with the team. On January 17, New York announced the hiring of former Patriots defensive coordinator Eric Mangini. Three weeks later, General Manager Terry Bradway stepped down in favor of his assistant, Mike Tannenbaum. Although Pennington took back his starting position, the Jets only managed to split their first eight games. They began the second half with a victory over New England in Foxboro, and lost only two games the rest of the way to finish 10–6 and secure a playoff berth. In the wild card round, the Jets visited Foxboro again, but this time fell to the Patriots, 37–16. For his success in leading the Jets to the playoffs, Mangini received the nickname "Mangenius" and had a cameo appearance on The Sopranos''. After Mangini's successful rookie season, New York had high hopes of further improvement. Following the team's opening loss against New England, the Jets accused the Patriots of videotaping their signals. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell fined the Patriots and Bill Belichick, and stripped New England of its 1st-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft. Struggling to a 1–7 start, the Jets benched Pennington in favor of backup Kellen Clemens. The Jets won only three games the rest of the way and finished with a record of 4–12. The Jets were again overshadowed by the Giants, who won their third Super Bowl by defeating the previously unbeaten Patriots. Following the 2007 season, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre had retired. He wished to return several months later, but found that the Packers had given Aaron Rodgers the starting spot. The subsequent trade talks and rumors were a major story leading up to the 2008 season, and the Jets unexpectedly won the bidding war to trade for Favre. With Favre's acquisition, the Jets released Pennington, who signed with the Dolphins. Despite a good start to the season, the Jets began to falter in December after Favre tore his rotator cuff — he threw five interceptions in a three-game span. The season came down to a final game against the Dolphins, led by Pennington, at Giants Stadium. The Dolphins won to take the division title and eliminate the 9–7 Jets from playoff contention. On December 29, 2008, Mangini was fired after three seasons as head coach, with an overall record of 23–25. Favre again briefly retired from football on February 11, 2009. Rex Ryan era Following Mangini's departure, New York hoped