The Athletic: League execs, coaches, “It doesn’t seem well-thought-out”

[slats]

League execs, coaches react to Jets firing Robert Saleh: ‘It doesn’t seem well-thought-out’

By Jeff Howe

1h ago

27

data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMTQiIGhlaWdodD0iMjAiIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxNCAyMCIgZmlsbD0ibm9uZSIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIj4KPHBhdGggZD0iTTAgMFYwLjAxOTk5VjEuNDk5MjVWMTguMjcwOVYxOS45OUw3IDE2LjA5MkwxMi41MDQzIDE5LjE2MDRMMTIuNTU0MSAxOS4xOTA0TDEyLjkyMzEgMTkuNDAwM0wxNCAyMFYxLjQ5OTI1VjAuMDE5OTlWMEgwWiIgZmlsbD0iYmxhY2siLz4KPC9zdmc+Cg==

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The New York Jets’ decision to fire coach Robert Saleh on Tuesday had raised plenty of eyebrows around the NFL.

The prevailing questions being asked by rival coaches and executives: What’s the true logic behind the decision, and what’s the Jets’ plan in both the short and long term?

Team owner Woody Johnson took sole responsibility for the decision to fire Saleh and said the move was necessary to spark a team that was underperforming with a 2-3 record. On the surface, there’s merit to that strategy, but others around the league were skeptical.

“Win on Monday (at home against the Buffalo Bills), and you are in first place in the AFC East,” said a high-ranking executive, who, like the other sources in this story, was granted anonymity so he could speak candidly. “(The firing) seems premature.”

The prime-time showdown with the Bills could have set the tone for the rest of the season. And it still could.

But now the Jets are dealing an with a distraction.

“This team is good enough to win the division,” another executive said. “But now you’re not even focused on Buffalo because the coach was just fired. It just doesn’t seem well-thought-out.”

GO DEEPER

NFL playoff projections 2024: Jets fire Saleh with playoff hopes fading

Ten executives and coaches from other teams were polled by The Athletic about the decision to fire Saleh. None of the 10 believed Saleh deserved to be fired so quickly, directing the brunt of the blame on Johnson for making a rash decision.

“Five games into his first (true) season with Aaron Rodgers seems a little premature to me,” a third executive said.

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Before the regular season, The Athletic surveyed 21 coaches and executives to get a prediction for which teams would underperform in 2024. The Jets finished tied for third with five votes. The panelists cited an aging Rodgers coming off a torn Achilles, an offensive system that lacked creativity in 2023 and numerous in-house distractionsover the past year as among the reasons for the vote.

Because of those factors, the 2-3 start wasn’t shocking. Neither was Saleh being on the hot seat. But one leading to the other at this early juncture felt impulsive.

“I was definitely a little surprised by the timing of it,” an assistant coach said. “It was probably inevitable, but it’s more of the Jets not being able to get out of their own way. I’m not sure what the firing now does, but I guess we’ll see.”

Again, Saleh had pressure to deliver improved results this season. That part was never really debatable. But the Jets lost to the reigning NFC champion San Francisco 49ers in the opener and then the undefeated Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in London. A week earlier, the 10-9 loss at home to the Denver Broncos could be painted as the only true misstep in this season’s win-loss column. Their best win, coupled with Rodgers’ marquee performance, came in Week 3 against the New England Patriots, who appear to be in contention for the No. 1 draft pick.

“The pressure was on (Saleh),” another assistant coach said. “They looked like they are going to win the Super Bowl a few weeks ago, and then (Saleh was fired after) a couple bad games.”

 

Dive deeper, and the defense laid an egg against the Niners. Rodgers also noted after that game that the Jets weren’t prepared to play championship football after such a humbling loss. The offense then looked out of sorts in a tight Week 2 victory against the Tennessee Titans. The Jets came out flat in the last two games against the Broncos and Vikings. It is reasonable to think a change in leadership could spark the Jets.

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But again, was now the appropriate time to search for such a jolt? Bills quarterback Josh Allen has thrown five interceptions in back-to-back losses to the Jets at the Meadowlands. The Jets’ defense — led by defensive coordinator/interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich — has typically delivered throughout Saleh’s three-plus seasons on the job, but there will be a challenge now to answer the bell against the Bills with a new voice in charge.

