There’s something brewing in Jets Nation, as the club replaced the horrendous coaching era of Adam Gase(9-23 in two years with the Jets, including a 2-14 stint this season), with a 2013 Super Bowl champion with the Seahawks, and 2019 NFC champion as a defensive coordinator for the 49ers, in Robert Saleh. While some analysts will say he’s a “players coach”, because he connects very well with players, such as Richard Sherman, and Allen Robinson (Free agents this year by the way) testifying that, Saleh showed in today’s introductory press conference, it’s because of his commitment, leadership, ambition, passion, and knowledge of the game of football that makes him well -liked around the NFL world. So when he was given permission by San Francisco to explore other options, their was a reason why teams with head-coaching vacancies wanted him. But in the end, it was Joe Douglas, and the Jets who got to it first, meeting with Saleh twice in long quantities across a 12 hour span, which essentially sealed the deal for him, even though he met with the Philadelphia Eagles right after them.
NY also hired some well -respected assistants, in offensive coordinate Mike Laflur(Not to be confused with his brother Matt who is currently the head coach of the NFC championship bound Green Bay Packers), and Falcons defensive coordinator, Jeff Ulbrich (Who has worked with young teams as recently as this past season), who Saleh said will be handling the defense, while he oversees things as a head coach is supposed to do.
The Jets goal this offseason was to bring in a coach who can change the culture, and give this team an identity , and they may have found that in Robert Saleh , who repeatedly said Robert Saleh's message to his players “ Get used to the mantra 'All gas, no brake.' When we wake up in the morning, we will all step on the pedal and find a way to get somewhat better".
But how does that change the philosophy? "It will take time, but everything we do is designed to win championships in the future. We are very confident that's going to lead to championships.” A guy with championship aspirations, and while you say every coach says that, it’s refreshing to hear it come out of a person who’s philosophy goes as deep as you waking up in the morning.
Obviously though, another reason the Jets did this hire now, is because they need help with their QB situation, because Sam Darnold needs to get out of here, and it’s not really him, it’s more of who’s around him. We have seen glimpses of what Sam can do, and the way he carries himself in the locker room, is something coaches, and the media have raved about, but it’s more of the Jets needing to surround him with the right staff, and players, which won’t come right away, for a player that is already three years into his NFL career.
The Jets want to kickstart this rebuilding process, because they’ve been in “pre-build” for years, due to coaching changes, bad draft picks, and organizational turmoil. The question here is exactly what does Saleh want to do? Would he like to start from scratch by selecting Zach Wilson, or Justin Fields with the NO2 pick in the draft, try to use Laflurs past relationship with Darnold to his advantage, and build from within, or go for it early, and speed up the process by pushing Douglas to try and trade for superstar Texans QB Deshaun Watson; who’s price is likely going to be similar to what the Jets wanted for disgruntled safety Jamal Adams (2 first- rounders, a second, and a professional player) this past Summer?
But what Robert said about Darnold today really makes you think it’s something that will take some time , but the fact LF the matter is, “ He's got an unbelievable arm talent, there's a reason why he was the #3 pick in the draft. He's tough as nails", and the fact he’s already reached out to Sam, and every other Jets player tells you how excited Saleh is to get to Florham Park for training camp in July. That’s what this team needs, a guy who’s openly willing to “Jet” to work everyday and be there for this team, as they work towards their ultimate goal. We have a lot of work to do, but make no mistake that our goal is to win championships,” said Saleh, and boy yes they do. This is a team that still is looking for a foundation, so why not bring in a team that has experience doing just that, in Saleh, Laflur, and Ulbrich.
“Everybody says this is a business - it's not. It's a personal investment to people. The most important people are the ones that strap up on gameday and step between the lines." Right now, the people who step in between those lines, is the same team that went 2-14 in 2020. But with the a culture change, some big-time splashes, like CB Richard Sherman, WR Allen Robinson, and QB Deshaun Watson who all reportedly “like” the new coaching hire, things may be looking up for Jets, and already are considering the fact that anyone wants to go play for this historically bad franchise at all.
When Adam Gase arrived on the scene, what you didn’t hear was much on how he would handle the defense, with Saleh you hear both sides to a football team, and Jets Nation is hoping that this jolt of “Saleh-Mania” is just what this franchise needs.
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