Robert Saleh’s job security as New York Jets head coach could be in doubt after a ‘wasted’ season, believes Jeff Reinebold.
The Jets slumped to 4-7 on the year last week as they were dominated by the Miami Dolphins in the NFL's first Black Friday game.
It continued a year of disappointment for a New York team that had entered the campaign fuelled by Super Bowl optimism following the arrival of four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
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Those ambitions were dealt an immediate blow when Rodgers suffered an Achilles injury just four plays into his debut against the Buffalo Bills on the opening weekend. Zach Wilson would subsequently take over as starter, only to have since endured the same debilitating struggles that had prompted the Jets to turn to Rodgers in the first place.
"This is the business, Woody Johnson is a guy that wants a Super Bowl and his committed to trying to win a Super Bowl-winning team in New York," Reinebold said on Inside the Huddle.
"He's spent all kinds of money, built a new facility and done all the things he can do as an owner to provide the guys underneath what they need to get to a Super Bowl.
"You can't control four plays of Aaron Rodgers but what he can control is what you do when that occurs.
"You go to a kid you said wasn't good enough and continue to stay with him and don't adjust the offense, you stay with what you built for Aaron.
"I heard Saleh say, 'well we're six games into this experiment, we need to tweak the offense more because it was built for Aaron'.
"You know that kid is not Aaron Rodgers, that's why you got him, so why does it take you so long?"
The Jets persisted with Wilson for 10 weeks before eventually benching him for Tim Boyle for Friday's 34-13 loss to the Dolphins.
In the meantime, Saleh and Jeff Ulbrich's defense has gone unrewarded as the Championship calibre unit that had coupled with Rodgers' arrival in contributing to Super Bowl talk.
"This is my point: you have wasted a tremendous effort by your defense this season, they have held you in games," added Reinebold.
"Your job as coach and as an organisation is to adjust, it's constant adjustment, you're going to lose players."
Saleh was appointed as Jets head coach in 2021 having previously served as San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator since 2017.
Two head coaches have been fired so far this season, with Josh McDaniels departing in Las Vegas and Frank Reich this week being relieved of his duties with the Carolina Panthers.
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