Jets Reportedly Considered Hiring Mike Holmgren as Head Coach over Todd Bowles

New York Jets owner Woody Johnson reached out to Mike Holmgren to fill the team's head coaching vacancy last offseason.

Johnson said he and the front office were intrigued by Holmgren's championship pedigree, according to Newsday's Bob Glauber: “We were being as creative as we could, and we were looking for talent. Mike has a Super Bowl record, and we wanted to see what he thought about our process, how football had changed, how it had stayed the same, whether he had any advice for us, that kind of thing.”

Holmgren, who was 66 at the time, did not comment on the Jets' efforts, per Glauber.

As the coach of the Green Bay Packers, Holmgren, thanks to the play of Brett Favre, went to two straight Super Bowls in 1996 and 1997. The team won Super Bowl XXXI in 1997 over the New England Patriots. Holmgren also led the Seattle Seahawks to a championship appearance in 2005.

Holmgren's last stint in the NFL was as the Cleveland Browns' president in 2012. Sports Illustrated's Aaron Nagler asserted that Holmgren's place should be on the sidelines:

The Jets obviously went with first-time head coach Todd Bowles, who turned in a successful debut. New York went 10-6 and had a chance at a playoff berth before losing to the Buffalo Bills to end the season.

The defense went from sixth in the league in total defense in 2014 to fourth last season. Yet the offense made the greatest change, finishing 10th overall in 2015 as opposed to 22nd a year earlier.

Much of that success was thanks to quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who threw for 3,905 yards and 31 touchdowns. Fitzpatrick remains unsigned, and the team's decision with him will be important for this upcoming season.

Regardless, the Jets made the right decision in hiring Bowles. He is a young coach (52) who can grow with a team to possibly become a stalwart within the organization. Holmgren likely would have been a stopgap, so going with Bowles was a better long-term option.

All statistics are courtesy of ESPN.com.