Jets GM Joe Douglas says he hopes team can change its narrative in first comments to media since training camp
Jets general manager Joe Douglas speaks to reporters at the team’s training facility on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. Credit: AP/Dennis Waszak Jr.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Robert Saleh’s firing made Jets general manager Joe Douglas reflect on his own job performance. He wished he could have done things that would have prevented Saleh’s dismissal.
Douglas had no say in that. Owner Woody Johnson decided after the Jets’ Week 5 loss in London that he would let Saleh go. Time could be running out on Douglas, too.
There is a narrative that Douglas has had enough time to fix the Jets, and he can’t disagree with it. He has been the architect of a Jets team that is a disappointing 3-6 this season and 30-62 over his five-plus years in charge.
“We haven’t had a winning season,” Douglas said Wednesday afternoon. “We’re sitting here at 3-6. There’s a lot of frustration. Obviously, it starts with me. I can look back, there’s quite a few things that I could have done better.
“When the situation happens like happened four weeks ago you have a lot of self-reflective moments on the things you could have done better to keep that from happening. We got an opportunity here with these last stretch of games to change that narrative.”
This was the first time Douglas spoke since the end of training camp. Barring the Jets going on a run that leads them into the playoffs, Douglas likely won’t be here for training camp next year. Douglas, who is in the final year of his contract, said he’s not concerned about his job security, though.
“I come in here every day, just wanting to do whatever I can to help this team reach its goals and get to its destination,” Douglas said. “Whatever happens, happens.”
Douglas said he talks to Johnson every day but wouldn’t get into specifics. Douglas said his singular focus is on Sunday’s game against Arizona. He hopes the Jets’ victory last Thursday against Houston “really propels” them.
The roster Douglas assembled was expected be a playoff contender at the minimum. The Jets have underachieved to this point. Before beating Houston, the Jets lost five in a row. It was during that skid that Saleh was fired and replaced by interim coach Jeff Ulbrich.
It was a rough October for the Jets and Douglas. He spearheaded the coaching search in 2021 that brought Saleh to the Jets and had a close relationship with him. Johnson informed Douglas of his decision to fire Saleh.
“I did talk to Joe Douglas about it,” Johnson said. “But at the end of the day this was my decision and my decision alone.”
Douglas said “losing Robert is tough,” but he believes there’s “a lot of resiliency” in the building. He would not directly comment on that decision or give his thoughts on if it was warranted.
“All I can say is since that decision’s been made, all my energy, all my focus has been doing whatever I can to help Brich, his staff and the locker room turn this thing around,” Douglas said.
When Douglas was asked about not having any input in Saleh’s firing, he referenced something former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said and altered it a little.
“I serve at the pleasure of the owner,” Douglas said. “My single goal is to help this team get to the goal of a championship. Not the start that anybody envisioned, but we still have it all in front of us.”
Douglas was more than an innocent bystander in the Jets’ other October big moves: the acquisition of Davante Adams and Haason Reddick ending his holdout. Johnson played a big role in the Reddick move and making sure a deal was worked out after the edge rusher hired Drew Rosenhaus to be his agent.
“There was a lot of conversations that week to finally get this thing across the finish line,” Douglas said. “It took a lot of good open honest communication. I think Drew was a big catalyst for that. Woody was involved in that too.”
Douglas made another deal before Tuesday’s trade deadline — perhaps his last as Jets GM. He sent receiver Mike Williams to the Steelers for a 2025 fifth-round pick. Douglas said Adams’ arrival and the depth in the receiver room enabled the Jets to move Williams, whom they signed in the offseason.
“This is a great opportunity for him to have a fresh start,” Douglas said. “Also, it’s a move we wouldn’t have made had we not felt good about the guys we have in the room.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
