JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 27: Sam Darnold #14 and head coach Adam Gase of the New York Jets meet on the field during a timeout in the fourth quarter of a football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field on October 27, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
Adam Gase was hired by the Jets to help Sam Darnold become a star quarterback. Instead, he’s turned New York into an NFL laughing-stock.
Both the Jets and Sam Darnold deserve more than what they’re getting from their head coach at the moment. It’s time for New York to part ways with Adam Gase before he does even more damage to their franchise.
The idea of hiring Gase was to provide Darnold with an offensive minded coach who could mold him into a star. Clearly, that hasn’t worked out. Instead of developing Darnold into the focal point of the Jets offense, he looks just as lost as he did during his erratic rookie campaign. That poor play culminated in this week’s inexcusable loss to the hapless Miami Dolphins.
Darnold wasn’t necessarily the Jets’ biggest problem in the 26-18 loss, but he didn’t help power his team to victory either. Going 27-of-39 for just 260 yards is a clear sign that Darnold and the Jets offense didn’t come to play. If you can’t enjoy a big day against the Dolphins defense, it’s hard to expect much success against any other opponent.
In fairness to Gase, he certainly inherited a flawed roster. The Jets do have some talent at certain positions, but their front office has done a poor job of constructing a team capable of winning NFL games. The offense, in particular, suffers from the offensive line’s inability to provide their quarterback a clean pocket.
That’s not a valid excuse for just how bad the Jets have been this season under Gase. It’s hard to point to a single thing he’s done right during his time in the Big Apple. He’s certainly failed to forge the sort of relationship with Darnold that was his primary directive when he took the job. That should be the one sin that gets him fired immediately.
The Jets may choose to let Gase coach out the rest of the regular season, but it’s only a matter of time before he gets the axe. The franchise would be better off to make the move now to get out in front of other teams who will be shopping for new coaches this offseason. Gase is worse than a lame duck.