It’s common knowledge that Bill Belichick doesn’t care for the New York Jets, and he obliterated the team’s owner, Woody Johnson, during the ManningCast on Monday night.
As Peyton and Eli Manning discussed the recent firing of Robert Saleh with Belichick, the former New England Patriots coach scoffed at the move as yet another sign of disfunction in the Meadowlands.
“That’s kind of what it’s been there with the Jets,” Belichick told the Mannings, noting the team’s poor win-loss records over the last decade. “The owner being the owner, just ready, fire, aim.”
OUCH. That’s just devastating, especially when you consider how many of those losses came to Belichick’s Patriots. The former coach really didn’t mince his words here.
Sure, it isn’t all Hall’s fault. Hackett’s clueless play calling had Hall plunging the a-gap, where his undersized frame yielded a disadvantage.
Hall is best when he is used in the counter game, outside zones, or as a pass catcher out of the backfield and interim coach Todd Downing needs to make the adjustment versus the Buffalo Bills.
As for Allen, interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich is too prudent to ignore the signs anymore. Expect Ulbrich to get both Hall and Allen the touches they need on Monday night.
The Buffalo Bills will visit the New York Jets at Metlife Stadium on “Monday Night Football” in Week 6. The winner will become the leader in the AFC East.
The Bills (3-2) and Jets (2-3) are both coming off tough losses to good football teams. The Bills fell at the Texans while the Jets lost to the Vikings in London. Both teams are looking to bounce back.
The Bills are mostly searching for answers on offense while the Jets are searching for a new direction for the team after firing their head coach Robert Saleh on Tuesday. The Jets’ defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich has been promoted to interim head coach, while Todd Downing has taken over the offensive play calling for Nathaniel Hackett.
The Bills aren’t exactly sure what to expect given the coaching changes for the Jets, but they’ll be focused on themselves getting back in the win column.
Here are three keys to a Bills win in Week 6:
Play to the strengths of personnel
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It took one Khalil Shakir ankle injury for the Bills to learn what they had in their new offensive weapons. Under offensive coordinator Joe Brady, they haven’t had to pass much this year. Josh Allen is tied for 23rd in the NFL in pass attempts.
When they passed, Shakir was the go-to guy. Without him in Week 5, newcomers had to step up. They didn’t.
Mack Hollins, Curtis Samuel, Keon Coleman, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling were targeted a total of 18 times in the loss. They caught just four of the passes.
The pass catchers looked out of place and were misused. Hollins hasn’t made a living on go-balls. MVS in the short field hasn’t been his strong suit. According to former NFL WR Steve Smith, Coleman belongs in the slot. And, Samuel has been nonexistent in the offense. So, why are they being used this way?
It’s still a newly formed unit, and Brady will have to play some chess to figure out how they can be most effective. But, changes ought to be made to how they are being utilized, and quickly.
Don’t let Jets running backs heat up
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Jets running backs Breece Hall and Braelon Allen have been held in check lately on the field. In the last two weeks, they have averaged 37 combined rushing yards per game.
They are capable of much more. They can make defenders miss and are one of the more talented duos in the league. They are threats through the air as well. Both backs have a receiving touchdown this year.
The Bills’ rush defense ranks as eighth-worst in the NFL through five weeks. They give up over 144 yards per game on the ground. Sure, Breece Hall has averaged an abysmal 3.0 yards per carry to start the year, but the Bills defense has allowed big ground games this year. Ed Oliver was ruled out for the game as of Saturday morning, which makes things more difficult for the middle of the Bills defense.
More efficient offense
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Last week Allen was 9-for-31 passing (29%). He was 1-of-14 on passes ten or more yards downfield. Under pressure, he was 0-for-15.
What happened? Week 5 was night and day from what we saw the first three weeks when Allen and Brady had the offense humming. After three games, Allen was completing 75% of his passes and the Bills led the league in points per game.
The offense knows they have to be better. An early learning curve is expected due to all the new pieces and having a young OC, but no one expected the curve to look that bad. Eyes will once again be on the Bills offense to see how they turn it around, just like they were last week after their poor performance in Week 4.
