New York Jets
Property: Culture is a nebulous concept in sports, one of those things you know when you see it, but few things are more obvious than the rot of the Jets culture under Woody Johnson. They haven't made the playoffs since the 2010 season, pirouetting from short-term fixes to long-term rebuild visions, with little patience to see the team through difficult stretches. That's a short list of owners who would fire a coach five weeks before the season because maybe – probably embarrassed in front of their friends If any owner would do it, it's Johnson.
Coach: Giving up on Robert Saleh after five weeks of the season is difficult. Since taking over as head coach of the Jets, he has consistently put up elite defense on the field despite a lack of support on the offensive side of the ball. Still, it was there Some the meaning of the Jets' decision. If you name who is responsible for this season's woes, general manager Joe Douglas, offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett and Aaron Rodgers will be at the front of the line. But the Jets can't bench Rodgers, and given his close ties to the quarterback, firing Hackett wasn't an option either. Removing the general manager wouldn't create a spark, so moving on from the head coach may have been the only way to save the season.
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Quarterback: Today's Aaron Rodgers is not the Rodgers of his back-to-back MVP seasons in Green Bay. At 40, after an Achilles injury, he looks skittish and unable to conjure the kind of unscripted magic that made him such a dynamic threat in his peak years.
Hope for the future: What future? With a 40-year-old quarterback, the Jets have played year after year. There is no guarantee that Rodgers will return next season. If that happens, there's no telling who he will hire as head coach. And if Rodgers decides to retire, the Jets will be back on the quarterback carousel.
Hopelessness Rating: 8/10. They have talented players, but their owners have a long history of failure and it is difficult to imagine a turnaround with the Johnsons remaining at the helm.
Cleveland Browns
Property: Jimmy Haslam is a constant source of embarrassment to the league in courtrooms and on the field. Whenever he finishes unloading the Browns, his legacy will be the owner who handed Deshaun Watson one of the worst contracts in sports history.
Coach: Kevin Stefanski has proven he can build a playoff-level offense around Joe Flacco and Baker Mayfield, but he's on track to play a key role in Cleveland's decision to offer $230 million and a package of draft picks for Watson.
Quarterback: Watson is the worst starting quarterback in the league this season. This is not an opinion; it's a fact. He ranks last among 31 qualifying quarterbacks in adjusted EPA/replay, a bottom-up measure of efficiency. And yet, the Browns are so committed to Watson due to his contract that they can't turn to Jameis Winston – who isn't exactly perfect himself – for the rest of the season.
Hope for the future: There is none. Cleveland has the worst starter at the most valuable position on the field, and they pay him more than anyone else at that position. Watson is still owed $132 million over the remaining three years of his contract, all of it guaranteed. Due to the way the Browns restructured the quarterback's contract last season, it will cost the team more cut it off or replace it in the off-season, eating it brutally two thirds the team's salary cap for next season. Given Watson's contract, there is little the Browns can do to improve their roster. They are unable to move on from the quarterback and are running out of ways to end the salary cap without making things even more painful in the future. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that this is the worst situation for any franchise in professional sports. And that's before we get to the ethical issues of giving someone hundreds of millions of dollars and serious charges against them.
Hopelessness Rating: 10/10. Full marks for the importance of the Watson contract, both footballingly and morally. This stench will linger around the franchise for quite some time.
Carolina Panthers
Property: Few owners will ever come close to stealing the championship belt from Dan Snyder as the worst owner of the modern era, but David Tepper has a strong resume. Since purchasing the Panthers in 2018, Tepper's record is 32-77, and his ethos seems to be move fast and destroy things. Tepper consistently chases his sugar high, cycling around the buses at a pace that would make even Roman Abramovich blush.
Coach: After working with Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield, Dave Canales was hired to help develop Bryce Young. After two weeks, Canales decided to bench Young in favor of Andy Dalton, a move that felt like a move by a coach who was already looking over his shoulder. Dalton made the Panthers more competitive in the short term and gave the coach a chance to prove he could be the man to turn the team around, but it was not part of the job description to get rid of the first overall pick so quickly.
Quarterback: The Panthers could return Young as a full-time starter at some point during the season. A spell on the touchline could have helped him regain his confidence or help him gain a better feel for the nuances of Canales' plan. However, it's more likely that the coaching staff has already decided that Young isn't the right fit and will be looking for a new quarterback this offseason.
