Jets owner Woody Johnson says a new team with a new general manager will need some time to get the ship righted, and that patience will be an important ingredient in improving the Jets’ fortunes.
“That’s absolutely perfect, yes be patient, be patient, and have trust that we’re doing the right thing for your team, we’re trying to get better every day,” Johnson said today, via Conor Orr of the Star-Ledger. “That’s why John was brought in and the other coaching changes were made; to make us more competitive.”
Jets fans aren’t exactly known for their patience, and they won’t be happy if 2013 turns out to be the rebuilding year that most people expect it to be. So if Johnson wants fans to be patient, he’s probably not going to get his wish.
A bigger question facing the Jets may be whether Johnson himself is willing to have patience with coach Rex Ryan, or whether Ryan is coaching for his job in 2013. Johnson wouldn’t get into that.
“I would never talk about contracts or anything like that,” Johnson said. “We normally don’t discuss contracts or extensions or anything like that.”
So while Johnson says he’s confident that the Jets are turning things around, he isn’t willing to promise that he’ll be patient enough to let Ryan remain the coach throughout that turnaround.