Darren Mougey Situation Reminiscent of 2014 Jets Under Idzik

Darren Mougey’s first season as Jets GM is already shaping up to be one of the most forgettable in franchise history.  At 0-5, the Jets have the NFL’s worst record while showing no signs of improvement.  Now there’s one decision Mougey will have to make before the NFL’s trade deadline that’s reminiscent of former GM John Idizk.

Like Idzik, Mougey is at the helm during a season that was lost well before Halloween, and has a young quarterback he’s trying to evaluate  in Justin Fields.  Back in 2014, Idzik oversaw a club that started its season 1-5 as they tried to develop and evaluate a young Geno Smith.  The problem?  Smith didn’t have much to work with in terms of pass catchers.  That’s not to say Smith had nothing to work with, but Eric Decker and Jeremy Kerley weren’t exactly keeping opponents up at night.

And now there’s Mougey.  He didn’t draft Justin Fields as Idzik did Smith, but he did hand him a 2-year contract worth $30 million guaranteed dollars.  For that, Fields hasn’t produced a win, and has thrown just one touchdown pass before the contest hit garbage time.

His first touchdown pass of the year put the Jets up 9-7 against the Steelers in week one.  Fields’ three TD passes since then have all come with the Jets trailing by at least two touchdowns when defenses had taken their foot off the gas.  Two of those three came yesterday with the Jets trailing by 23 and 24 points.

But in fairness to Fields, he has just one receiver opponents have to respect in Garrett Wilson.  Beyond that it’s Allen Lazard, Josh Reynolds and invisible rookie Arian Smith.  That trio has combined for 13 catches and 1 score through five contests.

Understanding that Smith needed another option, Idzik went out and traded for Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin in exchange for a day three pick.  It didn’t do much for Smith or the Jets offense (Idzik’s moves never did), but you can understand why he did what he did.  Will Mougey follow suit?

Even as Mason Taylor has begun to emerge, adding a boundary receiver would go a long way in aiding Fields.  Mougey should actually be considering a few moves to add some draft assets, but if he chooses to make any additions, targeting another receiver to aid Fields wouldn’t be the worst idea.

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