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The New York Jets have been a mess for the entirety of the 2024 season, sure, but things got noticeably worse for the team after head coach Robert Saleh was fired after Week 5. After beginning 2-3, the Jets have since gone 1-5 under interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich.
The decision of Jets owner Woody Johnson to fire Robert Saleh was widely lambasted by both fans and the media, and it appears the players have begun to notice, too.
Following Gang Green’s latest backbreaking loss, this time at home to the Indianapolis Colts, Jets cornerback D.J. Reed was asked about the team’s performance since firing Saleh and said he’s noticed that the team, particularly the defense, has been playing worse.
“I have noticed that,” cornerback D.J. Reed said of the team’s declining quality of play on Sunday after the Jets’ 28-27 home loss to the Indianapolis Colts.
“The last couple games we haven’t played to our standard on defense. We’ve given up touchdowns. We’re giving up explosive plays. I can’t really account to what it is. Coach Ulbrich does have a lot on his plate, but he’s a grown man and he can handle it. I think it just comes down to executing and playing our role.”
“I have noticed that” – #Jets CB DJ Reed on defense’s regression after Robert Saleh was fired, Jeff Ulbrich tasked with being HC & DC.
Said team needs to execute better. pic.twitter.com/FpoYkK8s9O
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) November 17, 2024
The Jets now enter their Week 12 bye week with a 3-8 record and the prospect of a 13-year-long playoff drought extending to 14 years, which is the longest active postseason drought in the four major American professional sports leagues.
Following their bye week, the Jets will resume their nightmare 2024 season against the Seattle Seahawks — quarterbacked by Geno Smith, whom they drafted and almost ruined before he went on to have a successful career elsewhere — on December 1.