On Tuesday, the firing of Jets head coach Robert Saleh shocked the New York sports world. Saleh’s tenure in New York showed promise at times, but failure at others. He spent 56 games with the franchise and only won 20 of them. Reports say Saleh was abruptly fired by the Jets owner and was not allowed to address the team on his way out. It was also reported that team security immediately escorted Saleh out after his firing.
Saleh had a perfect defensive mind and had the Jets’ defense in a good position. However, the issue is Saleh never meshed with the offense, and this became a problem, as the team would still lose, even if the defense posted great games. Now, the blame is not all on the head coach, as many players have not lived up to expectations this season, including Hall of Famer, Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers has been under constant pressure through the first couple of games of the season, though an elite level talent like him should be able to work around that. As the quarterback of the team, he also has plenty of talent in Breece Hall and Garret Wilson, who had his first breakout game of the season last week, showing promise for Jets fans. The Jets were 2-3 after their week 5 game in London versus the Vikings, and this was a questionable time to fire Saleh, as the squad only lost to the 5-0 Vikings by a touchdown. The team simply did not do enough to win and made too many mistakes when it mattered most, which comes down to discipline and coaching. Ultimately, the head coach gets the blame for losing, so Saleh is in the wrong.
The reason the Jets pulled the trigger this fast is they believe they have their best team in years. Their goal is to make it far in the playoffs and chase that elusive next title. They also have Rodgers, who is aging rapidly, so getting him while he is still elite is an important factor to the team. Saleh may not have been the whole problem; however, it can’t hurt to try someone new at the helm. Saleh had the roster to be an elite team in the league. However, the results from the first five weeks showed that neither the team nor the coach was at that level. The higher-ups ultimately decided the coach was the problem and not the team.
I think Saleh deserved a couple more weeks to tinker with lineups and work with the team. At the same time, it was smart to fire him early because the team has time to get back on track and acclimate to their new head coach before their next game. The new acting head coach will be defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich as the Jets look to make a playoff push.