New York Jets fire head coach Robert Saleh after disappointing season start
By Wayne Sterling and Samuel Joseph, CNN
(CNN) — The New York Jets have fired head coach Robert Saleh, the team announced on Tuesday.
The Jets have started the 2024 season with two wins and three losses and are coming off a 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London on Sunday.
Saleh compiled a 20-36 regular season record with no playoff appearances in three-plus seasons on the sidelines. He is the NFL’s first head coach to be fired this season.
“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,” Jets chairman Woody Johnson said in a statement.
A product of San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan’s ever-growing coaching tree, Saleh was named Jets head coach in 2021 after spending four seasons as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator. He became the first Muslim American to lead an NFL team and the third Arab American head coach.
Saleh inherited a volatile situation in New York, with chaos – especially at the quarterback position – becoming one of the themes of his tenure.
His first season resulted in a disappointing 4-13 record, though Saleh’s roster was the youngest in the league. The Jets became only the second team since the AFL-NFL merger to be led by rookies in passing, rushing and receiving yards, per the team.
The 2022 season saw an uptick in performances and the team finished at 7-10, with the improvement spearheaded by talented rookies Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner, who were named the Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year respectively.
However, starting QB Zach Wilson – who was selected second overall by Gang Green in 2021 – struggled over his first two seasons in the league and alternated time as the starter with several different backups, including Mike White and Joe Flacco.
Wilson was replaced in 2023 by four-time Most Valuable Player Aaron Rodgers, who was acquired via trade from the Green Bay Packers. Expectations were high, but Rodgers ruptured his left Achilles tendon only four snaps into his first game and spent the entire season on the sidelines.
Wilson was inserted as the starter but was benched yet again as the offense continued to falter. The defense, though, regularly flourished under Saleh, and finished with the fourth and third ranked units in the 2022 and 2023 seasons respectively. The Jets missed the playoffs, again finishing with a 7-10 record.
Saleh entered the 2024 season on the hot seat, with a playoff run expected in the Big Apple. However, the Jets have stumbled out of the blocks, even with the 40-year-old Rodgers back having recovered from injury.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will replace Saleh on an interim basis, Johnson confirmed Tuesday.
“He is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team,” Johnson said. “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 next face the (3-2) Buffalo Bills at home on Monday Night Football.
The-CNN-Wire
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