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Hope for the future: The Panthers took an unusual but admirable path last season. They destroyed a stout defense and marshaled resources on offense while trying to figure out if Young could be a competent quarterback. It didn't work. They've already moved on from Young and are now struggling with an expensive, injured offensive line and one of the least talented defenses in the league. It will take years to repair, and the owner has not demonstrated that he is willing to endure lean seasons.
Hopelessness Rating: 9/10. They burned their draft picks to move on and select Young, who doesn't appear to be a future quarterback. Tepper has given no signs that he knows how to run a competent franchise.
Arizona Cardinals
Property: The NFLPA's annual franchise report card named the Cardinals the worst organization to work for in the league earlier this season – and that's after owner Michael Bidwill made efforts to address concerns raised a year earlier. The knock on Bidwill is that he is stingy and supports an uncomfortable work environment. If you were betting that the owner would cash out in the next five years, Bidwill would be at the top of the list.
Coach: Considering the state of the roster he inherited last season and the turmoil behind the scenes, Jonathan Gannon deserves credit for keeping Arizona competitive week after week. His 6-16 record as a head coach is a bit of a mirage, due as much to the franchise's rebuilding plan as to his coaching. His second season shows signs of growth for the team. The offense finally has enough firepower to keep up with anyone. Gannon, a defensive coach by trade, kept a defense starved of talent early in the season.
Quarterback: After returning from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury midway through last season, Kyler Murray looks back on his best performance of the year. There were rumors last year that the Cardinals might consider trading Murray despite the quarterback's significant contract extension in 2023. However, he justified the investment this season, fitting perfectly into Drew Petzing's offense and establishing a quick connection with rookie Marvin. Harrison Jr.
Hope for the future: The Cardinals already have a talented young hitter producing at a top-10 level. That alone gives them a chance to stay in the division race this season. If they can find more toys for Gannon on defense, they will have the makings of a consistent playoff contender.
Hopelessness Rating: 4/10. There are ownership concerns, but there is talent in the coaching and playing ranks.
Jaguary z Jacksonville
Property: In his 12 years as owner, Shahid Khan has made a lot of crazy decisions: hiring Urban Meyer, putting blind faith in general manager Trent Baalke, flirting with a move to London while planning for a new stadium in Jacksonville, and shelving some of the best uniforms in league. But you have to hand it to Khan: he's not cheap. Jacksonville has some of the best backfield in the league, and Khan has consistently indulged in free agent madness. When it came time to extend Trevor Lawrence's contract, the franchise made over $275 million with $200 million guaranteed. And unlike other owners who threw money at their problems, Khan had no quick impulse. In addition to Meyer's experience, Khan has shown patience with coaches and general managers. But it didn't work, and his record as an owner now stands at 61-139. Perhaps Khan should more absolute.
Coach: After the Meyer debacle, the Jaguars hoped to gain immediate credibility by hiring Doug Pederson, a coach with a championship pedigree. But now we are in the final embers of the Pederson era. The coach was 18-20 as Jacksonville's starting quarterback, including a paltry 2-10 record in his last 12 games. All signs point to the Jaguars hitting the reset button this offseason unless they can get back on the field in the playoffs. If they drop to 1-5 after Sunday's defeat in London, Pederson may stay on the asphalt.
Quarterback: Lawrence remains one of the most enigmatic point guards in the league. Despite all his physical talents, he still makes sloppy decisions. According to Pro Football Focus, over three seasons Lawrence averaged 14 interceptions per season and 25 (!) successful plays. Some of the blame for Lawrence's problems can be placed on poor coaching and a weak roster, but there have been minimal signs of improvement over the last two years compared to the former No. 1 overall pick.
Hope for the future: Lawrence is hope. If he can eliminate the goofy plays, Jacksonville will have a permanently top-10 quarterback. What would be disturbing is that at this point in his career he has so far shown who he is. However, if the Jaguars move on from Pederson, there will be a queue of coaches who believe they will be able to overcome the difficulties in quarterback play. Plus, given that Lawrence's extension won't be good for another few seasons, the Jaguars will have plenty of free space on the team this offseason to reorient the roster around the quarterback.
Hopelessness Rating: 3/10. The owner is strange rather than disastrous. And if Lawrence rediscovers his potential, they should succeed.
