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Ladies and gentlemen, here we go. The New York Jets have reportedly interviewed their first offensive coordinator candidate for the 2023 season and it’s a member of the No. 1 seed Philadelphia Eagles coaching staff.
NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero announced the news, tweeting: “The Jets interviewed Eagles passing game coordinator Kevin Patullo for their offensive coordinator job Friday, per source.”
Kevin Patullo Coached With Jets From 2015-2016
The immediate reaction on Patullo was mixed. Obviously, the results in Philadelphia speak for themselves with a 14-3 record and quarterback Jalen Hurts playing at an MVP level before his injury.
Having said that, SNY’s Connor Hughes quickly pointed out that Patullo was a member of the Jets coaching staff once before from 2015 through 2016. “Patullo was with the Jets under Todd Bowles & Chan Gailey,” the NYJ beat reporter informed. “Remember talking to him at the senior bowl after Christian Hackenberg’s first season with [New York].”
Bowles? Gailey? Hackenberg? Those three names in one tweet might be enough to scare off most Gang Green supporters in all honesty, but let’s dive a little deeper into Patullo as a candidate before we jump to conclusions.
The former NYJ quarterbacks coach began his NFL career with the Kansas City Chiefs and head coach Herm Edwards — another ex-Jet. Patullo was an offensive quality control assistant in KC for two years and he continued that role with the Buffalo Bills for another three seasons under Gailey.
After one year with the Tennessee Titans as an assistant wide receivers coach, Patullo eventually joined Gailey’s staff with the Jets, working with quarterbacks like Ryan Fitzpatrick, Geno Smith and Bryce Petty as well as Hackenberg.
His coaching bio with the Eagles highlights him guiding Fitzpatrick to “a career-high 3,905 passing yards and a career-high, team-record 31 touchdowns,” but they don’t mention his failures to develop youngsters like Smith, Petty and Hackenberg in 2016.
After two years and a regime change in New York, Patullo ventured back to college football for the first time since 2006, working with Texas A&M as a senior assistant. Shortly after that NFL reset, he latched onto Eagles head coach and former Indianapolis Colts OC Nick Sirianni, joining his offensive staff in 2018 as a wide receivers coach.
He was promoted to a passing game specialist in 2020, and later followed Sirianni to Philly as a sort of understudy on the offensive side. Patullo has served as the Eagles’ passing game coordinator the past two seasons, leading a passing offense that finished 25th in yards in 2021 and ninth in 2022. He does not have any experience as an offensive coordinator — in college or the pros.
Twitter Reactions on Kevin Patullo, Jets Interview
Many took to social media to give their initial thoughts on the Patullo interview. “Kevin Patullo is a really sharp guy,” NFL reporter Mike Kaye commented. “He interviewed for the [Chicago] Bears OC gig last year.”
“Kevin Patullo would simply be restarting with another inexperienced OC,” The Jet Press voiced before the official interview, when his name came up as a potential candidate on an “uninspiring list.”
As for the fans, one stated: “Watching the [San Francisco] 49ers offense makes me wish the Jets gave [Mike] LaFleur one more year. We saw some creative run game stuff with [Breece] Hall and he had [Garrett] Wilson and [Elijah] Moore running open a lot. Not mentally ready for a ‘Kevin Patullo’ level hire at OC.”
“Wasn’t he the Jets QB coach when Geno [Smith] got sucker punched?” Another questioned, and a third simply responded: “Who?”
There was one optimistic reply, as one fan tweeted: “Seeing the Eagles offense this year, I would be on board with the hire.”
Whether you’re excited about this candidate, disappointed, or livid, keep in mind that this is merely the first offensive coordinator interview of many for the Jets. Head coach Robert Saleh expressed that he plans to cast a very wide net in searching for a new OC, and that’s exactly what we’ll see in the next couple of weeks.
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