4 biggest mistakes NY Jets GM Joe Douglas made this offseason

Say what you want about Joe Douglas, but the NY Jets general manager has managed to completely overhaul an inept roster and set his organization up for future success with a host of core building blocks.

But for all his successes as a general manager, Douglas absolutely deserves to shoulder a large portion of the blame for the Jets' offensive struggles this season.

Douglas' moves (or lack thereof) this offseason set the offense up for failure, regardless of the unfortunate Aaron Rodgers injury. While he deserves praise for the Rodgers acquisition, all things considered, it was not a banner offseason for the Jets GM.

Which of his offseason decisions have negatively impacted the Jets the most? Here's a look at Douglas' four biggest blunders from the 2023 offseason.

4. Hiring a poor offensive coaching staff

This section comes with a caveat. If the Jets don't hire offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, there's a good chance they don't even land Aaron Rodgers in the first place. That part has to be taken into consideration.

Still, Hackett has been a net negative for the Jets through nine weeks. He ran Mecole Hardman out of town, has made a number of other questionable personnel decisions, and, for the most part, his play-calling and weekly game plans have been uninspired.

It's not just Hackett, though. Passing game coordinator (and essentially Hackett's right-hand man) Todd Downing was a lackluster hire. Under Downing, the Tennessee Titans passing game ranked bottom-10 in consecutive seasons (fourth-worst in 2022).

Fellow former Titans coach, offensive line coach Keith Carter, was ousted after a public dispute with players. The Jets' offensive coaching staff stinks and Douglas absolutely deserves to share some of that blame.

3. Signing Dalvin Cook

Dalvin Cook's downfall was obvious to anyone who paid attention last season. Despite his gaudy box-score numbers, Cook was one of the least efficient running backs in football in 2022.

The four-time Pro Bowler ranked dead last in RYOE (rushing yards over expected), and his film was littered with red flags indicating he wasn't the same explosive running back he was in his prime.

There's a reason the Minnesota Vikings decided to move on from Cook when they did. Despite this, the Jets thought it would be wise to sign Cook to a one-year, nearly fully guaranteed $7 million contract this summer.

As should have been expected, Cook has been downright awful. The 28-year-old ranks dead last in the NFL in RYOE/attempt (surprised?), and his 2.8 yards per carry ranks second-to-last behind only Matt Breida.

Cook has also proven to be an unreliable ball-carrier (fumbles) and pass-catcher — two issues that have plagued him throughout his career. In the past, he was able to make up for it with his explosiveness. That explosiveness has all but disappeared at this point.

The Jets spent a good chunk of money on one of the worst running backs in football when that cap space could've been used to address other positions of need: namely backup quarterback and wide receiver — more on that momentarily.

Cook remains the de facto RB2, but the Jets were shopping him around to anyone who would listen prior to the trade deadline. They couldn't find a taker.

The Jets now seem to realize what they should have already known this summer: Dalvin is Cooked.

2. Keeping Zach Wilson as QB2

The Jets couldn't have predicted Aaron Rodgers going down with a torn Achilles just four plays into the season. No amount of preparation could have prepared the team for that outcome.

That being said, going into the 2023 season with Zach Wilson as the team's primary backup quarterback was always a recipe for disaster. That's been proven once again this year.

Despite some slight signs of improvement, Wilson has largely been a mess for the Jets again in 2023. Wilson is far from the only issue in a broken Jets offense, but he is a noticeable one.

Wilson's ball security and pocket presence are nonexistent. His overall accuracy is still a major problem. He still holds onto the ball for far too long, exaggerating the team's already persistent offensive line issues.

Wilson is not a backup-caliber quarterback — every metric out there agrees with that notion. His career numbers are in line with some of the worst quarterback play the modern NFL has ever seen.

The Jets should have known this, especially after benching Wilson for Chris Streveler of all players last season. Instead, they went into the year with Wilson and the equally inept Tim Boyle as their only backup quarterbacks.

The Jets had the money to afford more capable backups such as Teddy Bridgewater, Gardner Minshew, Mike White, or even Case Keenum. They passed on every opportunity and stuck with Wilson.

This Jets team would probably have 1-2 more wins with at least semi-competent quarterback play this season. Instead, for whatever reason, they've remained loyal to one of the worst quarterbacks in modern NFL history.

Wilson is not the only issue, but he is a significant one.

1. Everything with the NY Jets wide receiver room

Joe Douglas completely whiffed on every wide receiver decision this offseason. His handling of the Jets' wide receiver room might be the single largest issue facing the team's offense at the moment.

The Jets signed Mecole Hardman and promised him a larger role than the 50 percent of snaps he was playing for the defending Super Bowl champions. He played just 28 snaps before he was traded back to Kansas City.

Randall Cobb was signed to be a dependable depth wide receiver behind Hardman and the starters. He was elevated above Hardman, put together one of the worst stat lines to start a season the wide receiver position has seen in decades, and was subsequently benched for an undrafted rookie.

Of course, the Jets didn't plan for Corey Davis to unexpectedly retire, but they had more than enough time to address the position after his departure. Not to mention, many were screaming for the position to be addressed prior to Davis' retirement.

The Jets could've cut Davis and signed DeAndre Hopkins, effectively saving cap space in the process. Hopkins is on pace for roughly 1,200 yards in a bad Titans offense this season.

The team could've targeted one of the top wide receivers in the 2023 NFL Draft (Jordan Addison, Zay Flowers, Jaxon Smith-Njigba). Instead, they selected a rotational edge rusher who plays 5-10 snaps a game.

The Jets are paying Allen Lazard $44 million over four years to have the worst drop rate among any wide receiver in football. He's not a reliable WR2 despite what the Jets are paying him. His 2022 tape with Green Bay proved that.

The Jets put all their eggs in the wrong wide receiver baskets this offseason, and they're paying for it now. Douglas' handling of the Jets' wide receiver room this offseason is one of the biggest black marks on his GM resume to this point.