Lets See What You Got: Jets Announce John Idzik As GM

Added by Justin O'Connell on January 23, 2013.

Photo via NewYorkJets.com

It took 19 days and 10 interviews, but the Jets finally came to a decision on their new General Manger. Last Friday, Chairman and Owner, Woody Johnson, announced the hire of John Idzik as the teams new GM.

“After a thorough search in which we met many qualified and outstanding candidates, it was clear to me that John was the right choice,” said Johnson on his new hire.

“During his two decades in the NFL, John helped build a Super Bowl championship team in Tampa Bay, an NFC championship team in Arizona and, most recently, a team in Seattle that narrowly missed reaching the NFC championship game. John has seen first-hand what’s necessary to construct a winning team and has worked with some of the most innovative and successful coaches in the NFL, including Pete Carroll, Tony Dungy, Dennis Green, Jon Gruden and Mike Holmgren. Drawing on 20 years of NFL experience, John, working with Rex, will get the Jets where all of us want to be.”            

Idzik was the Vice Presidents of Football Administrations over the past six seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. One part of Idzik’s resume that stands out is his Super Bowl win with Tampa Bay as the Assistant General Manager and his NFC Championship with Arizona, when he was the Senior Director of Football Operations.

Idzik has been around football his entire life, his father, John, was a coach and even won a Super Bowl with the Baltimore Colts, as one of their offensive coaches. Taking the Jets job will be a whole new monster for Idzik though, and there is no amount of training or experience that could prepare him for what he is about to encounter.

“I am honored and extremely excited to be joining the New York Jets,” said Idzik.

“It has been very enlightening getting to know Mr. Woody Johnson, Rex Ryan and Neil Glat and I am very grateful for them making me feel very welcomed as a member of the Jets family.  I am eager to get started building on the foundation that is already in place.”

Although Idzik says he is eager to start his job with the Jets, he  may be eating his words by the end of the season. Between finding new players and stabilizing the cap, Idzik has a mountain of obstacles to bring the Jets back to contention. His first task will be to decide whether the team wants to move forward with or without Sanchez. Being in New York will magnify everyone of his decisions, combine that with being the Jets GM the pressure and coverage will be relentless.

Like Mike Tannenbaum, Idzik is known as a “cap guy”, but make no mistake his ability to find talent should not go unrecognized. If he can turn this fiasco around within two years, he will be a savior, but if not him and Rex might be out with door in a few years.