Eric Mangini predicted Jets owner Woody Johnson would be ‘pissed off’ by loss in London

Eric Mangini dusted off the old “Mangenius” mantra last week when he predicted a New York Jets loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London would result in repercussions.

The Jets fell to a disappointing 2-3 record following their 23-17 loss to Minnesota in London on Sunday. And Tuesday morning, Jets owner Woody Johnson responded by doing something he has not done before, firing head coach Robert Saleh during the season. According to Mangini, however, the firing may have had less to do with the Jets loss and more to do with who they lost in front of.

Last week, Eric Mangini predicted Woody Johnson would be “pissed off” by a loss in London because friends from his time as US Ambassador to the UK would be in attendance. pic.twitter.com/B6AfcmY1QZ

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“This is an absolute must-win,” Mangini said last Thursday on FS1’s First Things First. “And here’s why, Woody Johnson, the 66th Ambassador to the UK. All of his buddies are gonna be over there and after the game when he’s eating tea and crumpets, he’s gonnna be wanting to talk about his team and how successful they are. Not only that, you’ve got the former first round draft pick playing against you and playing really well and you’ve got a 40-year-old quarterback.

Johnson served as the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom in the Trump administration, leaving his brother Christopher to run the Jets and lead the coaching search that landed Saleh. Mangini also noted playing well and winning would be beneficial to Rodgers, who is likely making his pitch for Johnson to go out and acquire Davante Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders.

“You win the game, you walk in after to the box, you meet all his friends,” Mangini said before suggesting Rodgers could then say, “Hey, what about Davante, Woody?”

So that’s all the good that would have followed if the Jets won their London matchup with the Vikings. But how would Woody Johnson react to a Jets loss?

“I think Woody will be pissed off,” Mangini bluntly stated.

Pissed off enough to do something that could be considered rash by firing their head coach five games into the season? If anyone knows about Johnson’s thought process before making a coaching change, it would be Mangini, who was once that Jets head coach being told he’s getting fired.

Is it rash to fire Saleh because he embarrassed you in front of your friends? Sure. But it’s also a decision that has been almost universally praised considering Saleh’s lack of success as head coach of the New York Jets. No one looks at Saleh’s head coaching credentials and believes he’s earned more time with the Jets. Maybe Johnson being embarrassed in front of his political friends played a role in his decision to fire Saleh, but regardless of his motives, the decision he landed on wasn’t the wrong one.

[First Things First]