Haven\u2019t we been here before? <\/p>\n
The New York Jets, after just a single season with a young play-caller, have chosen to go in a different direction<\/a>. This year, the play-caller was Tanner Engstrand. Just a few years ago, it was Mike LaFleur<\/a> \u2014 the very same man who\u2019s now receiving head-coaching looks around the NFL.<\/p>\n Both LaFleur and Engstrand brought in a modern schematic approach to the Jets\u2019 offense. While the results weren\u2019t always there, both LaFleur and Engstrand were pushed to try and make things work with young quarterbacks from the 2021 NFL draft.<\/p>\n For LaFleur, it was Zach Wilson. For Engstrand, it was Justin Fields.<\/p>\n The common denominator? Coaches and front office leaders who refuse to learn their lessons. <\/p>\n It\u2019s all about the context<\/p>\n Engstrand was not an elite offensive coordinator last season. New York finished in the bottom half of the league in every single statistical category, including passing, points, and total yards. <\/p>\n But it\u2019s not like the Jets had plenty of support for their first-year play-caller. <\/p>\n It\u2019s hard for any offense to produce well when they use three different quarterbacks, have their best receiver out from Week 7 on, and don\u2019t have consistent secondary weapons on the outside either. <\/p>\n In a way, the Jets forced Engstrand to coach with one arm tied behind his back. <\/p>\n Just as they did with LaFleur a few years ago. <\/p>\n Following a 2022 campaign that saw the Jets win seven games \u2014 four more than the previous year \u2014 New York got rid of LaFleur because he wasn\u2019t able to turn Zach Wilson into a competent and consistent quarterback quickly enough.<\/p>\n Instead, they chose a veteran play-caller in Nathaniel Hackett with the hope that Aaron Rodgers would soon follow. Well, Rodgers did follow \u2026 and nothing changed.<\/p>\n LaFleur was nothing more than a scapegoat for a defensive-minded coach trying to keep his job. Just as Engstrand was for Aaron Glenn this time around. <\/p>\n Doubling down on mistakes<\/p>\n Arguably, the most frustrating part about the Jets is their inability to learn from prior mistakes. <\/p>\n They fired a defensive-minded head coach who preached a culture change, only to bring in the same type of coach the very next year. On offense, they hired an inexperienced play-caller, did not put him in a position to succeed, and were somehow flabbergasted by the results.<\/p>\n Time is a flat circle. <\/p>\n