Robert Saleh will not get a chance to turn around the New York Jets' careening plane.
The Jets fired Saleh on Tuesday, ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷ÍøNetwork Insider Tom Pelissero reported, per sources informed of the situation.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich takes over as interim head coach, Good Morning Football's Peter Schrager reported, per sources.
After sticking with Saleh entering Year 4, firing him five games into the season is a surprising move by the New York brass. In 56 games as head coach, Saleh compiled a 20-36 record, never generating a winning season. His final game with the Jets was a 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London.
The Jets later confirmed Saleh's firing.
"This morning, I informed Robert Saleh that he will no longer serve as the head coach of the Jets," Jets owner Woody Johnson said in a statement. "I thanked him for his hard work these past three-and-a-half years and wished him and his family well moving forward. 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.
"Jeff Ulbrich will serve as our interim head coach for the remainder of the season. He is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team. 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."
Schrager later reported that Saleh arrived at work on Tuesday ready to prepare for next Monday's pivotal prime-time game against the Buffalo Bills, but was then called into a meeting with Woody Johnson and Jets vice chairman Christopher Johnson during which he learned his fate.
Defense wasn't the issue under Saleh, as Gang Green finished in the top 5 in yards allowed and top 12 in points in each of the past two seasons. Through five weeks in 2024, New York's D ranked second in yards allowed and fifth in points given up. However, the Jets could never figure out the offense, ranking in the bottom quarter of the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøin yards and scoring in each of his four seasons. The inability to help develop Zach Wilson counted against Saleh's scorecard. New York cycled through six QBs in the coach's three-plus seasons at the helm.
Aaron Rodgers' acquisition in 2023 was supposed to change things for New York. However, a Week 1 Achilles tear wiped away that plan in Year 1. Saleh bungled the transition with Wilson, cycling through quarterbacks last season. Through five games this season, the offense still struggled under Nathaniel Hackett and Rodgers, as Gang Green has averaged 18.6 points per game and rarely found any consistency in an outdated scheme.
While Saleh and Rodgers said the right things, the relationship never seemed settled. An odd disagreement about the quarterback's cadence becoming a storyline in New York last week underscored the seeming disconnect between coach and quarterback. Shrager, however, was told Rodgers did not have a signifcant role in the decision to fire Saleh.
Sitting at 2-3 in a struggling AFC East, with game against Bills on tap, there is still time for the Jets to turn things around. Saleh simply won't be the man flying the plane.
Ulbrich played 10 seasons in the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøand is a highly respected assistant. The 47-year-old joined Saleh's staff as DC in 2021. Ulbrich worked as a head coach this offseason at the Senior Bowl. Now he gets a chance to do the real thing and try to save the Jets season.
This is the first time in Johnson's 25 years of ownership that he has fired a coach mid-season.
