Adam Gase attempted to avoid acting hastily in the closing, excruciating moments of the New York Jets’ devastating defeat.
After a brief sleep on Sunday night, the coach arrived to the team’s facility on Monday morning, having come to the same conclusion: defensive coordinator Gregg Williams needed to be fired.
During a conference call, Gase stated, “I just felt like that was the best thing for our team moving forward.” “Organizationally, we had a discussion this morning and we felt like this was the best move to make.”
Williams was dismissed on Sunday, just seconds shy of the Jets’ first win, after he strangely called for an all-out rush against Las Vegas. With five seconds remaining, Derek Carr found Henry Ruggs III, who was in man-to-man, or Cover Zero, coverage with rookie cornerback Lamar Jackson, for a wonderfully timed 46-yard touchdown ball that gave the Raiders a 31-28 victory.
Even his own players, together with the media and fans, harshly attacked the choice. The Jets players were stunned on the sidelines, having just moments before been celebrating what seemed to be a victory.
Frank Bush, the inside linebackers coach and associate head coach, will take over as the defensive coordinator in the interim, the organization stated. Williams had “parted ways” with the team.
“I was obviously not happy about that call,” Gase remarked in a grave tone. “Our boys lost a game in a very painful fashion. We simply cannot allow that to occur in that particular circumstance.”
Gase claimed that after discussing his ideas with club president Hymie Elhai, general manager Joe Douglas, and CEO Christopher Johnson, they all agreed that it was time to move on. After that, Gase informed Williams of the choice during a conversation that lasted about an hour.
Evidently, he wasn’t content, according to Gase. “But, that’s our profession.”
After the game, team captain Marcus Maye made an unexpected jab at Williams, claiming that the defense ought to have made a better call in that particular scenario. Gase maintained that his choice was unaffected by Maye’s remarks.
Upon hearing Williams’ play call, Gase expressed surprise and admitted that he had the power to override the defensive coordinator, but he chose not to.
“I wish I would’ve,” expressed Gase. “That occasionally comes up when you’re going through a lot of scenarios in a game. Though I regret not calling a timeout, I did not.”
Under Gase, Williams, 62, had served as the Jets’ defensive coordinator for the previous two seasons. Williams implied that Gase’s underperforming offense was equally to blame for the Jets’ low defensive scoring average when he made the statement earlier in the season, which led to a little argument between the two.
Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams appeared to be offended by the removal of the defensive coordinator, quoting ESPN’s tweet announcing the change and using five facepalm emojis.
Over the course of his 30-year NFL career, Williams has made a number of stops, most notably with New Orleans, where he spent a year on suspension in 2012 due to his involvement in the Saints’ bounty scandal.
The stern Though the Jets rank 29th in overall defense and 30th in scoring defense this year, Williams has built a career out of calling aggressive defensive plays. Williams had to contend with the summer trading of standout safety Jamal Adams to Seattle, the opt-out of linebacker C.J. Mosley due to COVID-19 issues, and the mid-season move of linebacker Avery Williamson to Pittsburgh.
In addition to other veterans like Quincy Wilson and cornerback Pierre Desir not performing well, there were a number of injuries to deal with. However, the Jets defense had performed admirably on Sunday, stopping a fourth-down play with 1:37 remaining. However, following a three-and-out by the offense with an opportunity to seal it
