Le’Veon Bell recently opened up about his time with the New York Jets, and it’s clear his experience playing under Adam Gase didn’t leave much of a positive impression. He spent parts of the 2019 and 2020 seasons with the team, getting a close look at Gase’s approach before being released midway through 2020 after requesting a trade. Even though his stint in New York was relatively short, it’s something that seems to have stuck with him.

At the time, the Jets had brought in Gase, hoping his offensive system would help develop quarterback Sam Darnold. Instead, the team struggled, posting a 9-23 record during his tenure before moving on from him in 2021.

Now, years later, the former running back has revisited that experience. 

“That n-gga Adam Gase, he might’ve been the dumbest coach ever,” Le’Veon Bell said on the latest episode of #Respectfully The Justin Laboy Show. “If it’s 2nd & 9 and Adam Gase is the coach, I promise you, I bet he’s calling a halfback dive. Every time. Bro, there’s not been one play or one time while I was in the huddle, and it was 2nd & 9 or 2nd & 10, and the play coming in, he did not call f—–g dive.

“Looking at that yard marker at the sidelines, and seeing the play getting read in, I only listen to the play, and I line up. Just give me a f—–g dive, the worst play in football. Worst coach ever; he was terrible.”

In 2003, Adam Gase started his NFL coaching career on a positive note. Gase initially worked as a scouting assistant with the Detroit Lions before being promoted to offensive quality control coach. He later worked with the San Francisco 49ers as their offensive assistant coach. But in 2013 and 2014, Gase found most success as the offensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos.

In 2013, the Broncos’ offense, led by QB Peyton Manning, set NFL records with 5,572 passing yards and 606 points. Adam Gase also helped the team to a 13–3 record and made a Super Bowl appearance. After that, the Miami Dolphins hired Gase as head coach in 2016, hoping he could develop Ryan Tannehill into a franchise QB. But in over three seasons at Miami, Gase had a 23–25 record, which led to his firing. 

Still, the Jets took a chance on Adam Gase in 2019. But by then, questions about Gase’s coaching style had already begun to surface. Many people might’ve assumed that Gase spent hours in his New York office watching tapes and making game plans to develop Darnold. But while recalling what Gase actually did behind his closed office door, Le’Veon Bell just painted a very different picture.

“He did a lot of sh-t in that office that coaches aren’t supposed to be doing, but that’s why he isn’t a coach,” Le’Veon Bell said. “I just walked into his office, and he’s about to do c-ke. We got practice in 28 minutes; we got walkthroughs, and this is what you’re doing in here? And it was not just one time; that’s what he did. Everybody knew that.

“But it was crazy for me to see him actually doing it. Adam Gase was out there fried, calling those plays. It’s like a little clip on the sidelines; he does the little nose sock on the national TV.”

Whatever Gase did in his office or on the sidelines, it clearly did not translate into success for the Jets. During those two seasons under Gase, Darnold showed signs of regression rather than growth, going 9-16 as a starter. The Jets also dealt with roster turmoil, including trading star safety Jamal Adams and releasing Le’Veon Bell. Along with all of these things in New York came the humiliation of multiple double-digit losses, and Bell still remembers the reason behind one of those. 

Le’Veon Bell reveals Gase’s backwards plans that led to a Jets’ loss

Back in 2019, the Jets entered a Week 13 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals on a three-game winning streak. Momentum was on the Jets’ side, but the weather reports predicted heavy rain in Cincinnati. Adam Gase prepared the Jets’ players for the conditions by making them practice with a wet ball leading up to the game. But during one of those sessions, he pulled Le’Veon Bell aside and revealed a game plan that left the RB stunned.

Instead of leaning on the run, Gase wanted to throw the ball 40-plus times in the rain. Bell couldn’t believe it, especially because NFL teams typically do the opposite in slippery conditions. In 2017, a study by PFF’s Scott Spratt even showed that moderate rain reduces completion percentages by 3.4%. But Gase had a different logic. 

“He was like, ‘No, no, just think about it. The receivers, even you, are running your route; you know where you’re going, but the defender doesn’t know where they’re going. So, they might slip, and we can get a big play.’ I listened to what that n-gga told me, and I held that sh-t in. That’s backwards; we are supposed to be running the ball, like handing the ball; that’s how we’re going to get yards, bro,” Le’Veon Bell said while recalling his conversation with Gase at practice.

During the matchup against the Bengals, the Jets followed through on Gase’s plan, but it backfired. Sam Darnold completed just 28 of 48 passes for 239 yards, while Le’Veon Bell recorded only 35 yards on four catches. The Jets’ offense leaned heavily on the pass, throwing 31 more times than they ran the ball, and the team racked up 10 penalties.

As a result, the Jets suffered a 22–6 loss to a Bengals team that entered the game 0–11. Ultimately, this game perfectly captured the kind of questionable strategy that defined Gase’s tenure in New York.