Tag: Jets News

49ers have chance to correct front office gaffe in free agency

The 49ers do need CB help…

The San Francisco 49ers front office during general manager’s John Lynch’s tenure has had some pretty significant missteps to go along with a bevy of home runs that have allowed the club to remain competitive when healthy for the last six seasons.

While gaffes like the Trey Lance trade stand out, there’s another, under-the-radar mistake Lynch and the front office actually have a chance to correct in the 2025 offseason.

Former New York Jets cornerback DJ Reed is set to hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent when the new league year opens in the middle of March.

Reed originally entered the NFL as a fifth-round pick by the 49ers in the 2018 draft. It looked after his second season like Reed was working his way into a regular role in the 49ers’ secondary as a versatile safety. In the 2020 offseason he suffered a chest injury San Francisco deemed to be season-ending. They waived him with an injury designation, meaning he’d revert to season-ending IR for San Francisco as long as he cleared waivers.

“That’s a tough one for us,” Lynch said at the time in a press conference on Zoom. “The earliest we might’ve had D.J. back, was early November, but it’s a four-to-six month injury.”

The 49ers have done this a handful of times without issue, but in 2020 it backfired. When Reed hit waivers, the Seattle Seahawks pounced. Reed wound up playing in 10 games that year and a career-high 560 snaps for the Seahawks. It also proved to be a breakout campaign for Reed who moved to cornerback full time.

While the 49ers had trouble piecing together a secondary in the years after Reed’s exit, he thrived. Now he’s a free agent and San Francisco could use a third CB to play alongside Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green. There’s an opportunity for Lynch and the 49ers front office to bring Reed back after his unceremonious exit before the 2020 campaign.

Of course, Reed just turned 28 and has been an excellent starting CB with the Jets for the three years after his two-year Seattle tenure. He has two interceptions and 32 pass breakups the last three seasons to go along with 220 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 1.0 sacks.

He may get priced out of what the 49ers are willing to spend on a third starting CB, but they should absolutely be in the market to try and correct a mistake they made in letting Reed out the door in the first place.

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Jets to hire ex-NFL defensive back Chris Harris (no, not that one)

The Jets will hire ex-NFL defensive back Chris Harris as their DBs coach and passing game coordinator. He’s not to be confused with CHJR.

Former NFL defensive back Chris Harris just landed a new coaching position. No, not CHJR.

The New York Jets hired former NFL safety Chris Harris, 42, as their new defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator. He spent eight years in the NFL as a defensive back, spending time with four teams.

Harris then switched to coaching after hanging up his cleats and the Jets mark his fifth stop as a coach. Before landing in New York, he previously served as the Tennessee Titans’ defensive pass game coordinator and cornerbacks coach.

The Jets’ Harris is not to be confused with former NFL cornerback Chris Harris Jr., 35. CHJR played cornerback from 2011-2022, spending the majority of his career with the Denver Broncos. He won Super Bowl 50 with the Broncos and earned four Pro Bowl nods and three All-Pro selections during his time in Denver.

The younger Harris might become a coach one day, but it’s not the former Broncos cornerback that was just hired by the Jets.

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Broncos lose yet another coach (but a new hire could soon follow)

Chris Banjo is set to leave the Broncos to become the Jets’ ST coordinator. Meanwhile, Darren Rizzi might be in line to get Denver’s ST job.

The Denver Broncos have lost yet another member of Sean Payton’s coaching staff.

Broncos assistant special teams coach Chris Banjo is set to leave the team to become the new special teams coordinator of the New York Jets, according to a report from KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis.

Denver now has five coaching staff openings.

Banjo, 34, was a safety and special teams ace in the NFL from 2013-2022, spending time with four teams, including a stint with the New Orleans Saints under Payton. When Payton became the Broncos’ head coach in 2023, he hired Banjo as an assistant coach right after the ex-safety retired from playing.

Denver has now lost all three special teams coaches from last season. Mike Westhoff retired last November, Ben Kotwica was fired earlier this month and Banjo has now left for a promotion elsewhere.

The good news for the Broncos is that ex-Saints interim head coach/special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi could be joining Payton’s staff soon. Kellen Moore is believed to be a leading candidate to get the head coach job in New Orleans, which would make Rizzi available for Denver.

If Rizzi does not get the HC job with the Saints, he will likely land with the Broncos and Klis has reported that assistant Phil Galiano could join Rizzi in Denver. Rizzi potentially landing with the Broncos might not be finalized until after New Orleans makes its hire official.

We will track all of Denver’s coaching staff moves on Broncos Wire.

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Darren Mougey had quite a football journey before leaving Broncos for Jets

Darren Mougey went from QB to WR to scouting intern to GM. Quite a football journey!

Darren Mougey’s football journey is quite a story.