GO DEEPER

Who is Jeff Ulbrich? What to know about Jets’ interim coach after Robert Saleh’s firing

Another executive said he wasn’t sure what the firing really accomplishes, since the defense and offense stay the same. “Either something was happening behind the scenes, or (it was) just a move to make a move and hoping something changes,” he said.

If the Jets don’t rebound Monday against the Bills, the distractions could theoretically be compounded in a short week before road games against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Patriots. While midseason coaching firings do sometimes generate that missing spark, they also invite the possibility of the situation spiraling further out of control.

“Now they’re all coaching for their lives,” an executive said. “And at some point, they’re going to be focusing on looking for their next jobs.”

And then there’s the elephant in the room.

Johnson said he spoke with Rodgers on Monday night, but Rodgers didn’t have any input on the decision to fire Saleh. However, people around the league questioned the state of the relationship between Saleh and Rodgers, as that player-coach dynamic was the subject of questions during recent news conferences. The organization has gone all in on maximizing its potential and to maximize Rodgers’ comfort in Florham Park during his abbreviated window, which included bringing in many of the quarterback’s allies.

GO DEEPER

Is Aaron Rodgers too good for the Jets?

With any move like this, the long-term strategy must also be considered. Johnson will be hiring his eighth full-time head coach since taking ownership of the team in 2000. Joe Douglas, the fifth general manager over the same timeframe, must also be wondering about his fate, although he may find solace in the fact that he constructed the roster that Johnson just called the most talented of his tenure.

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The next coach will be taking over a promising roster with talent on both sides of the ball, including a huge draw in Rodgers, even though he turns 41 in December. But that coach will also be joining an organization that hasn’t made the playoffs, as of now, since the 2010 postseason. It has fewer playoff victories (six) than head coaches during Johnson’s stewardship.

“I don’t know how it gets better,” an executive said.

 

By becoming the first team to fire its head coach during the 2024 season, the Jets are hoping such a dramatic and unpopular task had been a necessary step toward immediate improvement.

But if it doesn’t work, the Jets will again be left with more questions than answers.

[slats]

Apologize for the formatting, but “plain text” wasn’t doing the job, either. 

[Barton]

He was a terrible effing head coach. Enough already. He had to go. Sooner the better. 

[Augustiniak]

I think saleh was on much shakier ground entering the season that we realized.  Also i think woody had enough of the bs talk and wasn’t willing to give him the time this year we thought.  

[JoeNamathsFurCoat]

League execs and coaches from other teams want to see the Jets embarrassed and humiliated so this isn’t exactly unbiased opinions being solicited.

Coaching is also some kind of fraternity so obviously they are gonna defend one of their own (anonymously). 

[Beerfish]

How it was handled was the usually jets fail but it was the right move and probably the only way to save the season and audition ulbirch.

 

[TheNuuFaaolaExperience]

This has been thought out for three plus years. After seeing the same mistakes with a hall of fame QB, LT, and a mostly new OL, it was time. After hearing the absolute horsesh*t coming out of Saleh's mouth after a brutal loss time after time, it was time to send Saleh packing. 

[JoeNamathsFurCoat]

5 minutes ago, Augustiniak said:

I think saleh was on much shakier ground entering the season that we realized.  Also i think woody had enough of the bs talk and wasn’t willing to give him the time this year we thought.  

Yes this.

It was baffling how clueless he came off with these responses like “it’s early” and “we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing”

It’s almost a situation where the cluelessness was so pronounced that maybe it was on some level intentional.

Rodgers said on McAfee before the season that if they don’t (collectively) start winning they’ll all be gone.  It was obvious the owner’s patience had worn thin.

Maybe this was Bob’s way of lowkey tapping out while still ensuring he still gets paid.

[Larz]

Pure trolling. 
 

a high quality coach has this team at 4-1 and cruising 

[slats]

Just now, Larz said:

Pure trolling. 
 

a high quality coach has this team at 4-1 and cruising 

Zuerlein hits a FG he should make at the end of regulation and Rodgers doesn’t throw a pick six against Minny, and this team could very well be 4-1. They weren’t far away and Rodgers just finally seemed to be somewhat on the same page as Wilson. 

[Augustiniak]

5 minutes ago, JoeNamathsFurCoat said:

Yes this.

It was baffling how clueless he came off with these responses like “it’s early” and “we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing”

It’s almost a situation where the cluelessness was so pronounced that maybe it was on some level intentional.

Rodgers said on McAfee before the season that if they don’t (collectively) start winning they’ll all be gone.  It was obvious the owner’s patience had worn thin.

