New York Jets: Gang Green cans GM Mike Maccagnan

In a surprising move, the New York Jets fired general manager Mike Maccagnan on Wednesday. Adam Gase will add acting GM to his head coaching duties.

A divisive tug-o-war between New York Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan and new head coach Adam Gase ended on Wednesday. Maccagnan, as well as vice president of player personnel Mike Heimerdinger, were fired by the team.

Recently there were rumors that Maccagnan and Gase were at odds over several issues. Free agency was a major sticking point between the two. First, Gase was reportedly unhappy with the cost of signing Le’Veon Bell. Failure to acquire a quality veteran center and the Anthony Barr, “now you have me, now you don’t,” fiasco also led to their deteriorating relationship.

When asked about a rift between the two, Gase apparently denied there was one, he told the media:

"“Unless I say it, it’s really irrelevant to me. I don’t know who decides to put that stuff out there. It kind of pisses me off a little bit.”"

Here is New York Jets CEO Chris Johnson‘s statement about Maccagnan’s firing via Twitter:

Its an exceedingly strange time to make a change of this importance. If Johnson was going to make a change, the ideal time would have been when former head coach Todd Bowles was fired at the end of 2018’s 4-12 season. Instead, Maccagnan was involved in the search to hire Gase as Bowles’ replacement.

This firing defies conventional logic. Why would the Jets have Maccagnan handle free agency and the draft if his job was on such thin ice? It seems odd the Jets would allow someone they saw as expendable to handle such a large part of their future plans.

The Jets spent big money on free agents this winter. Aside from Bell, Gang Green brought in CJ Moseley, Chandler Catanzaro, Jamison Crowder, and Brian Poole, among others. If Johnson didn’t trust Maccagnan, shouldn’t someone he did trust handle free agency? Additionally, the third pick in the draft is a huge deal, why even bother to let a lame duck GM in the war room.

For now, Gase will be the New York Jets acting general manager. When hired, he denied interest in any part of front office management, but now he is in the thick of it. His previous stint as head coach in Miami ended with a 23-25 record over three seasons. How much trust should Gase be given? Probably not very much. The Jets need him to concentrate more on X’s and O’s anyway.

Joe Douglas, the Philadelphia Eagles VP of player personnel is the favorite to take over as Gang Green’s next general manager, due to his close relationship with Gase. That would be a bad move. Gase should have someone he’s accountable to aside from the owner as GM.