John Idzik told reporters and fans this morning at his introductory news conference as the Jets' new general manager that throughout his previous stops in the front offices at Tampa Bay, Arizona and Seattle, he has answered to a higher power than himself.
"All those experiences solidified to me 'the power of we over me,' " he said in the auditorium at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center. "That's something that's going to be very strong here. It'll be based on a collaborative effort, it will be inclusive, well-thought-out, well-researched, and it will be the power of we."
That's a team rallying cry that owner Woody Johnson is on board for. The Jets' chairman/CEO said today in introducing Idzik, "Throughout the process, after interviewing John, it became apparent to us that he was head-and-shoulders the best fit for the New York Jets. I think he is absolutely the right person to do this job for the Jets in 2013."
And Jets Nation surely applauds a restating of the dictum of head coach Rex Ryan and others that "the name on the front of the jersey is more important than the name on the back." But many would like to know now exactly who "we" will be, which of the current Jets will be staying, which may be departing, and who will arrive via free agency, trades and the draft.
Idzik declined comment about quarterback Mark Sanchez (and Tim Tebow, although his name wasn't brought up during the news conference) and the new story of sources saying the Jets might consider trading cornerback Darrelle Revis.
"I think it's way too premature to say anything specific," he said. "I haven't even had a chance to get through our roster with Rex and his staff and the personnel staff."
But Idzik did declare his positions on several issues involving the Jets as they move forward into the calendar toward the 2013 season.
On draft vs. free agency: "The draft will be very important to us, a lifeline to us, year in and year out. ... We'll do our research and be judicious in free agency. We'll use trades, waiver claims, numerous tryouts throughout the year in a search for guys that play like a Jet. That will be a constant hum in the background of what we do."
On the Jets' pending salary cap situation: "Every year you're going to have to develop a plan for your salary cap. We're going to develop those plans in the days to come. I never saw the cap situation here as a hindrance or anything like that. It's something that you research, you pore through and you evaluate just like you evaluate your roster. We'll make moves that we feel are best for the Jets. I'm fully confident we'll be able to do that."
On "perceptions" he's more of a capologist than a personnel expert: "Whatever I do in football, I do for our team. I don't do it for personal gain. I have a very broad background, a very extensive background in personnel evaluations. If my team needs me to go out on the road, I'll go out on the road. If my team needs me to stay in house, I'll do that. If my team needs me to do cap management, I'll do that. Nothing's pre-fab for me. It's more in the vein of a collective effort."
Ryan was asked later by Eric Allen on today's edition of "Jets Talk Live" the same question about Idzik and he agreed with his new GM and echoed his boss on Idzik's résumé.
"We've both been fortunate to be around this game all our lives," the head coach said. "Without question personnel is a strong suit of John's. Perception is what it is, but I'm telling you, this is probably as complete a guy to be a general manager as there is. In my opinion, we definitely got the right guy."