Maybe this was Bob’s way of lowkey tapping out while still ensuring he still gets paid.

I think woody is going to get rid of people in the order in which he hates them.  Saleh was first.  IMO Hackett will be next.  Down the list are the gm (who woody seems to think has assembled the best jets team in terms of talent in many years, which is important to understand) and rodgers.  

Now, if rodgers plays like he did in the Vikings game for most of the rest of the season then we can all see he’s cooked and he retires.  But imo douglas stays around, picks a new hc with an offensive background and jd gets another shot at a qb.  

[peebag]

...and water is wet.

[Darnold's Forehead]

Nothing any outsiders say about the Jets ever seems well thought out.

Anyone with a brain who has watched this team in any capacity over the last few years knows this was a good decision.  Woody gave Saleh one final chance, to coach with an actual QB, and he came up more than short.  That’s likely why Saleh wasn’t fired during the offseason, but 5 games were enough for Woody.  I commend him for making this move.

[Dcronin]

I'm just wondering how this could give the team a "jolt." Yeah, a shock, a disorienting shock. You still have a complete a-hole at QB who is 67 and sore from head to toe, he's NOT Tom Brady, and you have an OC who read "Pop Warner Football Offense for Dummies" and that's it. We'll score 13 to 16 against the Bills, D will do their job again, and we'll lose again. No doubt.

[Beaver]

I imagine this was Woody pissed off.  He slept on it, but woke up still pissed and fired Saleh.    No it was not well thought out.   However I read from somewhere and I agree with completely.   Are the Jets any worse off with Saleh gone?   No

[slats]

13 minutes ago, Beaver said:

I imagine this was Woody pissed off.  He slept on it, but woke up still pissed and fired Saleh.    No it was not well thought out.   However I read from somewhere and I agree with completely.   Are the Jets any worse off with Saleh gone?   No

I’d argue that they are. Ulbrich can no longer focus on just the defense, and he’s lost the sounding board of the head coach who brought the system here. So the defense is potentially worse off, while simultaneously this move did absolutely nothing to fix the actual problem; the offense. 

[Augustiniak]

1 minute ago, slats said:

I’d argue that they are. Ulbrich can no longer focus on just the defense, and he’s lost the sounding board of the head coach who brought the system here. So the defense is potentially worse off, while simultaneously this move did absolutely nothing to fix the actual problem; the offense. 

Unless Saleh was the roadblock to actually changing anything substantial on the offense, and Ulbrich isn’t and now has full authority to change things.  

[Integrity28]

This article isn’t very well thought out.

Saleh has had the first 3rd of the season to make his mark, and we look worse. If te sane team we’ve seen the last month showed up Monday, then it’d be a forgone conclusion. I do not have any issue with Woody try to pre-empt another leg down. There was no evidence whatsoever this would be fixed by Saleh. 

Add to that he came across as a malcontent and yeah, but to fire fast in this case. Dont want that vibe in the building.

[Joe W. Namath]

Of course it wasnt well thought out.  It was a snap decision made by a qb who wants to throw u off the scent of how hes blown the last 2 games.

[Integrity28]

23 minutes ago, Dcronin said:

I'm just wondering how this could give the team a "jolt." Yeah, a shock, a disorienting shock. You still have a complete a-hole at QB who is 67 and sore from head to toe, he's NOT Tom Brady, and you have an OC who read "Pop Warner Football Offense for Dummies" and that's it. We'll score 13 to 16 against the Bills, D will do their job again, and we'll lose again. No doubt.

I mean, I think it’s more of a wake-up call, but semantics.

[BigRy56]

All that matters is Monday. Win Monday, take first place, and the rest of the season can fall into place

[slats]

2 minutes ago, Augustiniak said:

Unless Saleh was the roadblock to actually changing anything substantial on the offense, and Ulbrich isn’t and now has full authority to change things.  

As always, we’ll see how it plays out. I don’t see any benefit to making this move now, but I do see downsides. 

[Integrity28]

34 minutes ago, slats said:

Zuerlein hits a FG he should make at the end of regulation and Rodgers doesn’t throw a pick six against Minny, and this team could very well be 4-1. They weren’t far away and Rodgers just finally seemed to be somewhat on the same page as Wilson. 

Low percentage last ditch efforts to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat is a lot different than a well-coached team winning games they should.

[Augustiniak]

Just now, slats said:

As always, we’ll see how it plays out. I don’t see any benefit to making this move now, but I do see downsides. 

