Making Morton Fall guy Wouldn’t Reflect Well on Bowles
Some fans may write this one off because the source is Manish Mehta of the Daily News, but let’s not forget Jets fans, there were plenty of people scoffing and poking fun last season when Mehta tried to tell the world that Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson lacked leadership and work ethic. How did that work out?
Now another claim from Mehta is that there’s a chance Jets offensive coordinator John Morton may not be back next season in this article that was posted to his twitter page recently.
Sources: #Jets offensive coordinator John Morton not guaranteed to return in 2018. A closer look at a fluid & complicated situation… https://t.co/A2wJqtq5fR pic.twitter.com/xQtdFWvHC6
— Manish Mehta (@MMehtaSports) January 11, 2018
Now, without getting more specific, Mehta sent out a cryptic tweet indicating that something big is coming as he claimed “a storm is brewing”.
Manish tweeting about a Jets storm. Is this just Manish being Manish? What does everyone think? https://t.co/JH4N7Qds8W
— JetNation (@JetNation) January 12, 2018
While many have speculated that Morton’s ouster would mean quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates would be a slam dunk to replace him, the Jets may make another run at Eagles QB coach John DeFilippo who the Jets showed interest last season. The Jets were spurned when Philadelphia refused to grant permission for Gang Green to interview DeFilippo.
Firing Morton could reflect poorly on Bowles after the first-year coordinator had the Jets functioning at a level that few anticipated. Yes, Gang Green was only 24th in the NFL in scoring, but not many people expected them to be out of the bottom two or three teams in the league. Having to play QB Bryce Petty in the season’s final four games certainly didn’t help.
Meanwhile, Bowles and his close friend Kacy Rodgers had a slew of highly touted first and second round picks on defense (Morris Claiborne, Jamal Adams, Marcus Maye, Darron Lee, Leonard Williams, Muhammad Wilkerson) to work with and still placed just 22nd in the NFL, allowing 22.9 points per game, blowing multiple fourth quarter leads throughout the season. If Bowles makes Morton the scapegoat for the team’s defensive meltdowns and continues to shield Rodgers, it won’t bode well for a head coach who is said to be conducting a critical self-evaluation this off-season.
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