2. New Orleans Saints
Death, taxes and the Saints in salary cap purgatory looking toward every offseason. These are the certainties in life. Right now (Dec. 20), via Over The Cap, they are $63.76 million in the red for 2025. They may also have a new quarterback next year. Derek Carr's future in some doubt, with $30 million guaranteed for injury due to him in March. Carr is currently not healthy (broken hand and concussion), and if he can't pass a physical before that $30 million becomes fully guaranteed New Orleans would be on the hook for the full $40 million in guaranteed money next year.
Overall, the Saints could stand to tear things down and rebuild. But they also don't seem inclined to do so, instead fine with not making any drastic chances and occupying the mediocre middle ground they never quite escape from year after year.
Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn is regarded as a candidate for the Saints' head coaching job, with an assumption they'll have strong interest in him. For Johnson, if not Glenn too, there's not much to like about what's going on in New Orleans and they seem ill-equipped/unwilling to make moves to change that.
1. New York Jets
The Jets feel certain to have a lot of interest in making Glenn their next head coach, and there's some buzz the interest will be very mutual. But that's not the reason Johnson will avoid this job opening like it's the plague.
The addition of Aaron Rodgers has put some spotlight on it the last couple years, but Jets have been a picture of dysfunction for a long time. Owner Woody Johnson does nothing to foster a winning culture, which was most recently evidenced by a piece from The Athletic. There's a reason this organization has not made the playoffs since 2010, and it's the man at the top.
Namely, Johnson apparently backed off a trade with the Denver Broncos for wide receiver Jerry Jeudy because his Madden rating wasn't high enough. The Athletic also reported Johnson and his family members have berated players in the locker room, noting one example where Johnson apologized to a player. Johnson's sons, apparently driven by what they see on websites and blogs, have their father's ear when it comes to decision-making.
The piece in The Athletic has more examples of how Johnson operates as a owner. Any one thing that's chronicled stands to turn away good candidates for their general manager and head coaching openings. The combination of all of them practically ensures they won't get anyone who has options (possibly including Glenn, no matter how much he may want the head coaching job).
If Johnson is only going to take interviews for jobs he would actually take, and there's no reason to doubt that, the Jets' job is clearly the top one he shouldn't want and thus he probably won't even interview for it.