Jets fire GM Mike Tannenbaum, retain coach Rex Ryan
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. – Mike Tannenbaum got up in front of the New York Jets' players and delivered what a few of them described as an "emotional" farewell speech.
The team's general manager was fired Monday. Head coach Rex Ryan will be retained, the Jets announced.
Ultimately, a few weak drafts, some questionable decisions on contracts given to quarterback Mark Sanchez and wide receiver Santonio Holmes, the failed Tim Tebow experiment and a roster short on talent overall spelled doom for Tannenbaum at the end of a 6-10 season.
"Mike devoted 15 years of service to the Jets, and I want to thank him for his hard work and dedication," owner Woody Johnson said in a statement. "Although he helped guide us to two consecutive AFC Championship games, we are not where we want to be, and a new general manager will be critical to getting this team back on the right track."
Ryan, who is 34-29 in four regular seasons with the Jets but 14-18 in the last two, will get another crack. His postseason mark of 4-2, with those two runs to the conference championship games Johnson mentioned, is a big reason he's still employed.
"I believe that he has the passion, the talent, and the drive to successfully lead our team," Johnson said.
Those sentiments were echoed in the locker room, with players using the exact same words in some cases. Despite a turbulent season-plus that included plenty of anonymously sourced stories, Ryan still has the support of ownership and the players.
In an odd twist, though, Ryan was not made available to the media on Monday. His press conference, originally scheduled for late Monday afternoon, was postponed indefinitely.
Also declining to meet with reporters was Tebow, whose tenure with the team is likely over after one frustratingly fruitless season. Nine months after he was welcomed with a standing-room-only press conference in the team's indoor facility, Tebow left without a whimper.
"I'm not going to make any excuses," Sanchez said when asked if Tebow was a distraction. "He worked his butt off while he was here. He came in to try to help this team. That's all I'm going to say about that. He was a good teammate."
Ryan will surely have to make some changes to his coaching staff. Offensive coordinator Tony Sparano, who walked away from reporters in a huff after Sunday's loss to the Buffalo Bills, could be one-and-done with the team. Recent reports stated defensive coordinator Mike Pettine turned down a contract extension this season. Special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff has said he will retire.
The incoming GM will have to do some masterful work to get the Jets out of the salary issues Tannenbaum created, the biggest of which is the $8.25 million guaranteed the Jets owe Sanchez in 2013.
"I know we're destined for great stuff here," Sanchez said. "I know we can be successful here. So that's what I'm focused on. I'm excited to come back here and do my very best."
He added, "Until I'm told differently, I'm a Jet. I just want another crack at this thing."
Sanchez threw 18 interceptions to 13 touchdowns this season. He fumbled 14 times and lost eight of them.
Sanchez had a chance to regain some job security after Greg McElroy replaced him late in a comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals. He responded by turning the ball over five times in a loss to the Tennessee Titans that eliminated the Jets from the postseason.
Sanchez had another chance this past Sunday after McElroy was ruled out of the game against the Buffalo Bills with a concussion. He threw one interception, had another that was overturned on replay and lost a fumble.
Yet Sanchez still insists Tannenbaum didn't make a mistake by making a long-term investment in him.
"When it's going your way, you win nine games and get in the playoffs your rookie year, it's like you're the next Joe Montana. You can do anything and you're the best in the world," Sanchez said. "You've got to do your best to navigate through those situations, not get too high and not get too low."
Right now, thanks to Tannenbaum, the Jets' payroll is too high.
Some veteran contracts can easily be slashed, but Holmes is due $7.5 million guaranteed. And then, there's cornerback Darrelle Revis, who could push for a new deal despite his coming off a torn ACL. Tannenbaum was quoted as saying the contract extension the team gave Revis in 2010 was "an intermediate step," or a "Band-Aid," as Revis called it.
Revis dodged a question about what impact Tannenbaum's departure will have on his potential push for a new deal. He said the only thing worth discussing is his rehab, though he also addressed the state of the entire team following Monday's news.
"We're not far, we're not far," Revis said. "This year, it was a lot of stuff going on. The injuries and we played some tough teams. … We couldn't really bounce back from that. We tried to. You would see a spurt here or there."
They could be further away from winning, if they had chosen to tear the whole thing down. Though Johnson will stick with Ryan, the changes in the front office and on the coaching staff should be aplenty. Johnson announced he has hired the search firm of Korn/Ferry International to find candidates to replace Tannenbaum.
But given the drama of the season, there needs to be an overhaul of the mentality around here. Even Ryan admitted last week, "It's easy being myself, I'll put it to you that way. It's probably easier that way than another way." It was an indication he's been holding back his personality in some ways ever since he bombastically led this team to the brink of the Super Bowl in back-to-back seasons.
At some point, Tannenbaum and Ryan lost a bit of control with the players and coaches.
"Just being in the midst of it all, I don't really see anything as wrong," said safety LaRon Landry, a free agent who admitted he'll have to survey the whole situation before deciding if he wants to return. "We're a family, it's well-knit, we keep everything in-house. Everything that leaks out, that's all hearsay. We know what goes on within this organization, within this family.
"It ain't as big as y'all making it out to be."