Chan Gailey.. the ultimate NFL journeyman coach ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

If your eyebrows were raised just a little bit when you first heard whom Jets coach Todd Bowles was bringing in as his offensive coordinator, you were not alone.

Chan Gailey, the ultimate NFL journeyman coach, did not exactly spike keen interest among Jets fans. On its surface, his hiring was not one you would call inspiring.The NFL, which is as much a good-old-boy network industry as any around, is littered with recycled coaches. And the 63-year-old Gailey, already a two-time head coach in the league and already an offensive coordinator for four different NFL teams, fits that stereotype to a T.

You cannot blame Jets fans for having been a bit fed up with the offense they had been watching for too long.

Rex Ryan went through three offensive coordinators in his six seasons as the Jets head coach and never got the offense rightSo what was Gailey — who had been out of football for two years after being fired in 2012 as the Bills head coach following a 16-32 three-year tenure in Buffalo — going to do for Bowles, a first-time full-time NFL head coach with a defensive background?

Well, how about building one of the most consistent, efficient offenses in the league this season?

Three-quarters of the way though the season as the 7-5 Jets get ready to play the 3-9 Titans on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, the Jets are ranked 10th in the NFL in overall offense. The last time they finished in the top 10 in offense was in 1998.The best part of that surprising, impressive ranking? Gailey doesn’t give a damn.Gailey is a refreshing, stark departure from the statistic-obsessed Ryan, who always knew exactly where his defense was ranked as well as he knew his kids’ birthdays.

To his credit, Gailey is not basking in the surprising lofty ranking.

“I’ve been satisfied seven times and not satisfied five times,’’ Gailey said Thursday, referring to the Jets 7-5 record. “The objective is to win the game. By one point. I don’t give rip about stats. I don’t. The objective is to win the game. That’s the only objective.’’

It is a good objective, and it mirrors what Gailey is all about, which is no nonsense.

“He was on my mind for about two years,’’ Bowles said. “We have a mutual best friend, George Edwards, the [defensive coordinator] in Minnesota. Me playing against Chan a lot, he did a lot of things that made you think, made defenses adjust. It was hard to defend against him.

“Knowing his demeanor and how he relates to players from everything I had heard, he was the perfect choice for me. Me being a defensive coach, I didn’t want someone who I had to look over their shoulder, because I’m not an offensive coordinator. I wanted somebody to command the room, understand and have the respect of the guys and still get the most out of them and Chan was that guy.’’

The Jets players have taken to Gailey’s straight-forward approach and his ability to simplify things for them.“Every coordinator has his own style in how they address the team and motivate the team, and what I’ve noticed about Chan is there is no fluff,’’ left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson said.When the Jets hired Gailey, right tackle Breno Giacomini called Bills offensive lineman and friend Eric Wood to pick his brain.“Eric Wood told me he never wanted to disappoint Chan,’’ Giacomini said. “When we hired Chan, he told me, ‘You’re never going to want to disappoint him.’ It’s very true.’’

Receiver Brandon Marshall, who is on pace to have the best year of his career, called Gailey “the most adaptable, easy-to-work-with coach I’ve ever been with.Receiver Eric Decker praised Gailey for “being open to ideas’’ despite having been in the league as long as he has.“A lot of coordinators tend to want to run their stuff or call things the way they’ve been calling them for the amount of years they’ve been coaching, and right away he was very open-minded about having dialogue with the players,’’ Decker said. “Getting to know him, he’s done an amazing job.’’

An impressive job few thought was possible when Bowles first brought up his name.

>      http://nypost.com/2015/12/10/todd-bowles-surprise-hire-was-masterstroke-rex-ryan-never-had/

[Beerfish]

So we have Gailey, Ftiz and Marshall all being classified as journeymen.  I'm okay with that becasue that is a huge step up from the horrors we have seen at QB, OC and WR over the last number of years.

[#27TheDominator]

So we have Gailery, Ftiz and Marshall all being classified as journeymen.  I'm okay with that becasue that is a huge step up from the horrors we have seen at QB, OC and WR over the last number of years.

Oh.  You mean that meant he was a journeyman as a coach?  I thought it meant he was the ultimate guy to have coach journeymen. 

[Charlie Brown]

I really like Gailey as a coach.  He is the best OC that the Jets have had IMO since Charley Wiess. 