He played quarterback in high school and then attended San Diego State. After two years at the college level as a QB, Mougey converted to wide receiver. He went on to catch 66 passes for 805 yards and six touchdowns in his final two seasons with the Aztecs.

Mougey then went undrafted in 2009 and signed with the Atlanta Falcons as a college free agent. After failing to make Atlanta’s active roster, Mougey went to training camp with the Arizona Cardinals in 2010, but he didn’t make their 53-man roster, either.

Mougey was then out of football for a year before joining the Denver Broncos as a scouting intern in 2012. He quickly worked his way up from there, going from intern to personnel/scouting assistant to college/pro personnel scout to area scout to assistant director of college scouting to director of player personnel to assistant general manager, a role he held from 2022-2024.

Mougey has now received yet another promotion, this time with the New York Jets as their newly-appointed general manager. Only 39 years old, Mougey is still relatively early in his football career, but his resume is already an impressive account of a scout working his way to the top.

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Report: Broncos will lose a top executive to Jets

The Broncos are expected to lose executive Darren Mougey to the Jets this offseason, according to Josina Anderson.

The Denver Broncos are on the verge of losing the righthand man of general manager George Paton.

Broncos assistant GM Darren Mougey is set to be hired by the New York Jets as their new GM, according to a report from NFL insider Josina Anderson.

“A high-level league source tells me Denver #Broncos assistant GM Darren Mougey is getting the #Jets GM job,” Anderson tweeted on Friday.

Mougey, 39, joined the Broncos as a scouting intern in 2012 and he worked his way up to assistant GM. This is what Paton had to say about Mougey during a pre-draft press conference in 2022:

I didn’t know Darren when I took the job, but he quickly impressed, and he shined. His attention to detail, his work ethic, his knowledge of the league and his knowledge of the pro and college [levels]. He has a great pulse of what’s going on out there. The best thing he does is he is a great manager of people, and he has a great demeanor throughout the building while dealing with the coaches, players, and agents out there.

This offseason, I was pulled in a lot of different directions with the coaching search and the trade. There’s a lot of stuff that comes up. Darren picked up the slack and we didn’t miss a beat. He’s really vital to our organization, and we’re lucky to have him. He’s had a number of teams come after him the past year and he’s stayed. I can’t thank Darren enough for that. I think he’s a rising star in the NFL, and again, we’re lucky to have him. 

Mougey served as director of player personnel in 2021 before being promoted to assistant GM in 2022. Over the last four years, Denver’s draft classes have been highlighted by quarterback Bo Nix, pass rusher Jonah Elliss, wide receiver Marvin Mims, cornerback Riley Moss, pass rusher Nik Bonitto, cornerback Pat Surtain, guard Quinn Meinerz and pass rusher Jonathon Cooper.

Mougey’s departure will be a big loss for Denver’s front office. The Jets might not stop there, either, as New York also wants to poach Broncos assistant special teams coach Chris Banjo. Denver could soon have two staff positions to fill ahead of 2025 NFL free agency.

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Broncos might lose an executive to Jets this offseason

Broncos assistant general manager Darren Mougey interviewed for the Jets’ open GM position on Saturday.

The Denver Broncos have several coaches who are candidates to leave the team for promotions this offseason, and now an executive has been added to the list.

Broncos assistant general manager Darren Mougey has interviewed for the New York Jets‘ general manager position, the Jets announced Saturday.

Mougey, 39, played quarterback at San Diego State before switching to wide receiver. He spent time with the Atlanta Falcons and Arizona Cardinals from 2009-2010 before hanging up his cleats to transition to scouting.

Mougey joined the Broncos in 2012 as a scouting intern and he’s had an impressive rise since then. Mougey went from an intern to a personnel and scouting assistant (2013) to a college and pro personnel scout (2014) to an area scout (2015-2019) to assistant director of college scouting (2020) to director of player personnel (2021) to assistant GM (2022-present).

Mougey is currently just below Denver GM George Paton. It would be a notable loss for the Broncos if Mougey becomes New York’s GM in 2025.

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Jerry Jeudy had a funny reaction to reason why Broncos-Jets trade was nixed

Jets owner Woody Johnson nixed a Jerry Jeudy trade to New York because of the WR’s Madden rating. This is how Jeudy responded to the report.

Earlier this week, Dianna Russini, Zack Rosenblatt and Michael Silver released a wild report in The Athletic about New York Jets owner Woody Johnson nixing a trade with the Denver Broncos earlier this year.

In the story, Jets general manager Joe Douglas was said to be “deep in negotiations” with Broncos general manager George Paton on a trade that would have sent wide receiver Jerry Jeudy to New York this spring.

Here’s what happened next, according to The Athletic:

The Broncos felt a deal was near. Then, abruptly, it all fell apart. In Denver’s executive offices, they couldn’t believe the reason why.

