Mangini reflects on Jets tenure: 'Spygate is a big regret'

Eric Mangini is currently a coach without a team.

Known primarily for his three-year tenure as head coach of the New York Jets, the man once dubbed "Mangenius" for his immediate success looks back on that time with both fondness and regret.

Speaking with Brian Costello of the New York Post, Mangini revealed that he never planned for Spygate to reach the levels it did.

A former disciple of Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots, Mangini famously left the organization for the lead job with the rival Jets. In the opening game of his second season in New York, Mangini warned team security that New England might be videotaping its signals. His general manager reported it to the league and the Patriots were disciplined.

"Spygate is a big regret," Mangini told Costello. "It wasn't supposed to go down the way it went down."

The scandal cost the Patriots a first-round draft pick and $750,000 in fines. It also damaged Mangini's relationship with Belichick beyond repair.

"I cared about him. I didn't want to hurt him. I didn't want to hurt the Patriots," Mangini said. "They were a huge part of my life, too, and the Kraft family. The Krafts were always great to me. It wasn't like I was thinking, 'I really want to get these guys.' My thought was I don't want to put my team at a competitive disadvantage, no matter how small."

Mangini also spoke to the Post about his regrets on drafting Vernon Gholston in the first round, and about being opposed to New York's experiment with Brett Favre, one that was approved anyway.