Newly appointed interim New York Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich has wasted no time making moves since taking over for Robert Saleh, changing offensive playcalling duties from Nathaniel Hackett to Todd Downing, per Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team on X, formerly Twitter. Ulbrich was promoted into the role after Saleh’s dismissal from the team early this week, which occurred on the heels of the Jets’ crushing London loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Since taking over, Ulbrich appears to have already ingratiated himself with other people who have experienced something similar to him around the league, including three current head coaches who were with him during his time in the Atlanta Falcons’ organization.
“Dan (Quinn) has been a great resource for me, always,” said Ulbrich, via Meirov. “So has Matt LaFleur. Raheem Morris and I have spoken at length. The beauty of (Raheem) is not only is he one of my best friends on this Earth, but he’s been through this as far as an interim is concerned, and he gave me a lot of advice regarding that. But I’m very fortunate to have a lot of current head coaches of what this position looks like, feels like, and what’s necessary to be successful in it.”
Indeed, Raheem Morris was named interim head coach of the Falcons during the 2020 season, ironically after Dan Quinn was fired from that position. Morris is now the full-time head coach of the Falcons, while Quinn holds that position with the Washington Commanders, and LaFleur in Green Bay.
Can the Jets turn things around?
One thing that’s become apparent in the days since Saleh’s firing is that many around the league feel he was merely a scapegoat for some deeper organizational troubles for the Jets. Last year, it was easy to have sympathy for Saleh’s inability to get the offense into gear considering the Motley crew of quarterbacks he was forced to rotate through, but those struggles have largely continued even with Aaron Rodgers back in the mix.
It’s certainly fair to wonder whether that’s a product of Rodgers simply no longer being himself at the age of 40 and coming off of arguably the most devastating injury in sports, an Achilles tear. Rodgers sure hasn’t looked like the MVP version of himself in the last two Jets’ losses.
In any case, New York will take the field with Ulbrich patrolling the sidelines for the first time on Monday at home vs the Buffalo Bills in prime time.
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