Jets turning to Mike Tannenbaum to help find next coach, general manager
The Jets are turning to their past for help in plotting their future.The franchise is hiring The 33rd Team, which was founded by former Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum, to help the organization identify, vet and coordinate candidates and interviews for their open GM and head coaching jobs, according to a source.The Jets are beginning the process of finding replacements for Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh, who were both fired during this season.Jets owner Woody Johnson will oversee the search but a group from The 33rd Team will assist him and the other Jets executives involved in the search.Tannenbaum and former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman will be the primary representatives of The 33rd Team.
Spielman served as an advisor to the Commanders last year in their search for a GM and coach.The 33rd Team will also provide the Jets with their studies of the best hiring practices, data analysis and trends and insights over the past five years.Tannenbaum knows the Jets organization and Johnson as well as anybody.He served as the Jets general manager from 2006-12 and was the architect of the last Jets teams to make the playoffs.He joined the Jets in 1997 under Bill Parcells, initially handling player contracts before ascending to the GM job.As GM, Tannenbaum drafted Hall of Famer Darrelle Revis as well as franchise cornerstones Nick Mangold, D’Brickashaw Ferguson and David Harris.
Tannenbaum later served as Executive Vice President of Football Operations for the Dolphins and is now an EsPN analyst.He founded The 33rd Team, which is described as an NFL think tank, in 2019.Tannenbaum gives Johnson someone who has actually been in the GM chair here to help him identify candidates that could thrive here.
The Jets have had three general managers since Tannenbaum was fired in 2012 – John Idzik, Mike Maccagnan and Joe Douglas – and none have built a playoff roster.Tannenbaum knows the New York market and he knows what Johnson’s ownership style and what he will b...