plays. They still have time to investigate other candidates.

In the case of Reich specifically, there are some good reasons to support his arrival.

He was an offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles when they won their first Super Bowl in 2017. Reich was key in preparing quarterbacks Carson Wentz and Nick Foles throughout that year, even if he didn’t call plays.

He’s also someone who has worked with several different types of quarterbacks. With the Colts and Panthers, he worked with Andrew Luck, Jacoby Brissett, Bryce Young, and the previously mentioned Wentz.

He’s had to formulate a variety of offenses to work for quarterbacks with different skill sets.

That’s good news for the Jets. They would have a very experienced play-caller and scheme designer who would understand the importance of highlighting a quarterback’s skill set throughout a season.

Despite the positive sign, there are still some alarming features that come from Reich.

The bad

Time to debunk many perceptions about Reich and his coaching career. First, he never called plays in Philadelphia. While he was a part of the team’s game-planning process, Wentz and Foles worked hand-in-hand with head coach and play-caller Doug Pederson.

Reich doesn’t magically get credit for Wentz playing like an MVP candidate or Foles’ heroics in the Super Bowl. That’s more about Pederson than anything else. It’s also a run that is almost a decade old.

The NFL is a different league now.

In Indianapolis, his play-calling for Philip Rivers and Andrew Luck was deemed a success. This wasn’t the case for Wentz and Brissett. To summarize, he did really well when he had cheat codes at quarterback, while struggling when he didn’t.

After his arrival in Carolina, the wheels completely fell off with No. 1 overall choice Bryce Young — a sign that the Panthers did not have enough talent to take a signal-caller as high as they did.

The Jets will be a team short on offensive talent. What has Glenn seen that makes Reich capable of creating something positive out of that?

He simply hasn’t shown it throughout his career.

The ugly

If Reich were coming in as a senior offensive assistant or as a passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach, this would be a hire that should be universally celebrated.

It isn’t, though.

If the Jets had a quarterback they believed in, it would make sense to surround him with a coach who has experience working with specific skill sets.

Reich isn’t, though.

For a Jets team and head coach in Glenn, who know they need to produce, or a regime change is on the horizon, it would make sense for the team to hire based on scheme and to match player personnel. On defense, the Jets seem close to hiring an aging veteran, Wink Martindale, who hasn’t been in the league for a few years, which could create problems on that side.

Reich would be exactly that on the offensive end.

It’s hard to think that the idea of Frank Reich at OC doesn’t highlight the lack of accountability and understanding of what the team actually struggled with in 2025.

The Jets lack a quarterback on offense and a defensive scheme. To assume Engstrand was holding back Justin Fields or their bevy of quarterback options is preposterous.

Reich isn’t going to magically fix all the Jets’ offensive issues. He comes with red flags, as every older mind does in the NFL. Glenn opting for him over a younger, scheme-heavy coach in Engstrand casts serious doubt on whether he learned anything from this past season.

That is what is ugliest about this potential hire.

If Frank Reich is indeed a serious OC candidate (coupled with Wink Martindale’s potential hire as DC), it signals a head coach who doesn’t grasp why his team only won three games, then that’s a problem. Worse yet, for New York Jets fans, it’s a sign that 2026 could turn out even worse.