Jets Fans: Relax, Take a Deep Breath and Let John Idzik Work

Feb 20, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; New York Jets general manager John Idzik speaks during a press conference during the 2014 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

I was thinking about what to write tonight, and then I saw this tweet from our staffer, the great Sean Lester Durham, most of you know him:

Man! Tanny has destroyed this fanbase. Battered GM syndrome….. If we’re not splurging then there’s obviously something wrong.

— Sean Lester Durham (@SeanLDurham) March 16, 2014

They should probably invent that disease and put it in the medical books. “Battered GM Syndrome” is something probably all of us have. Who would be surprised? We all have endured Mike Tannenbaum, and depending upon your age, other general managers that have steered us wrong. GMs that have led us down the wrong path are all we know. Who can blame us for being sick? They make blooper reels about our failed draft picks. If we were as normal as regular football fans, it would be more of a story.

Jets fans want to win now. 1969 was a long time ago, Jets fans have had a long time between championships. Jets fans want a title, and want to see their team do whatever they perceive is necessary to win that title. They want their team to spend all of their money, because they have it, and bring in every single player that will bring us that championship. It’s an understandable sentiment.

But it’s the wrong sentiment. If you want to build a successful team, it takes time. John Idzik is doing it the right way. Take a breath and let John Idzik do his job.

Admittedly there are still several questions.  What’s going on at the cornerback position?  Is James Jones going to be the second wide receiver the Jets bring in as a free agent?  What about the quarterback position?

There are lots of questions, and we have posed many of them here.

Don’t be alarmed that they haven’t been answered yet.  Free agency is not even one week old yet.  The draft is six or seven weeks away.  Let John work, he will get it done.  Take a deep breath and relax.

What you are seeing is patience.  Look at what Idzik has done so far.  He has signed the best WR on the free agent market in Eric Decker, at a very fair price.  Just over $7 million per year is right where the contract should be, not too little, not too much.  Austin Howard is gone, but the Raiders far overpaid to get him.  John Idzik was not going to do that.  Instead, he signed a right tackle at a smaller cap hit in Breno Giacomini than Austin Howard would have been.

In case anybody forgot, these are good things.

John is going to follow the blueprint of the Seahawks.  By the way, that “way” was to win a Super Bowl.  We know that we will all contribute to the John Idzik statue when the Jets finally win a Super Bowl.

His way is to bring in quality football players, at the right price, so the team is not handcuffed from making the team even better.  The old way is to throw money around, and PREVENT your team from getting better.

Remember the quality of evaluation as well.  Tanny’s last season brought us Chaz Schilens.  Idzik’s first year with money to use brought us Eric Decker.  Doesn’t that prove to everyone that we are on the right track?

Relax.  Breath everyone.  John Idzik will take us where we want to go.