The article also puts to bed the notion that some floated out here that   Bowles didn't know what he was doing and that Chan was foisted upon him.  

The truth is this offense has been very good when you consider Fitz' past, the lack of a consistent running game, the injuries to the OL, the injuries to the WR, injuries to the RBs and the Geno fiasco.

I really don't think that to many other OC  could have come in here and done as good a job as Chan has done with this offense  

 

 

[AFJF]

JetNation.com

 

Almost immediately after word got out regarding the Jets decision to make Todd Bowles their new Head Coach, the name Chan Gailey began to surface as Bowles’ top choice to run his offense.  Jets fans familiar with Gailey’s work as a Head Coach in Buffalo with the Bills from 2010-2012 let out a collective groan.  Under Gailey, the Bills posted a 16-32 record in three seasons before the Bills sent him packing.  While things didn’t work out for Gailey in Buffalo, or in Dallas where he coached the Cowboys to a pedestrian 18-14 mark in 1998-1999, he’s done some rather remarkable things for his offenses and the young quarterbacks he’s had the opportunity to work with.

Some of Gailey’s best work came as an offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers during the 1996 and 1997 seasons.  In those two years, Gailey’s teams were ranked 11th and 7th respectively in points scored. Even more impressive is the fact that the Steelers posted those numbers with some fairly undesirable options at the quarterback position.

Their 1996 team was saddled with journeyman Mike Tomczak, a career back-up who had started more than ten games just once, when he got the nod 11 times for the Bears in 1989.  Tomczak threw for 2,058 yards with 16 touchdowns and 16 interceptions that season. His completion percentage was just 51% as he attempted a career-high 306 passes in the windy city.  With Gailey in Pittsburgh in ’96, his TD/INT numbers in fifteen starts were in the same ballpark (15 /17) but he threw just one more interception than he did in ’89 despite attempting 95 more passes.  Far from prolific production, but credit Gailey for guiding the offense of a team that would go on to finish 10-6 despite having a quarterback who wouldn’t see significant playing time again until 1999.  In relief of Kordell Stewart in week 10 and starting by week 11, the Steelers stumbled to a 1-5 finish with Tomczak under center.

During Gailey’s second season in Pittsburgh he was tasked with developing a project quarterback in Kordell Stewart.  A second round pick out of the university of Colorado, there was plenty of doubt surrounding Stewart’s ability to succeed at the NFL.  Many viewed Stewart as a “gimmick” on offense when he earned the nickname “slash” for playing quarterback, running back, and wide receiver early on in his career.  With the Gailey/Steward combo however, the Steelers finished 6th in the NFL in total yards and 7th in points scored.  It was after that season that Gailey would move on to become head coach of the Dallas Cowboys with the Steelers finishing the season with an 11-5 record.  Following Gailey’s departure, Stewart would never again throw 20 touchdowns as he did in 1997 (21) and eclipsed the 3,000 yard mark just once more in 2001 after topping that mark in his first season as a starter under Gailey.  So, as with Tomczak, the Steelers managed to post double-digit wins with a quarterback who would never again perform at the level he had under Gailey.  It was undoubtedly that performance that landed Gailey the head coaching job in Dallas as the Cowboys offense struggled while Gailey was working his magic with Stewart in Pittsburgh.

Armed with Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman during the 1997 season, the Dallas Cowboys finished an embarrassing 22nd in scoring  in the NFL.   Gailey’s addition was supposed to bring the Dallas offense back to life and he delivered.  Despite losing Aikman for five games in 1998, Gailey’s Cowboys vaulted from 22nd in scoring to a top-10 finish when the ranked 9th in points scored .  Even when Aikman was lost to injury for five games Gailey kept the Cowboys afloat with second-string QB Jason Garrett taking over.  During that span the Cowboys went 3-2 en route to flipping their 6-10 record from the previous season, to a division winning 10-6 under Gailey.  In his second and final season in Dallas, Gailey saw his offense slip slightly from 9th in scoring, to 11th.  With Aikman still battling injuries, an eight-win season wasn’t enough to save Gailey from being let go by owner Jerry Jones.  Once again however, Gailey made the best of a bad situation.  A division title and a high-octane offense despite a banged up, aging quarterback and a career back-up being called on to start seven games during his two season stint with the Cowboys.

