Who will be the Jets' next coach? The search is taking shape

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- A look at what's happening around the New York Jets:

1. Coaching buzz: Officially, the offseason will begin around 7:30 p.m. Sunday for the Jets when they exit the field after their final game. In another sense, it began Nov. 19, the day owner Woody Johnson fired general manager Joe Douglas. With Douglas and the previously fired Robert Saleh gone, Johnson turned his attention to the future and an organizational reset.

The Jets already have interviewed four GM candidates and two head coaching candidates, including former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel, who met with team brass Friday at the facility. Vrabel will be highly coveted, and the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders figure to be in the Vrabel sweepstakes if they change coaches, as well.

With a roster capable of competing in 2025 -- it's not a complete teardown -- it might behoove the Jets to hire someone with previous head coaching experience. That would reduce the growing pains, which can be exacerbated in a demanding New York market. That's why Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury figure to draw some level of interest.

Former Commanders and Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera met with the organization Thursday, and former Jets coach Rex Ryan will interview Tuesday.. There have been rumors aboutJon Gruden's return to the NFL, but he'snot expected to be on the Jets' radar.

What about Mike McCarthy, whose Dallas Cowboys contract is expiring? If he becomes a free agent, he likely will have interest in the Jets, in part, because of his long history with Aaron Rodgers. Once upon a time they won a Super Bowl together with the Green Bay Packers. McCarthy has a proven track record and knows what it's like to handle a pressure situation.

Interim coach Jeff Ulbrich (2-9) said Friday he expects to be interviewed for the job next week.

Here are a few thoughts based on conversations with people familiar with the coaching market:

While the Jets are intrigued by the idea of an experienced coach, they're not married to it. They're attacking this with an open mind, which also applies to the GM search. They're not locked into the traditional approach of hiring a GM before the coach. It will be a fluid process. For instance: With someone like Vrabel, they could try to entice him by offering the chance to have a say in the GM decision.

It might seem odd that they're interviewing coaching candidates without a GM in place, but they're approaching the searches on parallel paths. If they wait to hire a coach, their top candidates could be off the boardwith there being two other openings already and several more to come.

If they opt for a first-time coach, the names to watch are Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen and Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik. There will be others, to be sure. Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is a hot name around the league but doesn't appear drawing interest from the Jets.

Staffing will be at a premium in both searches. If the Jets hire a first-timer, it will be important to complement that person with an experienced staff -- i.e. a defensive-minded head coach and a seasoned offensive coordinator.

2. Feeling the draft: It's an extreme long shot, but the Jets could climb as high as No. 3 in the draft order. Currently at No. 7, they will know exactly where they stand by the time they take the field at 4:25 p.m. Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. The six teams ahead of them will have completed their games by then. One of them, the Cleveland Browns (3-14), lost on Saturday, ensuring it will pick ahead of the Jets (4-12).

If the Patriots (3-13), Titans (3-13), New York Giants (3-13), Jacksonville Jaguars (4-12) and Panthers (4-12) win their games, the Jets have a good chance to be in the No. 3 spot, based on the strength-of-schedule tiebreaker -- if they lose the finale.

The Patriots, Titans and Giants are facing playoff-bound teams that will be resting their starters. The Patriots probably will win a tiebreaker with any team, based on strength of schedule, so jumping to No. 1 or No. 2 is out of the question for the Jets.

A top-three pick is important in this draft because it gives you a shot at one of the top-rated quarterbacks, Shedeur Sanders (Colorado) or Cam Ward (Miami), or wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter (Colorado), who is widely regarded as the No. 1 prospect.

The Jets came into Week 18 with a 28.7% chance of a top-five pick, per ESPN Analytics.

3. Farewells: The roster will undergo a significant turnover, often the case when a new regime takes over. Players who could be released or traded include Rodgers, wide receiver Davante Adams and wide receiver Garrett Wilson. The top free agents will be cornerback D.J. Reed, tight end Tyler Conklin and linebacker Jamien Sherwood.

4. Costly trade: The Jets head into the offseason with eight draft picks, including one in each of the first four rounds. They could've had two in the third, but they sent one to the Raiders in the Adams trade. Technically, it's a conditional pick that can become a second-rounder, but only if Adams is named first- or second-team All Pro -- and that's highly unlikely.

Was it worth it? Yes, but only if they retain Adams, which means renegotiating the two years, $72 million (non-guaranteed) remaining on his contract. If not, they will have traded a premium draft pick for an 11-game rental.

The Jets' other third-round pick was acquired from the Lions in a draft-day pick swap last April.

5. $863,000 per tackle: Haason Reddick can easily qualify for his playing-time incentive, meaning a $791,628 bonus (the equivalent of one game check). He needs to play in 40% of the defensive snaps, and he's already at 55%.

With only a half-sack, Reddick won't come close to the eight-sack threshold required for a sack bonus. He's on pace to become the league's first edge rusher since 2022 to play an entire season with less than a full sack (minimum: 200 pass rushes), per Next Gen Stats.

Reddick has only 11 tackles and two quarterback hits, virtually the same production as Takk McKinley, who played only seven games before he was released.

Counting salary and bonus, Reddick will walk away with $9.5 million for 10 games. He was due to make $14.5 million before incurring fines and forfeiting money because of his holdout. He will be a free agent.

6. More incentives: Injured left tackle Tyron Smith, who hasn't played since Week 10, is projected to earn a $3.75 million incentive bonus, based on his playing time (approximately 59% of the offensive snaps). That will bring his total earnings over $10 million. He, too, will be a free agent.

7. Jermaine update: Defensive end Jermaine Johnson has returned to the team after rehabbing his torn right Achilles in Los Angeles, where surgery was performed by Neal ElAttrache -- the same doctor who repaired Rodgers' Achilles. Johnson, moving around relatively well, said he will be ready for next season, starting with OTA practices in the spring.

"I already am [pumped]," he told ESPN. "That first joint practice, they're about to get it."

Johnson is an ascending player whose season was cut short in Week 2, a big blow to the defense. He said he needed to get away from the team during the most rigorous stage of his rehab.

"I would've been worse if I was here because the guys had to see me like that, not being able to walk," Johnson said. "I wouldn't say my spirits were ever awful, but they're used to seeing how I am healthy and helping the guys. I just didn't want them to see me like that. And I wanted to at least get back functioning before I showed my face again."

8. Next season: A quick look at the Jets' nondivisional schedule for 2025, which features the AFC North and NFC South.

Home: Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Atlanta Falcons, Panthers, AFC West third- or fourth-place teamand NFC East third- or fourth-place team.

Away: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, AFC South third- or fourth-place team.

9. How many kickers does it take to ...? The Jets will trot out their fifth kicker Sunday -- a franchise record for a single season and a league high for 2024. Greg Joseph will replace Greg Zuerlein, who hurt his back during pregame warmups last week and returned to injured reserve.

The Jets have gone from Zuerlein to Riley Patterson to Spencer Shrader to Anders Carlson to Zuerlein to Joseph. Before this season, the last time they used four kickers in a season was 1979.

After seven games on IR with a knee injury, Zuerlein enjoyed his best week of practice, according to special teams coordinator Brant Boyer. And then his back tightened up about an hour before kickoff. Boyer's reaction?

"Oh, my hell," he recalled thinking.

It's been that kind of year.

10. The Last Word: "I would be fine sleeping in my bed 20 years from now with 499, but 500 definitely looks better on paper." -- Rodgers on his pursuit of 500 career touchdown passesbr/]