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It didn’t take long for former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh to find his way back to the NFL.
Saleh was spotted at Green Bay Packers practice on Wednesday, October 23. After practice, head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed that Saleh was brought in as a consultant not for defense but rather for offense.
“We have been close for a very long time, shoot, we were roommates together back at Central Michigan. We thought it was a good idea just to bring him here and he’s helping us on the offensive side of the ball. I think that is always a good deal to have that perspective, you know, that defensive perspective on that side of the ball,” LaFleur explained.
Saleh Changed His Mind After Firing, Job Status Very ‘Fluid’
LaFleur hasn’t given Saleh an official title or label but he is leaving everything very open.
“I’d say it’s pretty fluid,” he said. “Again it’s pretty fluid. I think it’s important too for him to spend time obviously with his family.”
The Jets fired Saleh following the Week 5 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. LaFleur said after that happened he immediately reached out to Saleh to check and see what he’s doing and to offer a gig with Green Bay if he was ready to dive back into football at any point.
However, LaFleur initially advised him to get away from football after the firing but “he didn’t listen.”
That was Saleh’s plan originally he told NFL Insider Mike Silver that he had no intention of joining a staff mid-season. He wanted to join the hiring cycle in 2025 for a defensive coordinator position but Saleh couldn’t stay away.
“I think it’s a good opportunity for him to learn and also for him to help us and give us perspective on how teams might see us. How they might defend us. Certainly [he] can find holes or some vulnerabilities, if you will, in the defense that we are playing,” LaFleur added.
Saleh Failed as Jets HC, but Has a Promising Future in the NFL
One could argue firing a head coach after just five games was the wrong decision. If the leash was that short maybe Woody Johnson should have just pulled the trigger at the end of 2023.
However, it’s hard to blame Johnson for the decision because Saleh wasn’t a good head coach. He finished 20-36 which is the third-worst winning percentage of any Jets head coach in franchise history.
The timing you could argue was certainly off, but the decision to ultimately do it was acceptable.
Some coaches just aren’t head coaching material. Some coaches are simply defensive coordinators and there is nothing wrong with that. Based on Saleh’s first and probably only run as a head coach, it appears clear that he is a good defensive coach but can’t run the entire ship.
Saleh wasn’t cut out to run the Jets, but he will forever have a job as a defensive mind in the league as long as he wants it.
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