From Dallas it was on to Miami where Gailey would be back to calling plays with another physically limited quarterback in Jay Fiedler.  Never somebody who struck fear in his opponents, Fiedler would join Tomczak and Stewart as quarterbacks who would do their best work under Gailey.  The biggest difference this time around for Gailey was going to be the lack of an established running back.  In Pittsburgh and Dallas he featured a couple of future Hall of Famers in Jerome Bettis and Emmitt Smith.  With the Dolphins, Gailey would be pairing Fiedler with a virtual unknown in Lamar Smith.  Smith was a solid runner who  had never been a featured back or eclipsed the 1,000 yard mark.  He had also reached the end zone just 11 times in his first six NFL seasons.  Under Gailey, that all changed in a hurry. The coordinator relied heavily on Smith due to Fiedler’s limitations and lack of experience.  The  result for Smith were career highs in carries (309), yards (1,139) and touchdowns (14).

As far as Fiedler’s growth under Gailey, with a full season under his belt as a starter in 2000, he was turned loose by the veteran coordinator.  After managing just 14 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in year one with Gailey, Fiedler had a career year of his own.  The QB’s interception total was high (19) but he also managed 20 touchdowns, completed over 60% of his passes and threw for 3,290 yards.  Fiedler would go on to play four more seasons following Gailey’s departure for Georgia Tech, but he would never come close to matching his production from the 2001 season.

After spending six seasons in the college ranks, Gailey was called back to NFL action when former New York Jets coach Herm Edwards asked him to run his offense for him in Kansas City.  The season was a disaster as the Chiefs limped to a 2-14 finish under Edwards, and Gailey’s offense ranked 26th in scoring.  Despite the final record and poor ranking, Gailey’s work with a young quarterback may have been one of  his most impressive efforts up to that point.

For the majority of the 2008 season it was up to Gailey to find ways to score with quarterback Tyler Thigpen running the offense.  Prior to that season the second-year 7th round pick had thrown a total of six passes in the NFL.  Thigpen would end up starting 11 games for the Chiefs that season and Gailey somehow managed to get the youngster to throw 18 TD’s to just 11 interceptions.  Since that season under Gailey, Thigpen has remained a back-up, staring only one contest for the Dolphins in 2010.

For the Jets, a team that has spent the past six seasons watching first and second round quarterbacks Mark Sanchez and Geno Smith turn the ball over a staggering 145 times while throwing just 93 touchdowns, the thought of an inexperienced seventh round pick producing more touchdowns than interceptions is an alien concept.

Proving he could get results from even the most unlikely candidates at quarterback, the Buffalo Bills gave Gailey his next shot as a Head Coach when they hired him following the 2009 season.  Gailey once again inherited a seventh round pick and this time it was Harvard product Ryan Fitzpatrick.  Fitzpatrick, another journeyman, was on his third team in six seasons after the Rams chose him with the 250th overall pick in the 2005 draft. When Gailey arrived in Buffalo he had a total of 23 NFL starts with a career high of 12 with the Bengals two years earlier.  Over that span Fitzpatrick completed 57% of his passes while throwing 21 touchdowns and 27 interceptions.  Another project for Gailey to add to the list, and while the Bills struggled to win games with one of the worst defenses in the NFL, he once again managed to get his quarterback to play at a level he hadn’t approached up to that point.

In three seasons under Gailey, Fitzpatrick completed 60% of his passes with 71 touchdowns and 54 interceptions.  An overall record of 16-32 in Buffalo led to Gailey’s dismissal.  Until Bowles called, Gailey seemed to have faded away.  He didn’t coach anywhere in 2013 or 2014.  Because of his record as a head coach, some fans and media viewed his hiring as a bad choice.  Upon learning Gailey was the likely choice to run the Jets offense ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini said the choice wasn’t “inspiring” but seems to have come around since then.

Gailey has spent a good portion of his career changing public opinion of the quarterbacks he’s worked with.  Now in New York, he gets an opportunity to change public opinion of himself.  Gailey isn’t just somebody who’s been fired from two coaching jobs, but a coach who has gotten the most out of what he’s had.  With the Jets, he’ll likely have another challenge on his hands with the struggling Geno Smith or whoever else is brought in.  Regardless, Jets fans should be happy in knowing that if anyone can get their quarterback to finally resemble an NFL offense, Gailey is that man.

