If the Jets were posting advertisements for their head coach and general manager openings, they might have a line that “prior experience is preferred.”
The Jets are looking at GM and coaching candidates who have done the jobs before as they delve deeper into their search and it is quite possible that at least one of the two jobs goes to someone with experience rather than a first-timer.
The latest name to surface in their search is a head coach with plenty of experience.
The team will interview former Panthers and Commanders coach Ron Rivera this week, a source confirmed. The 62-year-old has 13 years of head coaching experience and guided Carolina to Super Bowl 50.
Former Jets coach Rex Ryan also told ESPN Radio on Monday that he expects to interview for his old job after the season is over. The Jets do have interest in speaking to Ryan, who spent six years as the Jets coach and two more with the Bills.
There are plenty of things to debate about what the Jets should be looking for both in a GM and a coach. One of those areas of debate is how important it is that the person has done the job before.
If you look at the current first-year coaches, Jim Harbaugh with the Chargers and Dan Quinn with the Commanders, both have their teams in the playoffs and both have been head coaches before.
The Falcons with coach Raheem Morris, another second-time head coach, are still in contention for the NFC South title.
The Jets have not hired many coaches with previous experience in recent years and there have been issues for those coaches learning on the job. Robert Saleh, Todd Bowles, Ryan, Eric Mangini and Herm Edwards were all first-time head coaches.
The flip side of the experience argument is Adam Gase had been a head coach before but that experience did not translate into success during his two years with the Jets.
The candidate who seems to be the favorite of most Jets fans is someone with experience in Mike Vrabel, who spent six seasons as the Titans coach and went to the playoffs three times. ESPN reported Monday that Vrabel’s consulting contract with the Browns expired so he is now free to interview with teams.
Vrabel is not the only candidate with experience. Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores should get coaching interviews despite missing the playoffs in all three of his seasons as Dolphins coach.
Former Seahawks (and Jets and Patriots) coach Pete Carroll is reportedly interested in returning to coaching. The 73-year-old took the Seahawks to the Super Bowl twice, winning once.
Other possibilities are former Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury, former Falcons coach Arthur Smith and former Bears coach Matt Nagy.
A big question all of the Jets coaching candidates will have to answer is who will be on their coaching staff. It may be easier for these experienced coaches to put together a staff than a first-time coach.
As for the GM job, it is harder for GMs to get a second shot at the job than head coaches for some reason. But the Jets have already talked to Thomas Dimitroff, the former Falcons GM, and Jon Robinson, the former Titans GM, and they could interview more candidates who have done the job before.
Experience may be more important in the GM role than even the head coach because many of the first-time candidates are simply front-office executives from successful teams. Unlike an offensive or defensive coordinator, it is hard to evaluate what exactly these front office executives were responsible for in the team’s success versus what the GM or other executives did. It is also hard for people from the scouting world to then learn the salary cap and financial side or vice versa.
The Jets are not set on hiring a GM before a head coach so it is possible that whoever they hire as head coach could have a say in the GM hire. An experienced head coach also could end up with more influence and control inside the organization than the GM.
Carroll had that in Seattle with John Schneider as GM. Carroll still controlled the roster. Vrabel, who is one of the hottest candidates, may be looking for more control in his second go-round as coach.
The search will heat up more next week when the regular season ends. The question of experience figures to be a big one during it.