It was only a matter of time. The New York Jets are parting ways with their head coach, as they made the controversial decision to fire Robert Saleh on Tuesday, CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones confirms. Jones also reports that Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will take over the reins as the interim head coach.
Saleh’s firing is the first time in owner Woody Johnson’s 25-year tenure that he has given the axe to a coach in the middle of the season. After posting a 7-10 record in 2023, Johnson admitted that he was extremely upset with the way the season played out and raised the temperature, along with the stakes for Saleh by demanding significant improvement.
“This morning, I informed Robert Saleh that he will no longer serve as the Head Coach of the Jets. I thanked him for his hard work these past three-and-a-half years and wished him and his family well moving forward. This was not an easy decision, but we are not where we should be given our expectations, and I believe now is the best time for us to move in a different direction,” Johnson said in a statement.
“Jeff Ulbrich will serve as our Interim Head Coach for the remainder of the season. He is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team. I believe he along with the coaches on this staff can get the most out of our talented team and attain the goals we established this offseason.”
The Jets have kicked off this make it or break it 2024 campaign 2-3, with the most recent loss coming to former Jets’ No. 3 overall pick out of USC Sam Darnold and the 5-0 Minnesota Vikings across the pond in London. The last NFL head coach to be fired five games into a season was Matt Rhule in 2022, by the Carolina Panthers.
Embed from Getty ImagesSaleh, who was hired by the Jets in 2021, came to the ‘City That Never Sleeps’ after a successful run as the San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator, and went an uninspiring 20-36 as head coach of the Jets, and never compiled a winning season. That was expected to change when the Jets acquired Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers, but through five weeks, it is evident that the offense, and team as a whole, is still searching for its identity and what makes them click as a unit.
Finding a pot of gold with the four-time NFL MVP that the Jets traded for was something Saleh had to do if he wanted to keep his job. But Rodgers is off to the worst start of his 20-year career, having recorded the fewest passing yards (1,093), his worst yards per attempt (6.0) and worst passer rating (81.6) through five games in his first ballot Hall of Fame career.
Saleh has coached one of the best defenses in the league over the past few years. In fact, the Jets enter Week 6 against the Buffalo Bills as the No. 2 unit in terms of total yards allowed per game (255.8). But Saleh’s anemic offenses left a lot o meat on the bone and have always missed the mark. The Jets were in the basement averaging the fewest points per game in the NFL with Saleh at the helm (17.3), while starting six different quarterbacks in Rodgers, Zach Wilson, Mike White, Joe Flacco, Trevor Siemian and Tim Boyle.
