New York Jets Fire Joe Douglas Despite His Contract Expiring in Six Weeks

The New York Jets are cleaning house, and that includes firing general manager Joe Douglas on Tuesday afternoon. 

Last month, the Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh in a move that paved the way for interim Jeff Ulbrich to salvage the season. But with a 3-8 record, the Jets are all but mathematically eliminated from the NFL Playoffs and decided to get a head start on blowing things up.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Douglas’ contract was set to expire at the end of the season. But the Jets didn’t want to wait six more weeks. 

One can ponder what exactly Douglas did wrong that warranted losing his job today. At the time Saleh was fired in early October, the Jets still had some hope for the season. But with just a 1 percent chance at making the postseason and the trade deadline in the rearview mirror, they decided to blow things all the way up at the bye week and start planning for next year.

The latest firing in New York comes off the heels of the Jets falling to the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts had turned back to Anthony Richardson after a tumultuous start to their own season, and the 22 year-old bounced back, securing a victory against the Jets.

Between firing Saleh and Douglas, the Jets did convince pass rusher Haason Reddick to report to the team on a reworked deal, but that seemed more like owner Woody Johnson’s doing. They also traded wide receiver Mike Williams to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a fifth-round pick at the deadline. He only has one catch with the Steelers.

Douglas did have some hits with the Jets, including drafting wide receiver Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, Jermaine Johnson and Breece Hall in the same class. But with a 30-64 record in over five years, the Jets decided that the results just were not there.

Of course, this firing will come with more speculation that Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers is calling the shots behind the scenes. While he probably did not singlehandedly make the move to fire Douglas before Week 12 kicks off, the fact that the Jets have failed with Rodgers only added pressure to an uncomfortable situation.

Remember, Zach Wilson was a Douglas selection, and that No. 2 overall pick panned out so poorly that the team had to desperately pivot to trading for Rodgers, which hasn’t worked out much better.

The Jets will regroup and host the Seattle Seahawks on December 1. They close their underwhelming 2024 campaign with the Miami Dolphins twice, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills.

It’ll be up to the next GM to find the quarterback of the future for the Jets.