Back in October 2025, New York Jets owner Woody Johnson admitted he believes in the decisions to hire Darren Mougey as General Manager and Aaron Glenn as head coach. Fast forward to the present, when NFL teams are busy reshaping their rosters during free agency, an internal issue within the Jets organization is taking place. Notably, host Mike Francesa shared details about an internal power struggle, claiming the owner has sided with the GM over HC.

“The way Mougey’s now in charge, and clearly my understanding is Woody made a decision that Mougey’s in charge,” NY reporter Francesa said on his podcast, The Mike Francesa Podcast, on Monday. “So now Glenn, it’s not equal. Mougey’s the guy, and Glenn’s the coach. But Mougey’s kind of making the decisions. My understanding also is that while these guys have put up a very good front, they’re not getting along as well as everybody thinks they are. That’s also what I’m hearing, which I’m sure they’ll deny, but that’s what I’m hearing, and I’m hearing it from a terrific source.”

Aaron Glenn joined the Jets just days before Darren Mougey was appointed as the team’s GM in 2025. Francesa also highlighted that the relationship between the two isn’t as smooth as it appears on the surface.

On one side, general manager Darren Mougey is sticking to his vision. He wants to build this thing the right way through the draft, with patience, with a long-term plan that doesn’t get shaken by one bad season. But on the other side, head coach Aaron Glenn is dealing with the reality of what he walked into: a locker room that lacked leadership, and a culture that needed fixing now, not two years down the line. So while Mougey talks about tomorrow, Glenn is fighting for today. That’s where the clash begins.

Glenn has turned to experience. He’s brought in veterans he trusts, players like linebacker Demario Davis and defensive tackle David Onyemata, are the ones who understand what accountability looks like when things get tough. He’s trying to change the tone, to steady a group that once felt like it could fall apart at any moment. Meanwhile, Mougey is still balancing the bigger picture, making sure these short-term moves don’t wreck the future he’s trying to build. And to be fair, they haven’t. The cap remains clean, and the draft capital is stacked. On paper, it all works.

But football isn’t played on paper; it’s felt in the locker room. Glenn is betting on leaders and toughness to fix that. Mougey is betting on youth and development to sustain it. Both approaches make sense. That’s what makes it complicated. Because if the young core doesn’t hit fast enough, this team could lean too heavily on aging veterans. And if that happens, the gap between now and the future only gets wider.

In addition to that, Francesa didn’t hold back in criticizing the head coach and the team’s performance last season. Under head coach Glenn, the New York Jets struggled throughout the season, finishing with a 3-14 record in 2025. They were placed 4th in the AFC East and 15th in the AFC.

Defensively, the Jets ranked 25th, allowing an average of 355.6 yards per game, while the offense ranked 29th with just 263.6 yards per game.

Given that kind of performance, it wouldn’t have been surprising if the head coach had been fired. In the same segment, Francesa also floated the possibility of hiring the Jets’ current offensive coordinator, Frank Reich, as head coach if Mougey is indeed in charge. Francesa also made a broader point about accountability, urging the team to be transparent about who is making decisions.

“Here’s what I say about it,” Francesa said. “If Mougey’s in charge, let him come out and be in charge. Don’t hide it. Don’t pin everything on Aaron Glenn. If Aaron Glenn is just the coach and he’s not making any personnel decisions, let’s know that. Let’s see where we are right now, as we can go forward and put the praise and the blame where it belongs going forward.”

With the shifting power dynamics inside the Jets organization, Francesa also shared his views on the big Geno Smith trade.

Mike Francesa called out GM Darren Mougey for the Geno Smith trade

The New York Jets acquired quarterback Geno Smith in a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders. They gave a 2026 7th-round pick (#228) and received a 2026 6th-round pick (#208) in return. This marks Smith’s second stint with the Jets, the team that originally drafted him in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

The two-time Pro Bowler brings experience and depth to the quarterback room. However, the move doesn’t sit well with Mike Francesa. Francesa is strongly against the trade for Geno Smith, calling it “very suspect” and questioning the decision to bring him in to salvage the season.

He also claims the move was driven more by General Manager Darren Mougey than head coach Aaron Glenn.

“It was Mougey who wanted Geno Smith. Now, I’m not completely sure from what I was told where Aaron stood on this. Was he lukewarm? But my understanding was he wasn’t rah-rah on Geno Smith. He was much more interested, from what I was told, in Cousins than he was in Geno. Now again, I don’t know that he was against. I didn’t hear that. But I did hear that it was Mougey who’s in charge now.”

Smith signed a one-year, $3.3 million contract with the team. As for his performance, Smith has shown inconsistency. However, last season he threw for over 3,000 yards with 19 touchdowns and a league-leading 17 interceptions, showing flashes of his potential.

Ultimately, Smith’s performance this season will determine whether the decision was right or wrong. But for now, Mike Francesa has made his stance clear, and he believes the power lies in Mougey’s hands, and the move to bring in Smith only reinforces that.