Bowles: 'I need to be heavily involved' in Jets' offense next season
Todd Bowles is no longer going hands off.
The New York Jets defensive-minded head coach is planning to be much more involved in his team's offensive strategy for the 2017 season, despite having never coached a day on that side of the ball in his career.
"I've been in meeting rooms up until this point, and I will continue to be involved," Bowles said Tuesday, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini. "I'll be probably heavily more involved than I've been since I've been here."
The Jets' offense said goodbye to former offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, who retired this offseason. Bowles had let Gailey have full control of his offense the past two seasons, but under first-time OC John Morton, the head coach will finally get his feet wet.
"It's just the way I feel as a coach, and have evolved to, and where I need to be," said Bowles. "To understand everything from that (offensive) standpoint, I need to be heavily involved."
The Jets are undergoing several changes to their offense this season as they transition to Morton's system. Veteran leader Brandon Marshall is gone and the starting quarterback for Week 1 is yet to be decided.
Coming off of a 5-11 season with the league's 26th-ranked offense, Bowles' job may be riding on his team's ability to score points.