There may be an early favorite for the New York Jets' DC job.
The New York Jets are looking for a new DC and Jets insider Rich Cimini of ESPN believes there may already be an early favorite.
"Probably Wink Martindale, who has seven years of coordinator experience with the Broncos, Baltimore Ravens and New York Giants," Cimini wrote. "He presided over top-tier units with the Ravens (2018 to 2021).
"His defense was good enough to help the 2022 Giants advance to the divisional round of the playoffs, although their defensive EPA (Expected Points Added) was only 28th. (In fact, Martindale hasn't fielded a top-10 unit in EPA since 2020.) He reportedly had a falling out with then-coach Brian Daboll, leading to his departure after the 2023 season.
"The '23 Giants tied for the league lead with 31 takeaways, which has to intrigue the turnover-starved Jets. Glenn jumped on Martindale early, interviewing him before the Jets' season ended. They have no previous working experience together, which raises the compatibility issue. We're talking about two Type A personalities, which would make for an interesting dynamic."
The Jets went 3-14 this season. They traded Sauce Gardner to the Indianapolis Colts and Quinnen Williams to the Dallas Cowboys for multiple future draft picks.
Under first-year head coach Aaron Glenn, the Jets became the first team in NFL history to not record a defensive interception and lose five straight games by 23 or more points within a single season.
"Compatibility is just as important as coachability," Glenn said at the Jets' season-ending news conference. "So, I want to make sure we see things the same way and I want to make sure that we can vibe as far as sitting down and talking about how we see football."
Even though Glenn's first year in New York was a disaster, he will not be fired. The Jets signed Glenn to a five-year contract last offseason.
"I understand what everybody on the outside is saying," Glenn said. "I'm going to take all those arrows, and that's OK, because I do know this: It's going to turn. And I'm confident in that. ... Just trust me. I know it's hard to say, but trust me and have faith in what we're doing."
New York's three wins this season came against the Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons.
The Jets were 31st in the NFL in points per game allowed. They gave up 29.6 points per contest despite Glenn being a defensive-minded coach.
It will be intriguing to see who Glenn and the Jets hire as their new DC.
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