The New York Jets defense is broken.
They don’t have the horses, the production, or the coaching quite frankly and something needs to change.
This disgusting display needs to be rectified yesterday and there is one man that can fix the job.
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Some Glaring Issues Need to Be Addressed
Jets head coach Robert Saleh was hired back in January of 2020 and after his full staff was revealed, surprisingly he announced that he wouldn’t be calling the defense. Instead, he chose to hand the reins over to his brand new defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich.
The former San Francisco 49ers linebacker has dabbled in the pros as an assistant coach over the last decade for two different NFL teams and a college outfit before ultimately landing this promotion with Gang Green.
While an engaging personality he just hasn’t proved capable of getting the job done. There have been pops this year where the defense has shown up (Tennessee, Houston, and Cincinnati), but the bad has certainly outweighed the good.
The defensive analytics speak for themselves and the Jets are on pace to finish at or near the bottom in every single major defensive metric:
- Total yards allowed: 4,762 (dead last in the NFL)
- Points allowed: 367 (32nd in the NFL and the next closest team has allowed 35 less points)
- Interceptions: 4 (least amount in the league)
- Defensive turnover ratio: -16 (32nd in the NFL)
“Man, that is a hard question to answer right now,” Jets analyst Joe Caporoso on the possibility of moving on from Ulbrich this offseason via The Manchild Show. “I try not to be reactive after one year, but I think it is at least a conversation topic. We’ll have to see how the final five games play out but if they play the way they did against Buffalo, Indianapolis, and Philadelphia it has to be very seriously considered.”
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A Perfect Replacement Option
If the Jets decide to pull the plug after one year on Ulbrich, very possible as a scapegoat for everything that has gone wrong, there may be a huge upgrade available this offseason.
Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio is on very shaky ground in the midst of his third season. He is 18-26 during his tenure and there is a growing belief Fangio could be let go after this year.
If that ends up happening, he won’t be out of work for very long.
The elder statesman is widely considered a defensive guru and if the 63-year-old wants to keep the flame alive, he could be a perfect replacement for Ulbrich.
The idea was first brought up by uStadium on Twitter:
Fangio and coach Saleh have a previous working relationship. When the current Jets head coach got his start in the business he was a coaching intern in Houston when Fangio was the Texans defensive coordinator in 2005.
The two reminisced about their time together in the buildup of the Broncos versus Jets game back in Week 3 earlier this season.
#Jets HC Robert Saleh talked about the challenges of facing the #Broncos + his relationship w/ Vic Fangio + how impressed he is with Teddy Bridgewater & says their 2-0 start ‘isn’t a fluke’: #NYJvsDEN #BroncosCountry #TakeFlight
This would make sense on a lot of levels for the Jets. This Gang Green coaching staff is incredibly young and inexperienced, to get a chance to add a former NFL head coach and someone who has been coaching ball for over 40 years would be invaluable.
Think back to the Los Angeles Rams when Sean McVay was first hired. He was the youngest head coach in NFL history and he paired himself with one of the oldest active coaches at the time in Wade Phillips.
That beautiful relationship formed the perfect bond in LA. McVay had someone to lean on who had done the job before and would be wise council throughout their three years together from 2017 through 2019.
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Defensive Guru Called Ideal Fit to Fix Jets Defense