Bradway has not been my favorite general manager. He hasn’t drafted particularly well and last year he utterly neglected to give the team a decent offensive line. But I like what he’s done by hiring Mangini.

Bradway has put his butt squarely on the line. If this doesn’t work, Bradway is sending out resumes.

It’s the only way to go. If you really believe in someone, forget how old — or how young — he is. Forget what other people tell you would be a smarter move. Take that bold step into the unknown, because that’s where greatness so often is found.

It’s not a science, as Jets fans are painfully aware. The team was born in 1960 as the Titans. Sammy Baugh was the coach. Five hundred was the record. In the 46 seasons since, there have been 14 more coaches, including two interim coaches who worked partial seasons.

Only two of those coaches left with winning records — Bill Parcells, who was 29-19 in three seasons, and Al Groh, who was 9-7 in the one year he spent on the job before fleeing for the University of Virginia.

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Even Weeb Ewbank, who coached the 1969 team that won Super Bowl III behind Joe Namath, had just three winning seasons in his eleven years on the sidelines. The seasons were consecutive; no other coach has had more than two straight winning seasons, although Parcells came close with two and a third at .500.

Although Ewbank is revered as something of a saint in Jets Nation, he really didn’t do much other than those three years despite having some great players. And it can be argued that the Jets have never had a truly great coach, if by that you mean one who sticks around for a lot of years and throws up winning season after winning season.

So, while expectations remain high among Jets fans, the bar really isn’t set that high. A winning season would be a rousing success. Three in a row would be record-tying. A trip to the AFC Championship game would be greeted with tears of gratitude. A Super Bowl appearance would be viewed as a certain sign of the impending Apocalypse.

It’s in Mangini’s young hands. I don’t know what he’ll do with it, but I’m glad he has the chance to try.