FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, heavily criticized for his role in last season's 5-12 disappointment, vows to improve in 2025.
"Absolutely, I have to look in the mirror, and I have to be a better owner," Johnson said Monday after introducing new coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey. "And I'm trying to be better."
Johnson, 77, got more involved than usual last season. For the first time in 25 years of ownership, he fired his head coach during the season, dismissing Robert Saleh in Week 6 after three-plus seasons. Six weeks later, he fired then-GM Joe Douglas.
The Saleh move backfired, as the Jets went 3-9 under interim coach Jeff Ulbrich.
Frustrated by the losing, Johnson, who called it the best roster he has ever had, played a role in some personnel decisions, according to sources. That created frustration for the front office and coaching staff, sources said.
When asked if he's planning to be more hands-off in 2025, Johnson alluded to a story by The Athletic that reported dysfunction within the organization.
"You don't believe those reports, do you?" Johnson shot back.
"It was a lot of exaggeration and hyperbole, it really was," he added. "You really have to take all that stuff with a grain of salt because you don't know how much -- nobody knows how involved I was.
"Yes, I want Aaron Glenn to coach the team. I want the general manager to manage the assets and the players, and I'll take the owner's position."
The Jets made the playoffs in six of Johnson's first 11 seasons as owner, but they're currently mired in a 14-year drought -- the longest-active slump in North American sports.
Asked how he can improve as an owner, Johnson referenced the hiring of Glenn and Mougey -- "the two leaders of this team," he called them.
"That's part of it," he said. "The second is just to have -- I've got to have patience or whatever. I've got to let them evolve in these positions, which I think they will. I think it'll be quick, but I think they'll evolve."
