New York Jets fire Robert Saleh: why they made the move now
By Zack Rosenblatt and Dianna Russini
The New York Jets didn’t want to fire Robert Saleh after last season, partly because they didn’t think they could find anyone better to replace him — and also because Aaron Rodgers wanted him back. Five games into the 2024 season, Jets owner Woody Johnson decided Saleh wasn’t good enough anymore and fired him on Tuesday. Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will be the interim coach.
According to team sources, Johnson did not consult with other members of the Jets’ front office, including GM Joe Douglas, before making the decision to fire Saleh. Johnson informed Saleh of his resignation on Tuesday morning. Saleh told the owner that he understood the expectations of the season but believed he would have more time to see it through, highlighting the impressive performances of the defense during his tenure. But the decision had already been made: Saleh was escorted out of the building as a formality by Robert Mastroddi, the team’s head of security and a friend of Saleh.
— New York Jets (@nyjets) October 8, 2024
In three-plus seasons, Saleh went 20-36 and the Jets have never sniffed the postseason despite having one of the NFL’s best defenses the past two years. Saleh and his staff were mulliganed after last year, in part because Rodgers suffered an Achilles injury four games into the season, leaving the Jets with a QB rotation of Zach Wilson, Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian. That was mostly a disaster, and behind the scenes Saleh didn’t exactly win many fans with the way he handled that situation, often privately pointing out that other successful coaches in the league also struggled with backup quarterbacks.
Then the last two weeks happened – with Rodgers at quarterback. In losses to the Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings, the offense has struggled in a way it did when Wilson was still a quarterback. The same problems – a team that looked unprepared at the start of games, too many penalties, questionable decision-making and a lack of accountability – ultimately proved to be enough for Johnson to pull the plug on Saleh five weeks into the season . The most time he ever fired a head coach during 25 seasons as owner of the Jets. According to a team source, Johnson felt the Jets have a roster ready to compete now and felt compelled to take action now before it was too late.
Several players and coaches said it The Athletics after Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London that the team’s atmosphere was “poor,” that Saleh was losing support and that some – especially players on defense – were frustrated by the lack of accountability as the offense continued to make the same mistakes as those we have made in recent years, and once again wasted a great defensive effort. Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett also doesn’t have much support on the Jets roster or coaching staff, according to sources, and many were frustrated with his play-calling last year.
My understanding is that the Jets have no intention of firing OC Nathaniel Hackett.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 8, 2024
Pro Bowl linebacker Quincy Williams didn’t hide his frustration after the game.
‘I’ll be honest. People get tired of hearing the same s–” Williams told SNY. “People have to take responsibility from the top down. That’s all I have to say… people need to start taking responsibility, I’m tired of saying the same thing every week.’
Ultimately, it’s hard to blame Johnson for this move to fire Saleh, even if it seems surprising at this point, especially considering the way the season went for a team that had such high expectations coming out of training camp.
Ulbrich was the obvious choice to replace Saleh for the remainder of this season. He is loved by the Jets roster and staff, and respected by Rodgers. Saleh excelled as the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator before the Jets hired him in 2021, but he handed the keys of the defense to Ulbrich when he became head coach. Ulbrich has been a driving force in getting the Jets from the 32nd-ranked scoring defense in 2021 to fourth in 2022, 12th in 2023 and seventh so far in 2024.
“He’s just a real coach,” defenseman Jermaine Johnson said The Athletics last season. “He did it, which is extremely important to me. It’s very easy for me to take what he says and apply it, because I know he did it, that he was there. He did it at a high level. Obviously, he has proven himself in the way he can run a defense and lead a group of alphas and a group of dominant males. I don’t see why he wouldn’t be a head coach. I think everything good that happens to him, he deserves 100 percent.”
Ulbrich really started to warm up to the idea of becoming a head coach a day before last season, he told people close to him. He was head coach at the Senior Bowl earlier this year and it gave him a taste of what that could look like.
“I think this is an opportunity for me to look at it from a different perspective, from a global perspective,” Ulbrich said. “It’s just amazing how many little things that I never really thought about as a position coach and coordinator that a head coach has to deal with, so many non-football things. It was interesting from that point of view. From that point of view, it’s a great opportunity to look at it through that lens.”
Now he gets a real chance to prove to the Jets (or any other team that might have an opening) that he deserves a shot at a full-time job. The path is set for him: the Jets have a playoff-caliber roster and it’s early enough in the season to turn things around, starting this week against the Buffalo Bills. A win would move them into a tie for first place in the AFC East. This is an organization that hasn’t made the postseason in 13 years, and if Ulbrich can pull that off after the Jets’ slow start to the year, it would make a compelling case for a promotion to full-time. If the Jets continue to stumble, there are expected to be a number of attractive coaching candidates available this offseason, including former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, who should be at the top of the candidate list if Ulbrich doesn’t keep the job.
Saleh didn’t do enough to reach the postseason. So now the Jets are moving on from Ulbrich with their playoff goal still intact.
This story will be updated.
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(Photo: Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
