Jets fire head coach Robert Saleh after record of 20-36 in more than three seasons: ‘We are not where we should be’

The New York Jets have fired head coach Robert Saleh.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter: the Jets told Saleh around 10 a.m. ET. Team owner Woody Johnson released a statement a short time later about firing Saleh and announced that defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will be the interim head coach going forward. The Jets are 2-3 this season and have never had a winning season with Saleh as head coach.

Saleh came with a lot of buzz when he was hired in 2021 to replace Adam Gase. He had a standout stint as defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers for four seasons and over time became a leading head coaching candidate. He had a clean slate when he was hired; the franchise was without a quarterback, but did have the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming draft.

And with that No. 2 pick, the Jets drafted Zach Wilson, who ended up being a major bust for the franchise. It’s hard to know how much of that roster was on Saleh, but he was stuck with it regardless.

According to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports, Saleh was surprised by the fire.

It appeared things were changing for Saleh when the Jets traded for Aaron Rodgers before the 2023 season. Rodgers was 39 years old at the time and still had more left in the tank, and he wanted to use it in New York.

We all know what happened then. Rodgers tore his Achilles four plays into the first game of the season, meaning Saleh had to use Wilson as his starting QB again. Now, finally in 2024, after waiting three seasons to see what Saleh can do with a serious quarterback, the Jets gave him just five games with Rodgers to show it off.

At the end of his 56-game tenure with the Jets, Saleh is 20-36. Considering all the adversity he faced during that time, one has to wonder how Saleh would have fared if even one thing had gone his way. If he had had a quarterback instead of Wilson when he started with the Jets, how different would the Jets be today?

The answer to that cannot be found. For whatever reason, the Jets had seen enough of Saleh.