Former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas joked that he knew he was about to be fired by owner Woody Johnson immediately after seeing his helicopter make its way towards their practice session this week.

Fox Sports insider Jay Glazer revealed that Douglas had been speaking with interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich at practice on Tuesday when they had seen Johnson’s helicopter arriving at practice. While preparing to land the helicopter, Douglas was said to have turned to Ulbrich and said: “If they pull me off the practice field, it’s been an honor serving with you.”

And this is exactly what happened minutes later, with Johnson having a conversation with Douglas to make him aware that they’d be firing him and looking for a new general manager going into 2025.

The Jets have fired both head coach Robert Saleh (in October) and general manager Douglas (Tuesday), with Johnson looking to make wholesale changes to the roster after a disastrous season.

Johnson has opted not to find a general manager for the rest of the season, instead appointing Phil Savage to an interim role with the owner himself seemingly making some decisions when it comes to the playing team.

Douglas was a staunch defender of the team’s quarterback Aaron Rodgers, with reports suggesting that the general manager did not want to see the team get rid of the veteran with the owner ready to move on. This had been the same with Saleh, both having confidence in the veteran quarterback, before both were fired.

Douglas (left) was fired by Johnson (right) on Tuesday

Douglas (left) was fired by Johnson (right) on Tuesday

And new reports have suggested that Johnson would not be opposed to see the Jets move on from Rodgers as early as this season, with them potentially even cutting the quarterback in-season ahead of the 2025 campaign – potentially looking to enhance their draft spot to land one of the top prospects.

Despite the Jets’ struggles over the last five years under Douglas, he had been praised for the job that he has done in recent years, flipping declining safety Jamal Adams for two first-round draft picks while hitting on several selections in classes, including Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, Jermaine Johnson, Breece Hall, Alijah Vera-Tucker and Michael Carter II.

A three-time Super Bowl winner as an executive, Douglas is likely to land another opportunity with a team elsewhere, while the Jets will look for their successor, along with a new head coach and potentially a new quarterback after the season closes.