Robert Saleh is out of a job largely because of the ineptitude of the New York Jets’ offense, but a new report suggests he saw trouble on the horizon during the offseason and tried to address it.
A new report from Dianna Russini of The Athletic suggests Saleh targeted several high-profile offensive figures for his coaching staff in the offseason. Those include Eric Bieniemy, Kliff Kingsbury, Luke Getsy, and Arthur Smith.
Ultimately, all four coaches took offensive coordinator positions elsewhere. That role was unavailable in New York because of the presence of Nathaniel Hackett, and Saleh was apparently unwilling to outright fire Hackett and replace him, perhaps because of Hackett’s friendship with quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Several reports emerged during the offseason suggesting that the Jets were looking for a new offensive play-caller, which would have led to a demotion for Hackett. The Jets ultimately never made that hire. All four of the aforementioned names wound up as offensive coordinators elsewhere — and notably did not have to worry about sharing the title or authority with someone else.
Considering how shaky the Jets’ offense has been in 2024, even with Rodgers healthy, it is fair to say this non-hire may have ultimately cost Saleh his job. Supposedly, Saleh was about to finally demote Hackett just before he was fired himself, though it was not enough to save Hackett from being demoted.
The Jets enter Week 6 at 2-3, with only 93 points scored through five games.
