Bowles/Mac Conference is Wed at 11 AM

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Jets' Todd Bowles on New England Patriots' Bill Belichick: 'I'm going to work on getting my own rings'




William Perlman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com





FLORHAM PARK -- In a mostly low-key introductory press conference Wednesday, the Jets' new tandem of general manager Mike Maccagnan and head coach Todd Bowles offered no bombastic comments, and few bold statements.

That's no surprise. Both men have reserved public demeanors, especially when compared to the Jets' previous head coach, Rex Ryan.

But Bowles did have a somewhat Ryan-like comment when asked for his thoughts on chasing Patriots coach Bill Belichick and his Super Bowl rings.

"I'm going to work on getting my own rings," Bowles said. "They're at the top of the division, man. That's why they're in the Super Bowl. That's something that you're striving to get to, and that's what we're going to work towards."

The Patriots are in the Super Bowl this season for the sixth time under Belichick, who became their head coach in 2000. Belichick is 3-2 in the Super Bowl as the Patriots' head coach.

Ryan famously roared into town six years ago, guaranteeing Super Bowl championships, and saying he wasn't going to kiss Belichick's rings.

There was none of that talk Wednesday, and nobody expected Maccagnan or Bowles to come out as brashly as Ryan did in 2009.

The Jets made two AFC title games under Ryan, but no Super Bowls. New England has won the AFC East six straight years, and 12 of 14 years since Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady became a tandem in 2001.

Part of Ryan's undoing was that he closed 1-7 against the Patriots, since beating them in a 2010 divisional playoff game in New England. At that point, Ryan was 3-2 against the Patriots. But after that game, few things went right for Ryan with the Jets.

 

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5 first impressions from the Todd Bowles/Mike Maccagnan press conference | Politi Bits




Steve Politi | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com By Steve Politi | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on January 21, 2015 at 12:20 PM, updated January 21, 2015 at 12:42 PM





FLORHAM PARK — Two serious football guys ready to work. That's what I took away from the long-awaited press conference to introduce Mike Maccagnan and Todd Bowles, the new Jets leadership duo.

It wasn't flashy. It wasn't big and sexy and filled with sound bytes. But let's be honest: Haven't the Jets won enough press conferences over the years?

I'll have more on the what the new general manager and head coach did and did not say in their 45-minute introduction, but here are five first impressions:

1. The back-page sideshow days are over, and that's a good thing. Maccagnan was so soft spoken you waited for the Jets P.R. staff to turn up the microphones, but his answers were thoughtful and not evasive like his predecessor John Idzik. Bowles seemed to loosen up as the press conference went on, and he certainly seems comfortable in his own skin. Bowles finally let out a big belly laugh when asked to describe his own personality. "There's a sarcastic side. There's a comedy side. There's a serious side. I'm sort of the male Cybil so to speak." Good answer.

2. The hiring process as they described it seemed solid. Finally, there is a united front in Florham Park, not a GM and a head coach with dueling agendas. It was encouraging that Maccagnan said he didn't really interview, instead letting Bowles ask him questions to see if the coach would be comfortable working for him. Maccagnan made it clear that Bowles would be involved in all personnel decisions. This looked like a partnership.

3. They offered little to explain what this team is going to be offensively. And that's probably because they still don't know what this team is going to be offensively. Bowles explained that he hired Chan Gailey as his offensive coordinator because he has a history of doing more with less, which isn't exactly an encouraging answer for Jets fans hoping to see a high-powered offense in 2015. But it's probably a realistic one, at least as long as Geno Smith is the quarterback.

4. My favorite Bowles quote: "We're going to be a tough team. We're going to be an intelligent team. We're going to do things the right way. We're going to try to build a championship team here, and that's my only job." Hard not to sign up for that.

5. This really is a Jersey story. That won't matter a bit to Jets fans if they're not in the Super Bowl in a few years, but New Jersey lifers listening to them today had to smile as they talked about their background. You've got a GM from South Jersey who went to an elite private school (The Peddie School) and a head coach from North Jersey who grew up in inner city Elizabeth. That's as Jersey as you can get.

Steve Politi may be reached at spoliti@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevePoliti. Find NJ.com on Facebook.