[drsamuel84]

The difference between Gailey and the three previous OC's under Rex is that he's adjusted the offense based on the talent available as well the QB's limitations.  i felt in the past our OC's were basically just running the offense they're familiar with without any regard to the talent on the team and the QB.  In game adjustments have been huge too, Fitz was getting killed by the Giants D-Line in the first half but the proper adjustments were made which led to a much more productive offense in the second half.

[rex-n-effect]

I understand picking Gailey. He's experienced at offense and as a head coach so he could help Bowles in more ways than one.

I still don't love Gailey's playcalling and believe Bowles has driven him to open up the playbook and call plays more aggressively. Let's hope it stays that way.

[Jetup]

Gailey was the perfect OC at the time to come in. I personally like his play calling with the exception of the Bills game. I do like the spread look and believe if Jace would not have been injured this offense could look even better opening up the middle of the field. Bilal I believe will be the difference maker these next four games. We need to draft a burner or scat back in the offseason because I do believe we need more speed on Offense. If Devin can get his act together he can definitely flourish in this offense. His speed especially because of the attention Deck and Marsh receive can be an game changer. Being hurt so early stunted his growth. I believe as long as Chan wants to coach, we will see continued improvement over the next couple of years.

[kelly]

-- Chan Gailey was out of football for two years, spending his Sundays on the golf course instead of the gridiron. At 63, he figured his coaching days were over and he was fine with that. Then Todd Bowles offered him a job as the New York Jets' offensive coordinator.

And so ended his retirement.

"There's one big reason, and it's a personal reason," Gailey said Wednesday, explaining his decision to return. "I want to win a championship."

After two decades as an NFL assistant and head coach, Gailey still is chasing that first Super Bowl title. He coached in four Super Bowls (three with the Denver Broncos, one with the Pittsburgh Steelers) and lost them all. In some respects, he can relate to two of his star players, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and Brandon Marshall. They've played a combined 21 seasons and neither has appeared in the postseason.

Remember the great "gaps" line from the original "Rocky" movie? Rocky, explaining his attraction to Adrian, tells Paulie, "She's got gaps, I got gaps. Together, we fill gaps."

The Jets have gaps, too, especially their leaders on offense. They're chasing championship glory -- the old coordinator, the kicked-around quarterback and the well-traveled receiver. At 8-5, they're in position to claim a wild-card berth.

"But as Todd likes to say, 'We haven't done anything yet,'" Gailey said.

Gailey has done a terrific job with the Jets' offense, which is ranked No. 9 in total yards. That's no small accomplishment, considering they haven't fielded a top-10 offense since 1998. He was a curious choice by Bowles, considering they had no previous relationship, but Gailey was recommended by a mutual friend, George Edwards, the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator. Bowles identified Gailey as his coordinator choice a year before he was hired to replace Rex Ryan."I completely thought I would not coach again," Gailey said. "Coaching is not my life. I've got other things going on in life. I had no idea that I would [return] until this right opportunity presented itself."

It was a calculated risk by Bowles, considering Gailey's time away from the game. Two years is a long time, and he had re-familiarize himself with personnel and schemes around the league. Some people outside the organization questioned the choice, wondering if the game had passed him by."You could make that assumption, that he's been out of the game and it has changed, but I didn't get that," wide receiver Eric Decker said. "I never had that mindset because of the success he's had in the other places he's been."

One place was Dallas, where the Jets play on Saturday night. Gailey was the Cowboys' head coach in 1998 and 1999, finishing 10-6 and 8-8, respectively, and making the playoffs in both seasons. It wasn't good enough for Jerry Jones, who fired him.

Three days from his return to Dallas, Gailey was asked to describe his experience under Jones.

"It was interesting," he said. "He's a hands-on guy. He's probably the most hands-on guy I've been around as far as an owner goes. It was different, but he was not unfair. He didn't come in and change meetings. All those horror stories you heard, they're not true. He treated us well and allowed me to do my job. It just didn't work out."

>      http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york-jets/post/_/id/57133/jets-oc-chan-gailey-explains-why-he-unretired-to-win-a-championship

[Charlie Brown]

Thanks for the articles.

