GM candidate Mike Maccagnan gets 2nd Jets intervew

The Jets might be narrowing down their exhaustive search for a general manager to replace the infamous John Idzik.

The team has interviewed seven candidates for the position, and have now extended a second invitation to Texans director of college scouting Mike Maccagnan. Usually when a team sends out a second invitation for an interview, it means they are close to making a hire.

"A league source who is familiar with Maccagnan said he is a very thorough, competent person who will be able to work well with a head coach and others in the organization. The source said Maccagnan has a solid plan on how to build a team, something the Jets surely saw in the interview," (NYPost 01/08/2015).

While there isn't much known about Maccagnan, we do know that he has strong ties to Charley Casserly who has been consulting Woody Johnson on this search. It has been speculated by numerous news outlets that Casserly is hoping to convince Johnson to settle for a Maccagnan/Marrone ticket, but that belief might change since Marrone reportedly bombed his interview.

If the Jets do hire Maccagnan it will be very interesting to see if he does go ahead and hire Marrone, in spite of his poor showing in an interview. Apparently Maccagnan knew Marrone when he played for him at the London Monarchs of the World League back in 1991, and they are reportedly close.

This could be a dangerous situation for the Jets, because the word on the street about Marrone has been less than flattering, with former players and assistants calling him "Selfish" and "greedy." Will Maccagnan be willing to go ahead and hire and work with another head coach? That is a big question that has to be answered. The Jets just cleaned house after a bad head coach/GM forced marriage in Rex Ryan and Idzik. Another big question that will have to be answered is the status of Terry Bradway. Believe it or not he is still there. When pressed about Bradway's job security, Johnson said it would be up to the next general manager. Since Maccagnan is steeped in personnel, he may not have a use for Bradway -- a good thing if that comes to pass.

If Maccagnan doesn't work out in his second interview, the Jets could still turn to their other options, including Trent Kirchner, who is the pro personnel director for the Seahawks.