The New York Jets have fired head coach Robert Saleh after their disappointing 2-3 start to the 2024 NFL season. Apparently, their 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London on Sunday was the last straw. Saleh ends his tenure as New York’s head coach with a 20-36 record. The Jets went 4-13 in his first year and 7-10 in each of his next two seasons.
According to multiple reports, Saleh showed up for work on Tuesday morning, was fired, and then escorted from the facility by team security. He did not get to address the players or members of his coaching staff.
Of course, one of the biggest stories of the season has been the apparent disconnect between Saleh and his star quarterback, future Pro Football Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers.
New York Jets Quarterback Aaron Rodgers Denied Friction Between Himself and Robert Saleh
Ever since the offseason, there has seemingly been something off between Rodgers and Saleh. As fans may recall, Saleh listed Rodgers as absent and unexcused from mandatory minicamp because the four-time NFL MVP went to Egypt.
A couple of weeks ago, Saleh and Rodgers and two very different opinions about the offensive line and their false start penalties. The former Jets head coach told the media he thought that Rodgers should probably tone down his cadence. When told about Saleh’s comment, Rodgers said he believed the team needs to hold the offensive line accountable instead of asking him to change the way he’s been signaling plays for two decades.
These are just two examples of things that would indicate that things just were not right between head coach and quarterback. However, Rodgers stated last week that there was nothing wrong between him and Saleh and that the media had created the narrative that there was:
”I think there’s some driving force trying to put a wedge [from] outside the facility between Robert and I. We’re really good friends. We enjoy each other. We spend time almost every day in his office talking about things and talking about the energy of the team, focus of the team. What we need to get done, how I can help him out, how he can help me out. So we’ve got a great relationship.”
And it would seem that Rodgers was speaking the truth based on what Woody Johnson said regarding Saleh’s firing on Tuesday.
New York Jets Owner Woody Johnson Says Aaron Rodgers Was Not Consulted Regrading Robert Saleh Being Fired
A few hours after firing Saleh and having him escorted from the premises by security, Johnson met with reporters in a virtual press conference. During that media session, he revealed that he spoke to Rodgers on Monday night, but did not bring up Saleh.
The decision was made without his quarterback’s knowledge, or so he claims.
Johnson also said that he consulted general manager Joe Douglas, but that the decision to fire Saleh was his alone.
