New York Jets’ firing of Robert Saleh startling but not surprising, given Woody Johnson’s previous remarks

The early returns certainly were not what Johnson or the Jets (2-3) could have hoped for — Week 4’s 10-9 home loss to the Denver Broncos was particularly bothersome — and this time, there was no Zach Wilson to blame. Johnson — whose brother, Christopher, hired Saleh while Woody was serving as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom during the Trump administration — brought Saleh back after 2023 because he wanted to give his football staff an opportunity with a healthy Aaron Rodgers. The opportunity lasted five games.

That the offense has sputtered in the first five weeks of the 2024 campaign — that the Jets haven’t established the run; have struggled to pass protect, leaving Rodgers open to battering; still have work-in-progress timing between Rodgers and his receivers; that Rodgers threw three interceptions in the 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London this past Sunday — is almost beside the point. The Jets are not getting rid of Rodgers, around whom the entire franchise is currently orbiting. The future Hall of Famer has amassed tremendous power and security. So, if something drastic had to change, the thinking goes, it needed to be the voice and the message players are receiving.

It’s worth noting that Saleh alone seems to be paying the price for the Jets’ underperformance. The rest of the coaching staff — including Rodgers’ hand-picked offensive coordinator, Nathaniel Hackett — remains intact for now. General manager Joe Douglas still has his job.

Is it early to pull the plug? Of course. And if the leash was going to be this short, Johnson probably should have given serious thought to making a change last offseason. Until now, Johnson had never fired a coach in the middle of a season. After the London loss, Saleh himself implored fans to remain patient because it was “early” in the campaign.

On the other hand, five games is not a blip, the Jets were not cleaning up even the most rudimentary issues and, at times, they looked startingly like the 2023 version of the team that went 7-10. Penalties plagued New York last season and were continuing to be an issue this season — the Jets were the most penalized team in the 2023 regular season (124), and since 2023, they have been called for the most penalties in the NFL (163). Since 2021, the year Saleh was hired, the Jets have averaged the fewest points per game (17.3) and have the most giveaways (89) in the NFL. Saleh’s 20-36 record is the third-worst in the NFL since he was hired.

“One of the reasons I decided to make a coaching change is exactly that, we need to find ways to win,” Johnson said Tuesday. “We’re not going to find those ways by doing the same thing over and over and over.”