Todd Monken rejected the NY Jets OC offer, interviewed for the Bucs

The NY Jets officially hired longtime NFL assistant and former Denver Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett to be their new offensive coordinator on Thursday, but he likely wasn't their top option.

The Jets were reportedly interested in a number of high-profile candidates, but they weren't able to secure interviews. One such candidate was University of Georgia offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

uSTADIUM reported on Friday that the Jets "spoke to Monken" this offseason before he indicated that he wasn't interested in the Jets' job. This report came out the same day that it was reported that Monken would interview for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offensive coordinator position next week.

This is the third known candidate to reject an interview with the Jets after Darrell Bevell and Bill Callahan, although Monken is a bit different. Bevell and Callahan turned down offers from other teams. Monken clearly had interest in a return to the NFL.

He just wasn't interested in the Jets' job.

The NY Jets struggled to attract offensive coordinator candidates

It's been no secret that the Jets' offensive coordinator job was among the least desirable destinations in the NFL. The biggest reason for this was due to a lack of job security.

If the Jets fail to reach the playoffs next season, there's a good chance that everyone is fired — offensive coordinator included. That's not an appealing landing spot for prospective coaches.

Monken knows this all too well. The former Buccaneers assistant was a hot commodity on the coaching market and nearly landed a head coach job with the Jets a few offseasons ago.

After nearly missing out on head coach jobs, Monken joined the ill-fated Freddie Kitchens staff in Cleveland as the team's new offensive coordinator. That position would last just one year as Kitchens was fired following a disastrous 2019 season.

Monken left the NFL to join Georgia the following year, possibly in an effort to rehab his image after his stint in Cleveland went south. It wouldn't make any sense for Monken to risk his coaching reputation again with the Jets.

The Jets would have loved coaches like Frank Reich, Monken, or even Bevell and Callahan to consider taking the job, but it takes two to tango. No matter how you slice it, the Jets had to settle for Hackett. He was the "best" of an underwhelming selection of candidates.

That was the unfortunate reality of their situation. Monken's refusal is further proof of the issues the Jets faced during their most recent coaching cycle.