One of the worst offensive showings in Jets history has taken a big toll on its architect.
Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said Thursday this season has been the most difficult of his 14-year career as an NFL playcaller, including stints as head coach with the Cowboys and Bills.
“Yeah, it has been [the most difficult] — it really has been,” Gailey said as the 4-11 Jets prepared to finish at home Sunday against Buffalo. “Just with all that’s happened with the injuries and the way it’s gone. I’ve not been through one exactly like this.”
Gailey had been the toast of Jets fans in 2015, his first season with the team, overseeing a unit that finished 11th in the league in scoring and 10th in total yards and saw Ryan Fitzpatrick throw a franchise-record 31 touchdown passes.
But the follow-up for Gailey has been such a disaster there are questions about his job security, assuming coach Todd Bowles is retained by owner Woody Johnson.
Fitzpatrick was abysmal, and the Jets have plummeted to 30th in points and 25th in total yards. They also have the league’s worst turnover margin (minus-23), thanks in large part to an NFL-most 25 interceptions among Fitzpatrick, Geno Smith and Bryce Petty.
Gailey described the season as “unsettling” and the reasons for the offensive woes a mystery to him.
“I wish I could put my finger on it,” Gailey said. “That would be a simple and easy discussion for the offseason to decide what to do. That would be easy. I think it’s a myriad of things that happened at different times that created problems for us. I don’t think there’s one simple, easy, ‘OK, let’s do this,’ and everything’s back to the way it was last year. I don’t think we can say that.”
Gailey, 64, said he isn’t ready to call it a career, though.
“I always have loved to coach,” he said. “I’ve always loved to do that. I think it’s in my blood. I think it’ll be there until I go to the grave.”
Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall lost his bet with Steelers counterpart Antonio Brown, but Marshall’s charity still will come out the winner.
Marshall bet Brown a Porsche last summer as to which player would end up with the most receiving yards.
Brown is nearly 500 yards ahead of Marshall with one game to play and declared victory Thursday but wrote on Instagram that Marshall could donate it to Marshall’s Project 375 charity instead.
Project 375 helps promote awareness of mental health.
Brown posted on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BOmyWl7jVzX/?taken-by=ab&hl=en
The Jets backfield is so banged up entering Sunday’s finale they had just one running back — undrafted rookie Brandon Burks — available for practice Thursday.
“I think that’s a first for me,” Bowles said.
Matt Forte appears questionable to play because of a knee injury, and Bilal Powell has been sidelined this week by illness.