NEW YORK — The New York Jets have fired head coach Robert Saleh just five games into the season, the team announced Tuesday.
Saleh it was appointed head coach in January 2021becomes the NFL’s first Muslim head coach. During his tenure, the Jets went 20-36, all part of the NFL longest active playoff droughtwhich means 13 seasons.
“This morning I informed Robert Saleh that he will no longer serve as Head Coach of the Jets. I thanked him for his hard work over the past three and a half years and wished him and his family the best of luck in the future,” owner Woody Johnson said in a statement. declaration. “This was not an easy decision, but we are not yet where we should get our expectations, and I believe this is the best time for us to move in a different direction.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will take over as interim head coach, Johnson confirmed.
“(Ulbrich) is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team. I believe that together with the coaches on this staff, he can get the most out of our talented team and achieve the goals we set this offseason. Johnson said.
Those goals were lofty, and some even whispered about the Super Bowl. The Jets are still hoping to make the playoffs for the first time since losing in the AFC Championship game at the end of the 2010 season, and have taken numerous steps to that end, especially during this past season.
Still, they’re 2-3, inclusive a dismal performance in a 10-9 home loss to the Denver Broncos two weeks ago. The Jets followed that up with a brutal start in an eventual 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in London.
The latter was quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ worst game with New York, when he threw three interceptions and often ran for his life behind an offensive line that struggled to protect him and open holes in the running game.
Despite all the problems, the Jets will take on the Buffalo Bills next Monday night at MetLife Stadium with a chance to take over first place in the AFC East.
Saleh said he wasn’t panicking after the Vikings’ loss
On Monday, Saleh said he was confident they could turn things around.
“There is so much football to play,” he told reporters. “There are so many things we can get better at, and there are so many things we can continue to build on, the things we are good at.”
“So I’m not panicking,” he added. “No one in the building is panicking.”
This is the first time in owner Johnson’s 25-year tenure that he has been head coach for a season.
Who is Jeff Ulbrich?
Ulbrich, who played linebacker for 10 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, joined the Jets in 2021 as part of Saleh’s initial staff. He was an assistant at Atlanta for six seasons before coming to New York.
The Jets’ defense wasn’t the problem at the start of the 2024 season. The unit currently ranks second in the NFL, allowing just 256 yards per game, and ranks fifth in scoring defense, allowing just 17 points per match.
And the defense is doing it despite not having holdout edge rusher Haasan Reddick all season, losing defensive end Jermaine Johnson to a season-ending Achilles injury and playing the last few games without all-middle linebacker C.J. Mosley due to a toe injury. injury.
Ulbrich will be tasked with undoing an offense that has been just as bad. The Jets currently rank 27th in total offense, averaging 287 yards per game, and 25th in scoring, averaging 18.6 points per game.
Stay with CBS News New York for the latest updates on this developing story.
