A coach from a cherished time with the New York Jets has hung up his whistle.
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell announced that Mike Pettine has abruptly retired from the NFL, per NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. Pettine had been serving as the assistant head coach and outside linebackers coach over the last four years with the Purple People Eaters.
Pettine, 59, started his coaching career back in 1993. However, the best run of his career that Jets fans will remember is his time as the defensive coordinator from 2009 through 2012.
The Glory Days for the Jets
In the series finale of “The Office”, Andy Bernard, played by Ed Helms, said, “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.”
That feels like a fitting description for the Jets’ run with Rex Ryan as the head coach. He started his tenure with a bang, going to back-to-back AFC Championship games.
A key piece of that puzzle was Pettine. He crossed over with Ryan on the Baltimore Ravens. They spent seven seasons together from 2002 through 2008. When Ryan was hired as the next head coach of the Jets in 2009, he brought Pettine with him.
The Jets had the No. 1 defense in the NFL in 2009: net yards per game allowed (252.3), which was 32 fewer yards than the next closest team, per ESPN. They gave up the fewest points per game in the league that season (14.8). The Jets allowed 2,459 passing yards that season, which were the fewest in the NFL. It was unbelievably 500 yards fewer than the next closest team.
In 2010, the Jets allowed the third fewest yards in the league (291.5 per game). They had the sixth-best pass defense in the NFL, allowing 3,210 passing yards. The Jets allowed 19 points per game, which was sixth best in the league that season.
One of the Greatest Runs in Team History
In 2009, the Jets barely squeaked into the playoffs with a 9-7 record.
On their run to the AFC title game, the Jets took out the 10-6 AFC North champion Cincinnati Bengals in the wildcard. In the divisional round, the Jets beat the then San Diego Chargers, who boasted a 13-3 record. The Chargers were red hot, having won 11 games in a row heading into the postseason.
Ultimately, their injury-riddled secondary fell apart in the second half of the AFC Championship game against the Peyton Manning-led Indianapolis Colts, who had a 14-2 record.
The Jets came roaring back in 2010 with an 11-5 record as a wildcard team.
This time, they faced the Colts in the first round of the playoffs. Indy won the AFC South with a 10-6 record. The Jets beat them at the last second to advance. Gang Green then faced their AFC East divisional rivals, the New England Patriots.
A few weeks before this game, the Jets got their teeth kicked in 45-3 against the Patriots. Now they had their chance at redemption. In an emotional contest, the Jets upset the No. 1 overall seeded 14-2 Patriots. It is still considered one of the biggest wins in franchise history.
The Jets used a ton of their emotional gas in the tank for that game and came out flat the next week in the AFC Championship game against the 12-4 Pittsburgh Steelers. A dismal first half doomed the Jets, and despite a valiant comeback effort in the second half, it wasn’t enough.
One of the most impressive things about this run is that all of those wins came on the road in the postseason.
That was the last time the Jets were in the playoffs. Pettine’s retirement is just another reminder of the good old days for the Jets.
4-Year Jets Defensive Coach Abruptly Retires From the NFL