Recent report shows the Jets have an all or nothing season in 2024 from the top down

The New York Jets started their season with a tough 32-19 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on the road. But the Jets better get their season back on track, because it feels like an all or nothing year for everyone involved.

Over the weekend, NFL Network's insider Ian Rapoport reported that general manager Joe Douglas is in the last year of his deal.

^{"Joe Douglas (is) in an increasingly unique position. Sources say Douglas, who signed with Gang Green to great fanfare in June of 2019, is entering the final year of his contract, a rare GM who did not sign an extension prior to his deal expiring. All sides are comfortable with this position, sources say."}

Publicly, all parties might say they are ok with this situation, but it obviously generates extra pressure for Joe Douglas.

After a disappointing season in 2023, especially on offense after Aaron Rodgers got hurt, the Jets need to give an answer fast. It's unclear what needs to happen for Douglas to get a contract extension, but this team is in a timeline where a deep playoff run is to be expected.

Joe Douglas signed with the Jets back in 2019 after four seasons as the Philadelphia Eagles' vice president of player personnel. He had also worked as a scout for the Baltimore Ravens and director of college scouting for the Chicago Bears.

Since being hired, Joe Douglas has had some really good draft picks — Quinnen Williams, Sauce Gardner, and Garrett Wilson are the best ones. But he also had some costly mistakes, especially the decision to take quarterback Zach Wilson with the second overall pick in 2021.

The lack of solid quarterback play has derailed the rest of the team, which motivated them to trade for Aaron Rodgers last season.

A lame duck season for Joe Douglas shows how tough a situation this is. Rodgers is under contract through 2025, but he will be 41 years old by December, and it's pretty much a year-to-year situation.

If this leadership structure doesn't have positive results in 2024, it's entirely possible that the combo of GM Joe Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers could be elsewhere in 2025. It's on them to put everything together over the next few weeks, without much margin for error left.

Related: Jets show their glaring weakness on defense that will have other teams on their schedule salivating