Credit to the Jets, who wasted no time bringing in one of the hottest names of this hiring cycle, Mike Vrabel. Despite the team being out on the practice field under the guidance of interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich on Friday, big moves were happening inside the building: Jets owners Woody and Christopher Johnson, along with their search-firm leads (former Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum and ex-Vikings GM Rick Spielman) and team president Hymie Elhai were meeting with Vrabel. I’d expect Vrabel to meet with more teams next week, including the Bears and Saints, but I was told both the Jets and Vrabel felt Friday’s meeting went “really, really well.”
Interesting backstory here: According to an excellent all-access piece by my colleague Zack Rosenblatt, Vrabel’s departure from Tennessee might have been fueled by tension over the GM role after Jon Robinson was fired in 2022. Vrabel told Zack that he preferred Ryan Cowden, the Titans’ player personnel exec who’d been interim GM after Robinson was fired (and who nearly landed the GM job with the Steelers in 2022 before it went to Omar Khan). Instead, Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk went outside the organization to get Ran Carthon from the 49ers.
Now, with Cowden working in the Giants’ front office, there’s a real chance we could see a reunion if Vrabel ends up landing a new gig. Even if Cowden doesn’t go with Vrabel, he’s expected to get GM interviews.
As far as the Jets go, they’ll continue their search process for a head coach and general manager, with a familiar face, former Jets coach Rex Ryan, set to meet with the team next week.
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Russini’s what I’m hearing: All the coaching buzz, from Pierce to Vrabel, McCarthy to Mayo