First the articles definitely show Gailey was in fact Bowles choice alone and not foisted upon him by anyone.  Second the choice shows Bowles wasn't listening to conventional thinking he wanted the best OC he find which is refreshing.

And IMO Gailey is as good an OC as we have had since Charlie Weiss and the numbers are bearing that out...

[Savage69]

Thanks for the articles.

First the articles definitely show Gailey was in fact Bowles choice alone and not foisted upon him by anyone.  Second the choice shows Bowles wasn't listening to conventional thinking he wanted the best OC he find which is refreshing.

And IMO Gailey is as good an OC as we have had since Charlie Weiss and the numbers are bearing that out...

You forget who the QB coach was in 1998-1999 and the OC in 2000 plus the OC when the Fins and Chad won the East in the Brady less season of 2008.. Dan Henning was that guy he also was the OC when the Panthers made the Bowl in 2003 with Jake Delhomme as the QB and lost to the Pats 32-29..

[kelly]

A few takeaways from the New York Jets' 19-16 win over the Dallas Cowboys Saturday night :

1. When it came to winning time, the Jets made clutch plays, overcoming three quarters of sloppy football. They were resilient and resourceful. They made smart adjustments on the fly. They played good situational football. They received clutch contributions from bench players. Simply put, they finished.The Jets were a micro-version of the New England Patriots in the fourth quarter Saturday. Obviously, they'll have to play that way for more than 15 minutes next Sunday against the actual Patriots, who have a habit of beating the Jets with the formula they created and perfected over the years.

Todd Bowles' team hasn't reached that level yet, but the Jets are moving in the right direction, based on how they’ve played during this four-game winning streak. They’re learning how to win close games, a necessary trait in December and January.“We were poised and we learned from our mistakes in the past,” Bowles said. “We grew as a team. We didn’t blow the game like we did (against) Buffalo. We didn’t blow it like we did in New England. We continued what we learned from the Giants, and we came out and played a good second half.”

2. The biggest oddity of the fourth-quarter comeback: The Jets didn't use a single timeout in the second half. As we've seen in previous games, most notably the first meeting against the Patriots, Bowles doesn't mind holding on to his timeouts. He didn't stop the clock before the two-minute warning, letting the Cowboys run off 40 seconds before the game-tying field goal. Bowles' strategy worked to perfection, but it's still unusual for a coach to leave a game with three unused timeouts.

3. The Jets really struggled to run the ball, averaging only 2.8 yards per carry on 26 attempts. The Cowboys aren't a load-the-box team, but they created problems with their quickness upfront. They had six tackles behind the line and six quarterback hits. The Jets tend to have problems with quick, 4-3 fronts, and they close out the season with a couple of 4-3 teams, the Patriots and Buffalo Bills.

4. The lack of a receiving threat at tight end was glaring against the Cowboys' two-deep zone, which did a good job of limiting big plays to Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker. The downside to a two-deep is the vulnerability in the middle of the field, leaving open space for a pass-catching tight end. The Jets don't have that guy. Basically, Quincy Enunwa is the Jets' version of a tight end, and they started going to him in the second half. Keep an eye on Enunwa; he's gaining confidence and could be a factor in the final two games.

5. Interestingly, Bilal Powell -- not Chris Ivory -- got the ball on the final three plays as the Jets positioned themselves to set up the game-winning field goal. Ivory has fumbled three times this season, losing two. Was that a factor? Perhaps. A back injury to tight end Kellen Davis also may have forced them to go with a different personnel package.

6. Rontez Miles was a beast on special teams; he had three solo tackles.

7. The Jets were outgained 133-73 on the ground. Not good at all.

8. Backup middle linebacker Erin Henderson was a terrific free-agent addition. How many teams could lose their starting "Mike" linebacker (David Harris) and insert a seven-year veteran with 33 games of starting experience? "It's not easy to step in for a player like Dave, the leader of our defense, somebody who calls the signals and calls the plays, week in, week out," Henderson said after the game. "You never know how the other guys are going to respond when they see a guy like that go down. My job is to make everybody feel comfortable. They know I'm more than capable of getting the job done." Harris missed the final three quarters with a lower-back contusion, according to the Jets. Bowles didn't give a prognosis.

