Multiple reports confirmed that the Jets added John Beck to their coaching staff Wednesday, but his role wasn’t exactly clear. Beck has been Zach Wilson’s personal coach and has his own business, and the Jets already have a quarterbacks coach in Rob Calabrese and a senior offensive specialist in Matt Cavanaugh.
But after Wilson met with Beck during the Jets’ Week 6 bye, Robert Saleh concocted the idea to just hire Beck so he could be closer to the team, learn the language of the playbook and help the rest of the quarterback room.
“[Wilson] went to see John and we were just talking and I was like, ‘Well, why not just bring him here?'” Saleh said Tuesday. “So we just started talking about it and one thing leads to another and now there’s just a really good plan for the rest of the year.”
Beck is a full-time staff member working exclusively with the quarterbacks. He played in the Shanahan-style offense during his NFL days with Washington, so Saleh felt comfortable bringing him into the fold.
Saleh added that Beck’s hiring wasn’t a critique of the other members of the coaching staff, particularly Calabrese and Cavanaugh. He just wanted to make sure that everyone who supports Wilson would be under one roof and using the same language throughout the year.
“It’s not an indictment on anyone whatsoever,” Saleh said. “More and more, you’re starting to see players have specialists, especially coaches… With John, the idea was, well, shoot, he talks to [Wilson] all the time, he’s a young man and he’s an information gatherer. Why not bring him in to consolidate all that information to help him simplify his game and, at the same time, keep everything tight with regard to his mechanics?”
Beck started after the bye week during the Jets’ abysmal 54-13 loss to the Patriots. Wilson suffered a PCL sprain and was replaced by Mike White midway through the first half. The Jets rebounded well with White under center against the Bengals in a 34-31 comeback win.
Whether Beck remains on the team after the 2021 season will be discussed at the end of the year, Saleh said, but it can’t hurt to add the former NFL quarterback to the staff during Wilson’s rookie season.
“It’s a win-win for everybody,” Saleh said.
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