6 free agents who could follow Nathaniel Hackett to the NY Jets

The NFL is very much a "who you know" league. Coaches hire coaches they're familiar with and bring in players they have experience with. The NY Jets are proof of that.

Nearly the entirety of head coach Robert Saleh's staff consists of coaches he has prior experience working alongside. From Jeff Ulbrich to Nathaniel Hackett to Ron Middleton to Taylor Embree, Saleh's staff is a who's-who of his former and present-day colleagues.

This is commonplace throughout the NFL — it's hardly just exclusive to Saleh and the Jets. One look at the team's roster provides further proof of this philosophy.

The likes of D.J. Reed, Solomon Thomas, Marcell Harris, Vinny Curry, Nate Herbig, Kwon Alexander, etc. all have ties to the Jets' regime in some way. It's not uncommon for new coaches to lure former players over to their new jobs.

Saleh did this when he was first hired, signing running back Tevin Coleman, while showing interest in a number of other former San Francisco 49ers players. The additions of Reed, Thomas, Harris, and Alexander came the following year.

That's why it's worth considering which former players new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett could look to bring with him to the Jets. Hackett is an interesting case too, seeing as he's recently spent time with both the Denver Broncos and Green Bay Packers.

Much like Saleh, the former Packers offensive coordinator has been revered as a player's coach and is beloved by nearly everyone he has worked with. Perhaps that will work in the Jets' favor.

We're only talking about free agents for this list, so guys like Aaron Rodgers won't be included. Let's take a look at six pending free agents who could follow Hackett to the Jets.