9. Judging from his body language, Antonio Cromartie doesn't seem particularly thrilled returning kickoffs. He runs like he's afraid to get hurt.

10. Dee Milliner, relegated to a special-teams-only role, left with a hamstring injury. In other news, Donald Trump has a big mouth.

>   http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york-jets/post/_/id/57253/jets-display-patriots-like-traits-albeit-for-only-one-quarter

[kelly]

The Patriots have fielded one of the NFL’s top defenses this season. While they rank both 6th overall and 6^th in points allowed, the Pats are tied with the Broncos for most sacks in football with 47.

“These guys are very good. They play well together, they know what’s going on,” said offensive coordinator Chan Gailey. “The linebackers kind of make it all happen. They’re the ones that kind of orchestrate the whole thing up front and create a lot of problems for a quarterback. They’re what 6th in the league now? It’s the best overall defense I can remember in New England for a while.”

In the Jets’ 30-23 October loss to the Patriots,  Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for  295 yards and 2 TDs. But he also had a few passes batted down, lost a fumble on a scramble and the Jets converted with touchdowns on just two of their four trips inside the 20. But during the Jets’ four-game win streak, Fitzpatrick has completed 64.8% of his passes with 10 TDs and 1 INTs while averaging 307.3 yards per game.

“He’s pretty calm to be honest with you. It’s hard to ruffle his feathers. It’s really hard,” Gailey said. “He’s trying to think about what we can do next and how we can attack the next series.”Speaking of difficult, the Jets have to try to slow down Pats TE Rob Gronkowski in Week 16. Gronk, who was targeted 16 times in the Pats’ narrow triumph over the Jets, finished with a career-high 11 receptions for 108 yards with a TD.

“This guy lines up in-line at tight end. Then you look at it and (he) lines up as a No. 1 receiver,” said defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers. “He’s all over the place and that creates matchup problems - it creates a lot of problems. A headache.”The Jets lost safety Calvin Pryor in the 2^nd half of that first meeting and Pryor figures to play an important role Sunday.“I don’t know that one person alone will stop Gronkowski,” Rodgers said. “He’s a tremendous player, so we’ve got a lot of different things we’ve got to try. But he’s definitely an important part of our game plan.”

>      http://www.newyorkjets.com/news/article-6/Gailey-Impressed-with-Patriots-Defense/9d1d26c7-08a9-4392-93fb-ca9aad44ecd0

[kelly]

Rich Cimini ESPN Staff Writer 

The Jets went through three offensive coordinators in six years under Rex Ryan, who usually gave evasive and lukewarm end-of-the-year evaluations before firing them. Not so with Todd Bowles, who raved about Chan Gailey: "I want him here, I want him back. He's been great. I never thought I'd lose him unless he gets a head job. He's been great for us. I love him to death." Gailey, 63, who came out of retirement to join Bowles' staff, said he's "up for" at least another season.

>     http://espn.go.com/nfl/team/_/name/nyj/new-york-jets

[kelly]

— George Edwards won’t take credit for it.

But it was his friendships with Todd Bowles and Chan Gailey that helped pave the way for a coaching union that already has produced big results for the Jets (10-5).“As Todd was filling out a staff and looking for an offensive coordinator, I told him about my experiences working with Chan,” Edwards, the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive coordinator, said Thursday in a phone interview with Newsday. “He had an interest and ended up talking to him and that’s kind of how it unfolded.”Other suitors came calling, but it was Bowles’ pitch that won over Gailey. To outsiders, it seemed like an unlikely pairing at first, given Gailey’s semiretirement and two years away from coaching. But now it makes perfect sense.

On Sunday, Gailey will return to Buffalo for the first time since his final game as the Bills’ head coach in 2012. He’ll step onto the field at Ralph Wilson Stadium in a new color — Jets green — but he’ll be the same coach he always was.

Will it be emotional ?

“No,” he said straight-faced. “It’s just another game.”

Then he added with a laugh: “If we’re going to talk about all the places I’ve been at, we’re going to have a long list.”A victory over the Bills will earn the Jets a wild-card playoff spot and bring Gailey one step closer to the goal he set in December 2014, when he finally made up his mind to return to the NFL.“I just had some personal reasons why I wanted to come back and give it another go and try to win a championship,” said Gailey, 63. “ . . . Sometimes when you’re gone, you think you’re forgotten. And knowing that maybe you weren’t forgotten did have some impetus into [a return to coaching].”

