The team owner's statement leads one to believe the New York Jets' decision to fire head coach Robert Saleh came down directly from the top.
With almost everyone in the building reportedly blindsided by Saleh's abrupt dismissal on Tuesday morning, chairman Woody Johnson released a two-paragraph explanation for making a head coaching change. It focused on the team's failure to meet expectations to this point and hinted that Saleh had lost the respect of his players.
Is quarterback Aaron Rodgers one of those players who Johnson saw as being unresponsive to Saleh? Did Rodgers dial in a personal request for the owner to make the head coaching change?
With the heavy investment the Jets have made in Rodgers and his anticipated success, it's not outlandish to question whether the four-time NFL MVP had a say in Saleh's dismissal. It's also possible that Johnson, and Johnson alone, decided it was time to move on from the fourth-year head coach, who presided over back-to-back disappointing losses, but the odd timing suggests there were other factors.
First, the relationship between Rodgers and Saleh had been called into question recently in the wake of the awkward hug/shove on Thursday Night Football followed by the hard-count cadence controversy. If the situation was truly tenuous between the head coach and his star quarterback, then any additional issues could become a tipping point.
Amidst the media firestorm created by Tuesday's firing, multiple reports emerged that, prior to being dismissed, Saleh wanted to axe offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett or, at the least, reduce his role by stripping play-calling duties.
Anything aimed at reducing Hackett's role was likely frowned upon by Rodgers, who has previously referred to the offensive coordinator as a "brother." In three seasons working with Hackett on the Green Bay Packers, Rodgers was twice named NFL MVP.
Did Rodgers object to Saleh's decision and swiftly bring his concerns to ownership? In a press briefing on Tuesday afternoon, Johnson admitted he was in contact with Rodgers on Monday night.
"Well, I did talk to him the night before, but we didn't discuss this specifically at all. I mean we were basically talking about the previous game, and his breaking 60,000 yards, 60,000 yards record, and accomplishing that, and sorry he got hit so many times, and that and how was he feeling, so no, in terms of whether I was going to do it or not. We didn’t discuss that," said Johnson.
It's unknown if it was indeed the case, but if forced to choose between Hackett and Saleh, Rodgers is going to side with his close friend 10 out of 10 times. If Rodgers was aware of Saleh's intention, there's a good chance he discussed the topic during his talk with the owner.
"At the end of the day this was my decision and my decision alone. I have had enough experience doing these things, it is the first time I have done it this early, but once again I thought and think that this will help the team," said Johnson.
Firing Saleh may have been the owner's decision, but one isn't crazy to think he was influenced by his future Hall-of-Fame quarterback.
© Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com
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