A candidate to consider: Should Titans OC Arthur Smith be Jets’ next head coach?

The recent success of the Tennessee Titans can be largely attributed to offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

The former tight ends coach took a young offense and turned it into one of the best units in the league over the past two seasons. Joe Douglas liked the head-coaching candidate enough to bring Smith to the Jets facility for a second interview. Smith is only the second known candidate to receive a call-back after the Jets held a second interview with 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh earlier this week

There are a lot of positives to Smith as a coach and only a few negatives. Here’s a breakdown of Smith as a candidate for the Jets’ job.

Overview

(Phelan M. Ebenhack-AP)

The 38-year-old Smith began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at North Carolina before serving as a defensive quality control coach for the Washington Football Team. He moved on to Ole Miss as a defensive intern before joining the Titans as a defensive quality control coach in 2011. Smith moved up the ranks in Tennesse to offensive line coach and then tight ends coach before being promoted to offensive coordinator in 2019 after Matt LaFleur took the Packers’ head job. Though young, Smith proved quickly to be an adept offensive mind in Tennesse and helped them reach the postseason in back-to-back seasons. The Titans offense has flourished under Smith, with Derrick Henry becoming the NFL's most dominant rusher and Ryan Tannehill reviving his career. The Titans offense improved in Smith's first season, going from 27th in yards and 25th points in 2018 to 12th in yards and 10th in points in 2019. This year? Tennessee finished fourth in yards and second in points.

Why Smith makes sense for the Jets

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Smith has experience fixing quarterbacks. He did it with Tannehill in just one-and-a-half seasons and could do it again in New York with Sam Darnold or a rookie with flaws. His offensive gameplan is also innovative and simple enough for any quarterback to learn: Smith uses pre-snap motion and play-action to confuse defenses before going for deep shots with his receivers and tight ends. The Jets aren’t as talented offensively as the Titans, but New York does have some skilled players like Denzel Mims, Jamison Crowder, Chris Herndon and La’Mical Perine. With the right quarterback, a better offensive line and a few more weapons, Smith could turn the Jets around.

Why Smith doesn’t make sense for the Jets

(George Walker IV-Tennessean.com)

There are two issues with Smith as a candidate that Douglas and the Jets will need to iron out: Smith’s coaching experience and his ability to run a team. It’s hard to gauge if Smith will be a coach that focuses only on the offense – like Adam Gase did – or be that CEO the Jets reportedly want in a coach. Smith has experience on both sides of the ball after working on defense at various stops early in his coaching career, so he at least has insight into another facet of the game. But is that enough to properly build a staff he trusts? Maybe. Is his two years as an offensive coordinator even enough time to warrant this type of promotion? Based on the success of the past two seasons, probably.

Verdict

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Smith doesn’t appear to be as fiery as some of the other candidates on the Jets’ list, but he’s nevertheless an intriguing candidate considering his success in Tennessee. Smith would also be the best coach if the Jets decide to keep Darnold for at least one more season after what he did with Tannehill and the Titans offense. Smith has the trust of his players, too, according to a Washington Post article from before the 2020 season. A former Titans player “choked up and said, ‘I’ve never met a guy so trustworthy, so direct and who really lets you know where you stand,'" according to Washington Football Team physician John Tabacco, a childhood friend of Smith's. He appears to be a great player-coach as well as a talented play-caller, but it remains to be seen what type of staff he would build in New York. Smith deserves to be one of the Jets' finalists. It looks like he is after being interviewed twice.

Read more of our coaching candidate profiles: Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy | 49ers DC Robert Saleh | Saints DB coach Aaron Glenn | Ex-Bengals HC Marvin Lewis | Panthers OC Joe Brady | Rams DC Brandon Staley | Bills OC Brian Daboll