Getty New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh staring off into the distance during an NFL game.
New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh has been under the microscope since he took the job back in January.
Now that we’ve reached the NFL regular season, everyone has opinions on what he should or shouldn’t be doing on a day-to-day basis.
Apparently, that group also includes his own mother.
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Mama Knows Best
During Wednesday’s open availability to the media, Jets’ head coach Robert Saleh was asked about being in the big chair making the decisions:
“She will probably kill me, God bless my mother. Broken English. Doesn’t even know how many yards it takes to get a first down. She was coaching me up on what we should tell our wide receivers. So everybody has an opinion and I had an opinion too and you take it with a grain of salt. But I’m not afraid to absorb all the information, you never know what you might find. All of it is worth something.”
#Jets HC Robert Saleh is getting advice from everyone on how he should be coaching, including his mother, ‘God bless my mother. Broken English. Doesn’t know how many yards you need for a first down. She was telling me how I should be coaching up the WRs.’ 🤣 #NYJvsDEN #TakeFlight
Prior to becoming a head coach, Saleh cut his teeth as an assistant for over 18 years both in the college and the NFL ranks.
Everyone thinks they can do the head coach’s job and everyone has an opinion on what call they would’ve made, but ultimately one man is responsible for that job for better or for worse.
Later Saleh was asked specifically what advice did his mother give and he responded, “I was a little upset at the time so I’m not sure I took it all in but I probably should’ve, but I can’t remember exactly what it was.”
I Think We Know What Mother Was Complaining About
Although if we had to guess what that advice was, it probably had something to do with second-year wideout Denzel Mims.
That has been the most polarizing topic on 1 Jets Drive over the last few months and has raised some serious questions about the coaching staff’s competency early on.
On paper, the former Baylor product has impressive physical gifts: (6-foot-3, 210 pounds), 4.38 40-yard dash, and a propensity for making splash plays. Despite that, he has been buried on the depth chart since the spring and there doesn’t appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Most recently in the Week 2 matchup vs the New England Patriots, he was a healthy scratch due to his lack of knowledge on the playbook, minimal special teams contributions, and the overall depth of the position.
Rich Cimini of ESPN says the “handwriting [is] on the wall” that Mims will once again be deactivated ahead of the Jets’ matchup vs the Denver Broncos.
Veteran wide receiver Jamison Crowder will eventually return to the team after his injured groin is healed. That’ll only continue to bury the talented stud on the bench for the foreseeable future.
Here is how the snap count broke down following Week 2:
- Elijah Moore (57)
- Corey Davis (53)
- Braxton Berrios (43)
- Jeff Smith (20)
- Keelan Cole (16)
Speaking of Berrios, through two weeks of the NFL season he leads the Jets in targets (18), yards (124), and receptions (12). For proper context, Davis and Moore each only have 12 targets.
If this continues for much longer, Robert Saleh’s mother won’t be the only one complaining about the receiving corps in 2021.
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