There were questions when Tannenbaum was first hired about whether GM Dennis Hickey would report to him on personnel matters. The team’s official line has been that both men report directly to owner Steve Ross—but when Ross singled out Tannenbaum for forging the Suh deal with agent Jimmy Sexton, it seemed to affirm who was running the show. It’s a fascinating juxtaposition now: Tannenbaum’s vision in Miami, Rex’s vision in Buffalo, separately pursuing the same goal they shared all those years in New York—trying to knock off the Patriots.
Tannenbaum admits he was “worried” after he was fired in New York. Where does a 43-year-old ex-GM go from here, especially when he knew the history of fired GMs: Most don’t get a second chance. Minnesota’s Rick Spielman and Washington’s Bruce Allen are the exceptions, but he points to former Bears GM Jerry Angelo and former Panthers GM Marty Hurney, who didn’t get second chances despite directing their teams to the Super Bowl. “That was always in the back of my mind,” he says.
“Getting fired hurts a lot,” he continues. “You need to have a lot of conviction and belief and self-confidence [to run a team], and I had all those things. I felt like I was the best man on the planet to run the Jets. Woody Johnson felt differently, and I totally get it. I’d been the voice of that franchise a long time. But it was devastating. I had the range of emotions, from being really angry, like, why did this happen, to humility and self-doubt. I questioned everything. Could I have been a better listener? More prepared? Were there missing conversations with a head coach or owner?”
Within 48 hours of Tannenbaum being fired after a 6-10 Jets season, Parcells called. His message, in typical fashion, was brief and to the point: This is not going to be one of those pity conversations you’re probably getting from everyone else. I just want you to know, what matters in life is what you do after you get knocked down. I’m here if you need anything. Goodbye. The two are still in regular contact, sometimes talking as often as multiple times a week.
Click to expand...