Jets OC Chan Gailey retires; five assistants fired in shake-up
— -- The New York Jets' coaching-staff shake-up is underway.
Chan Gailey, who served as Todd Bowles' offensive coordinator the past two seasons, announced his retirement Tuesday. His departure was expected.
Gailey, in a statement released by the team, said he informed Bowles before the season that this would be his final year. Gailey will turn 65 years old on Thursday.
In addition, Bowles fired five position coaches: Kevin Patullo (quarterbacks), Marcel Shipp (running backs), Pepper Johnson (defensive line), Mark Collins (outside linebackers) and Joe Danna (defensive backs).
More changes could happen. For now, defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers and special-teams coordinator Brant Boyer remain.
In 2017, the Jets will have their fifth offensive coordinator in seven years. They are interested in Philadelphia Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo for the position, sources told ESPN's Adam Caplan.
DeFilippo, 38, received high marks for his work with rookie quarterback Carson Wentz this season. DeFilippo was part of a former-QB triumvirate, along with head coach Doug Pederson and offensive coordinator Frank Reich, that helped get Wentz ready on short notice after Sam Bradford was traded to the Minnesota Vikings eight days before the regular season.
DeFilippo, who played at James Madison, was the Jets' quarterbacks coach in 2009 and later held the same title with the Oakland Raiders. He served as the Cleveland Browns' offensive coordinator in 2015 before joining the Eagles.
Gailey came under fire this season as the offense sank to 26th in the NFL in yards per game and 30th in scoring. The Jets started three different quarterbacks:? Ryan Fitzpatrick, Geno Smith and Bryce Petty.
In 2015, Gailey coordinated an offense that amassed a franchise-record 5,925 yards and scored 387 points, the most in a Jets season since 1998. Fitzpatrick set a franchise record with 31 touchdown passes.
This season, Fitzpatrick and Gailey weren't able to duplicate their success. Fitzpatrick, who signed a one-year, $12 million contract in July after a long holdout, threw 17 interceptions and was benched twice.
"I informed Coach Bowles prior to the 2016 season that I would retire after this season," Gailey said Tuesday in his statement. "I thought it was best to tell him early, so that he could begin to think about how he would move the team forward on offense."
Gailey dropped hints last week in his final news conference. He talked about his love of coaching, but he stopped short of saying he wanted to return in 2017.
Bowles lured Gailey out of retirement two years ago -- a surprise hire on his first staff.
"I'm grateful to Chan for joining our coaching staff and enjoyed working with him," Bowles said. "The respect that I have for him as a person and a coach only increased during our time together."
Patullo, Shipp, Johnson, Collins and Danna each served on Bowles' staff for the past two years.
ESPN's Tim McManus contributed to this report.
Related Stories
ABC News Live