Jets drop Gase after 2 years of offensive woes
NEW YORK – Adam Gase came to New York with high hopes he would be the perfect fit to help quarterback Sam Darnold take the next step in his development and boost the Jets’ offense.
And lead the team back to the postseason.
None of that materialized. So, the search is on – again – for a frustrated franchise. The Jets fired Gase on Sunday night, ending a disappointing tenure after just two loss-filled seasons.
“While my sincere intentions are to have stability in our organization – especially in our leadership positions – it is clear the best decision for the Jets is to move in a different direction,” Jets chairman and CEO Christopher Johnson said in a statement issued by the team.
Hired by the Jets in January 2019, Gase went 9-23 with New York, including an 0-13 start that was the worst in franchise history – overshadowing even the 1996 squad that went 0-8 on the way to a 1-15 finish, and is generally recognized as the team’s worst.
The move was announced by the team a few hours after New York lost 2814 at New England on Sunday to end the season 2-14 – the second-worst record in franchise history. “To our fans, it is obvious we have not been good enough,” Johnson said. “We are committed to building a strong organization, on and off the field, and will continue to provide the necessary resources to field a team that you can be proud of.”
Darnold regressed in his third season before being sidelined twice because of an injured right shoulder, while the offense – ravaged by injuries early and not to mention the impact of the pandemic – was mostly inept. The Jets struggled until late in the season to put a consistently competitive offense on the field. Gase even handed off offensive playcalling duties to coordinator Dowell Loggains for a stretch to try to spark things.
Gase shouldered the blame for not helping Darnold enough to develop, and also acknowledged he felt as though he let down the Jets and Johnson.
“At the end of the day, it’s about winning,” Gase said last month. “We haven’t done that. For (Johnson) not to feel a playoff feel of being competitive in December, it’s disappointing to me that we haven’t been able to do that for him.”
Frustrated fans, many of whom weren’t excited by his hiring in January 2019, flocked to social media and sports radio nearly all season pleading for Gase to be fired.
Despite all that, several players – Darnold included – insisted Gase and his staff were putting the players in position to succeed, but they simply weren’t executing on the field. Gase never saw eye to eye with star running back Le’veon Bell, who was unceremoniously released on Oct. 13. The coach also fired Gregg Williams after the defensive coordinator’s curiously overaggressive call cost the Jets their first win against Las Vegas on Dec. 6.
The team otherwise managed to stick together, though, and was able to end the season on a relative high note with two wins in the last three games. But those late victories also cost the Jets the No. 1 overall pick in the draft in April – and likely a chance at taking Clemson star quarterback Trevor Lawrence.