So Adam, stabbed Mike Maccagnan in the back, didn’t ya?

Overpaid for Le’Veon Bell, didn’t ya?

Your hand-picked GM will be a deferential yes-man, yes?

Whether you think new Jets coach Adam Gase is a power-crazy, diabolical, pathological liar or not, his current perception problem will ultimately go away if he does what he was hired to do: get Sam Darnold to the next level and get the Jets back in the playoffs following an eight-year absence.

After several combative denials, Gase hit the nail on the head at the end of his inquisition Thursday, when he answered a question about a trust issue he has with some fans, following all the dysfunctional palace intrigue that left him adding interim GM to his résumé.

“I think our fans care if we win,” Gase said. “If we win games, nobody’s gonna remember this, I know that. Our job’s to win.

“Our job is to win.

“That’s it.”

But here’s the deal: For Gase to just win, baby, for him to be Darnold’s quarterback whisperer, he will need to establish a far better relationship with Bell than he had with Maccagnan — which means he will have to go above and beyond to convince Bell the ominous reports of Gase not wanting him, that Maccagnan overpaid for him, that he might consider trading him, are poppycock.

Team CEO Christopher Johnson signed off on signing Bell to a four-year, $52.5 million contract ($27 million guaranteed), so if Gase had a problem with Maccagnan’s allocation of free-agent resources, and it appears he did, he was blaming the wrong guy.

“Discussions are had, and whether or not we disagreed on anything … financially, that’s a completely different story than the person or the player,” Gase said.

see also

Adam Gase addresses, fights off LeVeon Bell reports: ridiculous

One of the fallouts from the firing of Jets general…

I lobbied for the Jets to sign Bell because, much like Saquon Barkley, he is more than a running back. He is a weapon who will be a chain-moving safety valve for Darnold, once he knocks off the rust from his one-year layoff.

“Once we signed him, I was pumped,” Darnold said. “Just super stoked to have him on our team, and for me to have him as a weapon.”

Gase said the only thing he could possibly have said publicly when he was asked if he felt Bell was overpaid.

“No.”

Gase said the only thing he could have said when asked about trade speculation.

“Ridiculous.”

Whether Gase truly preferred Tevin Coleman, it is incumbent upon him now to forge ahead with a campaign aimed at sounding something like Giants GM Dave Gettleman gushing over Barkley. For Gase to push his coaching record over .500, he will probably need Bell to be his gold jacket guy.

“I’m excited he’s here. I think our players are excited he’s here,” Gase said. “I know our coaches are. You get a chance to coach a great player, a guy that’s done things that nobody’s ever done in the league, we’re excited for that opportunity.

“I’m excited to get him in the offense so I can start figuring out what else can we do with him, what has he done, what is he great at.”

Tweeting, for one.

“Yup,” Bell tweeted on Thursday afternoon. “Let’s get it Coach.”

Gase has won over Darnold, which is his top priority. So there’s hope.

“He’s a good dude,” Darnold said, “who you can just clown around with every now and then, which is awesome as a player. You love being able to have a normal conversation with your head coach, but at the same time, when it’s time to grind, when it’s time to focus on football, it’s tough to find anyone better than him.”

see also

Adam Gases version of Maccagnan firing: Owners phone call, no backstabbing

In his first extended comments since the Jets fired general…

Gase wisely isn’t making a stink over Bell skipping Thursday’s OTAs. Why the hell would he?

“Le’Veon Bell is a great player,” Gase said. “He’s a good person. He texts me all the time. All that stuff you get on Instagram, I get it first.”

Bell needs Gase to help him reestablish his star. Gase needs Bell to ride him to the playoffs and out of trouble.

“I get paid to take all the bullets,” Gase said.

They’ll deflect off Gase only if he wins, only if he can utilize Bell so creatively that even he will think the Straw That Stirs the Jets Drink is underpaid.