Douglas told the Broncos that Johnson didn’t want to make the trade because the owner felt Jeudy’s player rating in “Madden NFL,” the popular video game, wasn’t high enough, according to multiple league sources. The Broncos ultimately traded the receiver to the Cleveland Browns.

Jeudy had a Madden rating of 83 overall in last year’s version of the popular NFL video game. His rating improved to 84 this year.

Jeudy took to Twitter/X with a funny response to the report:

Chad “OchoCinco” Johnson is a Madden ratings adjuster (yes, that’s an actual position). The former NFL receiver indicated that the deal getting nixed worked out for Jeudy in the end:

Johnson promised a big ratings increase next year if Jeudy finishes the season strong:

Jeudy later said on a Cleveland radio station that he thinks the report is funny, but fake news.

For what it’s worth, the Broncos have pushed back on The Athletic report through KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis, who tweeted on Thursday that “from the Broncos perspective, talks broke down due to draft compensation and nothing more.”

Jeudy, 25, has hauled in a career-high 70 receptions for a career-best 1,052 receiving yards and four touchdowns through 14 games with the Browns this season.

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Report: Jets tried to trade a WR to Broncos this spring

The Jets offered Allen Lazard and a “Day 2 draft pick” to the Broncos for Jerry Jeudy, but Woody Johnson nixed the deal, per The Athletic.

Before the Denver Broncos agreed to trade wide receiver Jerry Jeudy to the Cleveland Browns this spring, they received a better offer (in terms of draft picks) from another AFC team.

Former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas — who was fired this week — offered the Broncos a “Day 2 draft pick” and wide receiver Allen Lazard in exchange for Jeudy, according to a report from Zack Rosenblatt and Dianna Russini of The Athletic.

The second day of the draft features the second and third rounds, so that would have been better compensation for Jeudy than what the Broncos ended up getting from the Browns (fifth- and sixth-round picks).

The Jets deal was vetoed by New York co-owner Woody Johnson, according to the Rosenblatt and Russini report.

Getting a higher draft pick for Jeudy would have been nice, but Denver also would have inherited Lazard’s contract. The receiver, turning 29 next month, is scheduled to have base salaries of $11 million in 2025 and 2026.

After Johnson nixed the trade, the Broncos later traded Troy Franklin and Devaughn Vele in the NFL draft. Those receivers will have team-friendly contracts over the next four years with the highest cap hit among them being Franklin’s $1.4 million charge in 2027.

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Woody Johnson wanted to bench Aaron Rodgers after Broncos beat Jets

After an ugly loss to the Broncos in Week 4, Jets co-owner Woody Johnson suggested benching quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The New York Jets had a meltdown following their 10-9 loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 4.

Following that loss, Jets co-owner Woody Johnson wanted to bench veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who struggled against the Broncos’ defense.

One day after the loss, Johnson held a meeting with team brass and “suggested to the coaches that they bench Aaron Rodgers in favor of Tyrod Taylor because he felt Rodgers’ performance was holding the team back,” according to a report from The Athletic‘s Zack Rosenblatt and Dianna Russini. The report has since been confirmed by ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio. Jets coaches and general manager Joe Douglas talked Johnson out of it.

Two months later, Douglas has been fired. New York is 3-8 and it would take a near-miracle to reach the playoffs this season. Rodgers has completed 63.4% of his passes for 2,442 yards with 17 touchdowns against seven interceptions through 11 games this fall.

It appears that the Jets never bounced back from that Broncos game.

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49ers Week 1 opponent dealing with contract drama of their own

The 49ers aren’t the only team with contract drama!

The San Francisco 49ers aren’t the only team dealing with contract drama entering the second week of the preseason.

While the 49ers deal with a holdout from left tackle Trent Williams, and the mess that has become wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s hold-in, their Week 1 opponent is dealing with a contract issue of their own.

The New York Jets acquired defensive end Haason Reddick from the Philadelphia Eagles on March 29 for a conditional 2026 draft pick. They’ve yet to come to an agreement on a long-term contract extension, leading to a holdout from the two-time Pro Bowler. He has now officially requested a trade according to CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. The Jets swiftly responded with a statement from general manager Joe Douglas, indicating they won’t trade him, and they expect him to be in training camp.

Reddick is entering the final year of a three-year contract he originally signed with the Eagles before the 2022 campaign.

This is part of the reason why Aiyuk wasn’t more quickly dealt by the 49ers. They couldn’t just send him to whichever team gave him the best offer because the deal would be contingent on Aiyuk agreeing to sign a long-term contract. In that case the acquiring club would avoid a situation like the Jets have with Reddick.

While it isn’t good to have any kind of contract drama this late into camp, the 49ers can find at least a little solace that their Week 1 opponent is also working through similar headaches.

The Jets and 49ers are slated to face off on Monday Night Football to close out Week 1 of the regular season. Kickoff from Levi’s Stadium is scheduled for 5:15pm Pacific Time.

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