Gailey said he’s “up for” a return to the Jets in 2016 but noted that it’s not his call. Bowles, however, made it clear that he expects Gailey by his side in Year 2. “I wanted him here. I want him back,” he said. “ . . . He’s been great for us. And I love him to death.”Gailey said Edwards talked to him about Bowles and told him “what he thought of him and how much he liked him and what kind of guy he was.” And that’s as far as Edwards’ involvement went.

“I have no magic wand,” joked Edwards, whom Gailey first hired in 1998, when he was the coach of the Cowboys.

In 2010, Gailey, then the coach of the Bills, again hired Edwards to be his linebackers coach.“They’re very similar in a lot of their philosophies," Edwards said. "There’s a connection there and they’ve been able to have success. …I was blessed to be able to have the opportunity to work with both of them. They’re both good men, good fathers, good husbands off the football field. As far as football coaches, they’re very similar in that they’re going to work to get the most of what they have.”

The Jets are ranked eighth in total offense. Brandon Marshall has a franchise-record 101 catches and a career-high 13 touchdowns. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has a personal-best 29 touchdown passes (tying Vinny Testaverde’s single-season franchise record).And that’s no surprise to Edwards. “[Chan] can get the most ability out of the guys that he has at a specific time,” said Edwards, who coached in Miami with Bowles from 2008-09. “One thing he doesn’t do is pigeonhole himself as, this is the offense that we’re going to run. He’ll look at the talent level that he has and put them in the best position to hopefully be successful.”

> http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/jets/chan-gailey-is-glad-he-returned-to-coaching-with-jets-1.11281982

[kelly]

Damien Woody : 'Chan Gailey Did a Masterful Job'

ESPN Analyst & Former Jets OL Reviews the 2015 Campaign

 

video..

> http://www.newyorkjets.com/videos/videos/Damien-Woody-Chan-Gailey-Did-a-Masterful-Job/f07d44c6-0102-4af0-b03c-acc297ff8529

[Bugg]

One hossanah held. Being better than Brian Schottenheimer is setting the bar really low. 

There were too many games where it looked like the offense had been introduced to each other that morning in the parking lot,too many games where the offense did NOTHING in the 1st half,and  too many games Fitz was directed to win the game in the 2nd half because of those things.And as to the last thing, because Gailey's offensive game plans often sucked balls.  2 Bills games and  the Eagles and Titans games were a joke. 

There is no hurry up. In every loss often down 2 scores Gailey's offense ran like they had all day. 

Crazy idea-all Rex Ryan does is 1. stop the run and 2. blitz. Yet Chan Gailey on 2 occasions spent the first half of both Bills games looking like this was a complete mystery. Which is why the Jets did not have a playoff game this week. 

Fitz had a very good year. Perhaps his familiarity with Gailey was a big help. But Gailey is very old  retread in a young man's game. 

[kelly]

FILM ROOM : Pennington on Gailey’s Spread

Jets Excelled in 4 & 5-WR Sets, Spreading the Field & Attacking Through the Air

 

video..

>   http://www.newyorkjets.com/videos/videos/FILM-ROOM-Pennington-on-Gailey%E2%80%99s-Spread/e0425bf3-8532-4887-a657-634bd25432ea

[kelly]

Film Room : Pennington on Gailey’s Run Scheme

Chad Pennington and Eric Allen Break Down How the Jets Offensive Coordinator Uses the Spread Look to Attack on the Ground

 

video..

>     http://www.newyorkjets.com/videos/videos/Film-Room-Pennington-on-Gailey%E2%80%99s-Run-Scheme/f904e9a2-5516-40d4-8e33-87ed51a52345

[Mainejet]

Yeah, I must say I did not think much of the hire. But Gailey has done a nice job building a little offense. Don't get me wrong, this is not all world, but it's a decent offense.

The real challenge is to see if this offense can take on a legitimately great defense and still be productive. That is something I did not see at all in 2015, the competition was far too weak. Also, if they lose Bilal Powell I believe they will take a step back. Therefore, I think resigning him is a must.