I don’t think there’s much of a downside, b/c it’s clear the offense isn’t working and the play is sloppy.  

[Integrity28]

1 minute ago, slats said:

As always, we’ll see how it plays out. I don’t see any benefit to making this move now, but I do see downsides. 

Not making the move: accepting mediocrity - this is no upside.

Making the move: roll the dice on achieving more - comes with risk, but at least gives you a chance at upside.

In this game, you’ve gotta be ballsy. Ed in our quiet lives can be risk averse. This is high stakes stuff.

[JetPotato]

Doesnt mean it was the wrong decision. Woody has fallen into luck before...

[Augustiniak]

8 minutes ago, Integrity28 said:

Low percentage last ditch efforts to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat is a lot different than a well-coached team winning games they should.

Offensive failure all game especially inside the 5 yard line led to having to make a long fg in bad weather.

[GangGreened]

I am not a fan of Saleh and glad he’s gone, but everyone other than Jets fans don’t seem to think this was the correct move to make.

[peekskill68]

48 minutes ago, Larz said:

Pure trolling. 
 

a high quality coach has this team at 4-1 and cruising 

The Atlantic dragging Jets fans for clicks. A tradition old as time...

[Warfish]

Quote

“It doesn’t seem well-thought-out”

It probably wasn't.

Doesn't mean Saleh didn't earn his dismissal.

[Lupz27]

58 minutes ago, slats said:

League execs, coaches react to Jets firing Robert Saleh: ‘It doesn’t seem well-thought-out’

By Jeff Howe

1h ago

27

data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMTQiIGhlaWdodD0iMjAiIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxNCAyMCIgZmlsbD0ibm9uZSIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIj4KPHBhdGggZD0iTTAgMFYwLjAxOTk5VjEuNDk5MjVWMTguMjcwOVYxOS45OUw3IDE2LjA5MkwxMi41MDQzIDE5LjE2MDRMMTIuNTU0MSAxOS4xOTA0TDEyLjkyMzEgMTkuNDAwM0wxNCAyMFYxLjQ5OTI1VjAuMDE5OTlWMEgwWiIgZmlsbD0iYmxhY2siLz4KPC9zdmc+Cg==

---

The New York Jets’ decision to fire coach Robert Saleh on Tuesday had raised plenty of eyebrows around the NFL.

The prevailing questions being asked by rival coaches and executives: What’s the true logic behind the decision, and what’s the Jets’ plan in both the short and long term?

Team owner Woody Johnson took sole responsibility for the decision to fire Saleh and said the move was necessary to spark a team that was underperforming with a 2-3 record. On the surface, there’s merit to that strategy, but others around the league were skeptical.

“Win on Monday (at home against the Buffalo Bills), and you are in first place in the AFC East,” said a high-ranking executive, who, like the other sources in this story, was granted anonymity so he could speak candidly. “(The firing) seems premature.”

The prime-time showdown with the Bills could have set the tone for the rest of the season. And it still could.

But now the Jets are dealing an with a distraction.

“This team is good enough to win the division,” another executive said. “But now you’re not even focused on Buffalo because the coach was just fired. It just doesn’t seem well-thought-out.”

GO DEEPER

NFL playoff projections 2024: Jets fire Saleh with playoff hopes fading

Ten executives and coaches from other teams were polled by The Athletic about the decision to fire Saleh. None of the 10 believed Saleh deserved to be fired so quickly, directing the brunt of the blame on Johnson for making a rash decision.

“Five games into his first (true) season with Aaron Rodgers seems a little premature to me,” a third executive said.

ADVERTISEMENT

Before the regular season, The Athletic surveyed 21 coaches and executives to get a prediction for which teams would underperform in 2024. The Jets finished tied for third with five votes. The panelists cited an aging Rodgers coming off a torn Achilles, an offensive system that lacked creativity in 2023 and numerous in-house distractionsover the past year as among the reasons for the vote.

Because of those factors, the 2-3 start wasn’t shocking. Neither was Saleh being on the hot seat. But one leading to the other at this early juncture felt impulsive.

“I was definitely a little surprised by the timing of it,” an assistant coach said. “It was probably inevitable, but it’s more of the Jets not being able to get out of their own way. I’m not sure what the firing now does, but I guess we’ll see.”

