Jets can usher in a historically new era of football thanks to potential GM hire
The New York Jets are not only in the market for a new head coach this off season, but they are also looking for his boss. After firing Joe Douglas earlier this season, the Jets are in the market for a new general manager to finally get this team over the playoff hump that has […]
The New York Jets are not only in the market for a new head coach this off season, but they are also looking for his boss. After firing Joe Douglas earlier this season, the Jets are in the market for a new general manager to finally get this team over the playoff hump that has plagued them for 14 years and counting.
Apart from dealing with an owner who believes himself to understand football more than those he hired; the Jets GM job should be an attractive one. The Jets have a solid, young core in place including most of an offensive line and a couple of stars on the outside. The new GM will be able to select his head coach and his quarterback, which is something every GM wants to do. They should have some decent cap space and a top 10 pick in April’s draft.
But who will be making that pick in a few months?
Here are three under the radar candidates to be the next Jets general manager.
Thomas Dimitroff
Dimitroff was a staple in the Atlanta Falcons organization for more than a dozen years before finally being let go after the 2020 NFL season. During that time, Dimitroff built a playoff caliber team six times despite taking over a team who had just lost their star quarterback, Michael Vick to a prison for dog fighting. He even got to the Super Bowl in 2016 only to have Tom Brady and the Patriots come back from down 28-3.
He selected Matt Ryan with his first ever draft pick. Dimitroff was known for wheeling and dealing, trading up in the 2011 NFL draft to grab future Hall of Famer Julio Jones. Prior to heading to Atlanta, Dimitroff worked for the New England Patriots. He cut his teeth as a scout under Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli with the Cleveland Browns and then again in New England.
These days, Dimitroff has been working for a football analytics company, though it’s believed he wants to get another shot at running a team.
Josh Williams
The San Francisco 49ers director of scouting and football operations doesn’t sound like a title that would be surprising to find on a list of possible GM candidates, until you find out that Williams is only 34-years old.
Williams has worked for the 49ers since he was 20 years old and has worked his way up from the lowest levels in the San Francisco organization to overseeing game strategy as director of scouting and football operations. He was a college scout for years and is considered to be a very intelligent graduating from Columbia University.
He was part of the NFL’s Front Office and General Manager Accelerator Program. The program consisted of qualified candidates across player personnel, football operations, and assistant general manager roles participating in a series of leadership development workshops and networking sessions led by renowned academic leaders and industry experts, candidates will leave with valuable insights and practical tools to support their journey to future leadership roles.
Williams career with the 49ers began in 2011. His previous roles include national scout (2022-2023), area scout (2017-21), National Football Scouting representative (2016), personnel scout (2013-2015) and assistant to the scouting department (2011-2014).
He will certainly get a look from the Jets.
Dawn Aponte
The NFL’s chief administrator of football operations is a well-known name in team circles. She’s worked in various departments for NFL teams over the years, including in salary cap and personnel for the Jets under Mike Tannenbaum in the early 2000s. Tannenbaum is part of a group hired by Woody Johnson to help find the team’s next GM.
Reports are that Aponte wants to move back to a team’s front office and leave her position with the NFL. Aponte is well respected around the league and even interviewed last season for the Los Angeles Chargers GM job, which ultimately went to Joe Hortiz.
Aponte would be the NFL’s first female GM, although it is unclear if she would rather be a GM or a team president. With Tannenbaum helping to lead the hire, there is a belief that he could look to get his former employee the top spot at his old job. Those close to Tannenbaum say he has a mantra: “The winning edge is to do things differently, not just better.” This would certainly qualify.
If she was hired, Aponte would focus on structure and alignment while partnering with an experienced personnel executive to handle the roster-building side of things. Essentially, Aponte is a master of the big picture and a “tough, no-nonsense leader”.
Whoever the Jets bring in to be the GM will have a much more difficult task than simply maintaining the roster. They will have to deal with whims and incompetence of Jets owner Woody Johnson, who made the job as unattractive as he could since firing Joe Douglas. Johnson won’t be going anywhere anytime soon and much to fans dismay, doesn’t look like he is interested in selling the team.
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