Despite having a losing season, the New York Jets aren’t making any changes to leadership. Jets owner Woody Johnson said on Sunday that head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas will return in 2024.
“My decision is to keep them,” Johnson told Brian Costello of the New York Post before Sunday’s game with the Commanders. “I think we’ve had some very positive moves. The culture of the team is a lot better. The defense is better. The offense needs a few pieces.”
While there was no indication that the Jets wanted to get rid of Saleh and Douglas, the decision to keep them centers around quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The Jets were hoping to be Super Bowl contenders with Rodgers, but Rodgers got hurt on the first drive of the season and won’t play again until 2024. Keeping Saleh and Douglas will mean that they can get a full year under their belt with Rodgers.
“Just to keep the continuity going with Aaron and the team we’ve got,” Johnson said as a reason why he wants Douglas and Saleh back. “Like I said a year ago, we need a quarterback. We had a quarterback for four plays. Since then, we haven’t been able to replace him. If we have a good quarterback, it makes everybody’s job easier. It makes the line better, the receivers better.”
Rodgers also believes in the team’s leadership, which probably had a huge role in the decision not to make any leadership changes.
In three seasons with the Jets, Saleh is 16-23. Douglas has been the Jets GM since 2019, and Gang Green is 25-55 under Douglas. Those records aren’t great, and next year will be a make-or-break year for Saleh and Douglas. Saleh and Douglas will need to work together to add some talent to the team. They need to build an offensive line and players besides Rodgers who can produce offensively. With Rodgers back next year, they also need to be Super Bowl contenders.
The Jets are 6-9 and will miss the playoffs for the 13th straight year, the longest drought in American sports. This season is the Jets eighth consecutive losing season. If Saleh and Douglas don’t make the improvements the Jets need, they will lose their job.
(Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)