Jets fire GM Joe Douglas during 3-8 season: Why New York moved on now

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Jets fire GM Joe Douglas during 3-8 season: Why New York moved on now

By Zack Rosenblatt, Amos Morale III and Jeff Howe

The New York Jets have fired general manager Joe Douglas, the team announced Tuesday. Senior football advisor Phil Savage will be the interim GM for the remainder of the Jets season.

“I would like to thank Joe for his service to the Jets over the past six years and wish him and his family the best for the future,” said owner Woody Johnson. said in a statement on Tuesday.

The move comes two days after the Jets fell to 3-8 following a one-point loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday and six weeks after the team parted ways with coach Robert Saleh.

Douglas was in his sixth season as general manager of the Jets and the team had a 30-64 record during his tenure. New York hired Douglas — formerly a scout with the Baltimore Ravens and executive with the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles — in 2019 after firing Mike Maccagnan.

Douglas, who was in the final year of his contract, didn’t see a winning season in New York despite a stacked draft class in 2022 and a trade for four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers in 2023.

Why Jets has now moved on

Given the way the Jets season went, Douglas never returned in 2025. So it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that the Jets decided to move on from him after six years. Douglas never came close to guiding the Jets to the playoffs in six seasons and even finished with a lower winning percentage than both of his predecessors: Mike Maccagnan and John Idzik. Douglas’ tenure will ultimately be defined by a string of home runs and debilitating strikeouts.

Douglas inherited a barren roster talent-wise and built it into a, in theory at least, playoff-caliber team with talent all over the defense and some top players on offense. His 2022 NFL Draft class is unquestionable: cornerback Sauce Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson, defensive end Jermaine Johnson and running back Breece Hall. He made some smart free-agent signings, such as cornerback DJ Reed, and claimed others on waivers who were key contributors, such as John Franklin-Myers and Quincy Williams.

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But his misses were big. It took him six years to build the Jets’ offensive line into a unit equal to league average. His 2020 and 2021 draft classes were both disastrous — none bigger than quarterback Zach Wilson. He was given the opportunity to continue even after it was clear Wilson had failed because the Jets had built a quality defense and thought they were a quarterback away from contention.

Rodgers was supposed to be that quarterback, and so far it has backfired spectacularly.

Ultimately, Douglas’ fate was sealed when Johnson took over the decision-making and unilaterally decided to fire Saleh after five games without consulting his general manager — and then Johnson also pushed through a trade for wide receiver Davante Adams.

Douglas will land on his feet elsewhere, perhaps back with Howie Roseman and the Eagles, and the Jets will begin their GM search. — Zack Rosenblatt, Jets beat writer