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The New York Jets announced on Thursday, January 2 that they have interviewed ESPN analyst Louis Riddick for their open general manager position. Riddick, 55 years old, currently works as an NFL and college football analyst and announcer for ESPN.
Drafted in the 9th round of the 1991 NFL Draft, Louis Riddick spent seven seasons in the NFL as a defensive back with the San Francisco 49ers, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, and Oakland Raiders.
After retiring as a player, Riddick transitioned to scouting, as he worked as pro scout for Washington from 2001 until he was promoted to Director of Pro Personnel in 2005. In 2008, Riddick joined the Philadelphia Eagles, eventually serving as their Director of Pro Personnel from 2010 to 2013.
In 2013, Riddick joined ESPN, where he’s been one of the network’s most well-respected football minds ever since.
We have completed an interview with Louis Riddick for our General Manager vacancy.
— New York Jets (@nyjets) January 2, 2025
Riddick has attempted to break back into NFL front office work in recent years as he interviewed for the Houston Texans and Detroit Lions open general manager positions in 2020. He’s now the third candidate that the Jets have formally interviewed since firing Joe Douglas, following former Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff and former Titans GM Jon Robinson.
As for the Jets’ head coach search, Gang Green also announced on Thursday that they interviewed 62-year-old former Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera for the job. Reports indicate they’ll also interview Rex Ryan, another current ESPN analyst who coached the team from 2009 to 2014, leading them to consecutive AFC title games in ’09 and ’10.
In addition to Rivera and Ryan, ESPN’s longtime Jets beat reporter Rich Cimini also speculates that Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who played for the Jets during his playing career, is a strong candidate for the job. Cimini, in fact, predicted that Glenn will be the one to ultimately land the gig. With the Lions locked into the playoffs, however, the Jets will have to wait for them to be eliminated in order to conduct that interview.