Jets Owner Woody Johnson Finally Says the Quiet Part Out Loud
The New York Jets are 0-7. Their season is a dumpster fire. And now, their owner has basically said what every Jets fan has been screaming into the void for two decades: He’s not good at his job in terms of winning.
Woody’s Comments With Dianna Russini
Speaking with The Athletic’s Dianna Russini at the NFL owners meetings, Johnson was asked what makes him a good owner. His response? Brutal honesty wrapped in self-awareness that’s about 20 years too late.
“Well, I’m obviously not a good owner in terms of winning,” Johnson admitted.
No kidding. Since Johnson took over in 2000, the Jets have posted a 173-238 record. That’s 26 seasons of mostly losing football, with just six playoff appearances to show for it. They haven’t seen the postseason since 2010—back when flip phones were still a thing—and haven’t had a winning season since 2015.
This year isn’t exactly bucking the trend. Under new GM Darren Mougey, head coach Aaron Glenn, and quarterback Justin Fields, the Jets are winless through seven games. They look like they can’t beat a high school football team at times.
A Roster Graded ‘F’ and an Owner Trying to Change
Last year, Johnson received the only “F” grade in the NFLPA’s annual player survey for ownership. That’s not just bad—that’s historically terrible. It was a wake-up call that apparently hit different, because Johnson actually tried to fix things.
He upgraded the locker room. He threw money at key players like Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, Garrett Wilson, and Jamien Sherwood. He committed $30 million guaranteed to Fields, buying into Glenn’s vision for the future.
But intentions don’t win football games, and some of those moves—like the Fields signing—are looking shaky at best.
Fields Takes the Fall (Again)
Johnson didn’t exactly sugarcoat his feelings about Fields this week, essentially blaming the quarterback for the team’s struggles.
“To play complementary football, you have to pass and you have to run,” Johnson said. “It’s not very complicated. And if you can’t do one, the defense can come in and play you differently. They load the box, they put 11 guys in the box and rush everybody. He was sacked a lot because they knew he wasn’t going to pass.”
Fields, who signed that two-year, $40 million deal after going 4-2 in six starts with Pittsburgh last season, has been sacked 22 times this year. He’s completed 63.7% of his passes for 845 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
Can You Believe What Johnson Is Saying?
Johnson claims that he is genuinely interested in connecting with his players. He talked about empathy and listening—qualities that sound nice in a press conference but don’t exactly translate to wins on Sunday. Then he makes the following statement.
“I think the players can relate to me in some ways, even though I don’t have their background,… “I have a certain amount of empathy, I think, that they can feel. I can’t be them. I don’t have their background. I didn’t grow up in their neighborhood. There’s no way I can completely understand what they went through and their life. But I think they know that I’m an understanding person. I’m willing to listen to anybody to tell me anything they want to tell me.”
That’s all well and good, but nobody including Jets fans believe you. They want competence, a plan, wins, something—anything—that resembles sustained success.
What Now for the Jets?
Turning this season around feels like a pipe dream. The Jets are sellers at the trade deadline, and their Week 9 bye can’t come soon enough. Woody Johnson is a terrible owner and its hard to see this team winning with him there. He needs to sell the team, because he has no idea how to run a football team.
