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As you know by now
the Jets fired Gregg Williams today.
Williams was obviously fired for not playing the right defense on Henry Ruggs 46-yard TD pass late in the game. Ruggs beat rookie free agent cornerback Lamar Jackson, who was given no help, down the left sideline.
People wonder why Williams was fired before Gase.
To me, that answer to this is simple.
Gase/Joe Douglas pushed for this. The Johnson’s clearly aren’t going to consider firing Gase until after the season. The Johnson’s don’t fire head coaches in-season. They haven’t done it once during their 20-yard tenure as owners. So this was the head coach firing an assistant, which is in his power. Gase has no problem firing people. Remember, when he was interim GM, after Maccagnan was let go, Gase fired a scout. Gase also fired the trainer. So while the Johnson’s are slow to pull the trigger on firing people, Gase has no hesitancy.
And honestly, it would have been hard for Williams to continue as their defensive coordinator, after the leader of their defense, Marcus Maye, who almost never says anything controversial, called out the Williams play-call, repeatedly, after the game.
“I thought we could have been in a better call at that stage of the game,” Maye said
Maye also added at another point of the presser: “We have to execute, but you have to help us out at the same time.”
So with Maye repeatedly calling out that dubious call, and with amount of respect Maye has with the defensive players, it would have been hard for Williams to continue.
But while Williams screwed up, something that needs to be brought up, that isn’t getting enough attention, is why the head coach, after seeing what kind of defense the Jets were lined up to play, didn’t call a time out, and demand the DC change the call? After all, he’s the head coach of the entire team, not just the offense.
Some people feel Gase is too focused on his offensive play-sheet, and not on running the entire operation, and this is a good example. You have one time out left – use it.
So Gase isn’t totally innocent when it comes to the play-call by Williams, which one former GM called “despicable.”
“I’m surprised it took it this long to fire [Williams],” said former NFL GM Mike Lombardi on VISN. “I’d have fired him in the locker room. If I were the GM, he’d have been fired five minutes after the game. That was one of the most despicable play calls in history of football.”
It was surprising it took until late Monday morning for this move to be made.
Now Frank Bush takes over as defensive coordinator. He has past experience in the job, holding the position in 2009-10 with the Houston Texans.
Williams departure ends the arranged marriage between Gase and Williams which was perhaps a mistake from the get-go.
For some reason, Mike Maccagan, was obsessed with the new coach hiring Gregg Williams to be the team’s defensive coordinator. Matt Rhule wouldn’t do it, and backed out of contention. Gase agreed to this awkward set-up.
If you are going to be a successful head coach in the NFL, you really need to run the whole team, and not farm out the defense.
Lombardi feels Williams call was driven by ego.
“Gregg Williams on the last play decides to run a cover zero, which means there is no one in the middle of the field, there is no one playing the deep part of the field,” said Lombardi. “He didn’t play the situation. He decided to be a narcissist. It’s about him.”
December 7, 2020
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