Again, Saleh had pressure to deliver improved results this season. That part was never really debatable. But the Jets lost to the reigning NFC champion San Francisco 49ers in the opener and then the undefeated Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in London. A week earlier, the 10-9 loss at home to the Denver Broncos could be painted as the only true misstep in this season’s win-loss column. Their best win, coupled with Rodgers’ marquee performance, came in Week 3 against the New England Patriots, who appear to be in contention for the No. 1 draft pick.

“The pressure was on (Saleh),” another assistant coach said. “They looked like they are going to win the Super Bowl a few weeks ago, and then (Saleh was fired after) a couple bad games.”

 

Dive deeper, and the defense laid an egg against the Niners. Rodgers also noted after that game that the Jets weren’t prepared to play championship football after such a humbling loss. The offense then looked out of sorts in a tight Week 2 victory against the Tennessee Titans. The Jets came out flat in the last two games against the Broncos and Vikings. It is reasonable to think a change in leadership could spark the Jets.

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But again, was now the appropriate time to search for such a jolt? Bills quarterback Josh Allen has thrown five interceptions in back-to-back losses to the Jets at the Meadowlands. The Jets’ defense — led by defensive coordinator/interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich — has typically delivered throughout Saleh’s three-plus seasons on the job, but there will be a challenge now to answer the bell against the Bills with a new voice in charge.

GO DEEPER

Who is Jeff Ulbrich? What to know about Jets’ interim coach after Robert Saleh’s firing

Another executive said he wasn’t sure what the firing really accomplishes, since the defense and offense stay the same. “Either something was happening behind the scenes, or (it was) just a move to make a move and hoping something changes,” he said.

If the Jets don’t rebound Monday against the Bills, the distractions could theoretically be compounded in a short week before road games against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Patriots. While midseason coaching firings do sometimes generate that missing spark, they also invite the possibility of the situation spiraling further out of control.

“Now they’re all coaching for their lives,” an executive said. “And at some point, they’re going to be focusing on looking for their next jobs.”

And then there’s the elephant in the room.

Johnson said he spoke with Rodgers on Monday night, but Rodgers didn’t have any input on the decision to fire Saleh. However, people around the league questioned the state of the relationship between Saleh and Rodgers, as that player-coach dynamic was the subject of questions during recent news conferences. The organization has gone all in on maximizing its potential and to maximize Rodgers’ comfort in Florham Park during his abbreviated window, which included bringing in many of the quarterback’s allies.

GO DEEPER

Is Aaron Rodgers too good for the Jets?

With any move like this, the long-term strategy must also be considered. Johnson will be hiring his eighth full-time head coach since taking ownership of the team in 2000. Joe Douglas, the fifth general manager over the same timeframe, must also be wondering about his fate, although he may find solace in the fact that he constructed the roster that Johnson just called the most talented of his tenure.

ADVERTISEMENT

The next coach will be taking over a promising roster with talent on both sides of the ball, including a huge draw in Rodgers, even though he turns 41 in December. But that coach will also be joining an organization that hasn’t made the playoffs, as of now, since the 2010 postseason. It has fewer playoff victories (six) than head coaches during Johnson’s stewardship.

“I don’t know how it gets better,” an executive said.

 

By becoming the first team to fire its head coach during the 2024 season, the Jets are hoping such a dramatic and unpopular task had been a necessary step toward immediate improvement.

But if it doesn’t work, the Jets will again be left with more questions than answers.

NFL Executives chiming in on an NFL executive firing.

”Yeah Premature”

Like they have no reason to push that narrative as hard as possible come on!

[JiFtheOracle]

Meh, it's more than a 5 game analysis.  And honestly, if I were an owner and I just watched one of the ugliest half's of Football I've ever seen after watching one of the ugliest games of Football I've ever seen, and then hear my Head Coach say, "we're going to keep doing we're what doing and everything is going to be fine".  Followed up by a comment like, "We are at the nothing part of the season" - sleeping on it, would have not been required.

 

[Thai Jet]

Just wondering if Woody checked with that A Hole Mike Florio before axing Saleh. 

[sourceworx]

The shocking part of the story is that people actually expected the troglodyte who owns this team to put some thought into his actions.

[PS17]

The national media acting like Saleh did no wrong is pretty thoughtless. Seems to be a “lol Jets what a terrible organization, look how good he was with the defense!” narrative going on. While ignoring the 6,000 red flags that made him an utterly awful head coach. 

I agree that we are a brainless clownshow of an organization but this was absolutely the right move.