Saleh had his faults but his bread and butter is defense. He was still good at that and it would not be surprising to see a team scoop him up.
However, a report indicates Saleh is going to wait a bit.
According to Mike Silver of the San Francisco Chronicle, the 45-year-old is going to wait until at least the 2025 season to take a new job. He’s planning on taking the rest of the 2024 season off.
Once next year’s coaching cycle comes around, Saleh’s name is undoubtedly be a hot one relating to defensive coordinator jobs.
Under Saleh’s watch, New York’s defense ranked last in the NFL in yards allowed per game in his first season with the team. However, the unit rebounded to finish fourth and third in 2022 and 2023, respectively. The Jets currently rank third (255.8 YPG).
Time will tell if he ever gets a sniff at a head coaching gig again.
After the Jets let him go as the team’s head coach after a 2-3 start, Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer shared on Thursday Night Football a message that Saleh wished to share with the world about his team.
“He still believes in the group of players in that locker room,” Breer said of Saleh, “He still thinks… they’re going to the playoffs.”
Well, that’s a pretty classy move for his former Jets team if you ask us.
Good on Saleh for being supportive of his former players, even if he won’t be working with them any longer as their head coach.
What does Nathaniel Hackett even do with the Jets now?
The New York Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh this week but opted to keep offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett on staff despite their offense struggling through the first five games of the season.
No longer tasked with calling plays, Hackett’s role with the Jets is unclear, but they aren’t firing him. Here’s a sampling of how Denver Broncos fans and pundits reacted to the news on Twitter/X.
Nathaniel Hackett’s last four years as an NFL play-caller:
2018, Jaguars: Fired as OC after 11 games 2022, Broncos: Surrenders play-calling as HC after 9 games 2023, Jets: Ranks 31st in scoring offense 2024, Jets: Loses play-calling responsibilities after 5 games
Hackett served as Denver’s head coach in 2022. He was fired with two games remaining that season after starting 4-11. Last offseason, new Broncos coach Sean Payton said Denver’s 2022 season “might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.”
It seems that Payton’s comments have been justified.
As fate would have it, Darnold will be credited with Saleh’s first and last loss as the New York Jets head coach.
Sam Darnold has been one of the brightest stories in the NFL this season with six weeks worth of them. Sadly, for as good as his story is, there are some stories that aren’t as positive.
On Monday, the New York Jets fired their head coach, Robert Saleh, following a loss to the Vikings on Sunday. Ironically enough, Darnold and Saleh remain connected now despite his time spent in New York and having never played for him.
As fate would have it, Darnold will be credited with Saleh’s first and last loss as the New York Jets head coach.
After leaving the Jets, Darnold played for the Carolina Panthers, and his first start against Saleh and the Jets was in 2021. Three years later, they met again and the result was more tragic than the first.
Saleh is expected to bounce back and get another coaching job in some form or fashion. If his luck is anything like Darnold’s after leaving the Jets, success can and will be found.
Davante Adams has several teams showing interesting in trading for him. But those teams have had a rough week.
The list of teams who are said to be leading the way in Davante Adams trade talks is rather short. And for most of those teams, it’s been a rough week. Let’s go through each of them.
New York Jets
They fired their head coach this week. Robert Saleh, and reportedly having nothing to do with his relationship with QB Aaron Rodgers. The reason is because the owner knows the Jets have a small window to compete for a championship and felt like Saleh was not maximizing the talent on the offense.
How this could affect any potential interest in Davane Adams is hard to say. You could look at is one of two ways. Either the owner thinks they have the talent to win, which would suggest they don’t need Adams. Or that Aaron Rodgers is basically the head coach on the field and therefore if he says Davante is the last piece necessary to make this offense what it should be, then they better get him.
Knowing the short window they’re dealing with would seem to raise the likelihood of going after Davante. For that, a second round pick plus doesn’t seem like a high price to pay.
Carr started the season off white hot in the first two games, throwing five touchdowns to just one interception. But he’s come back to earth in the three games since, with the same number as interceptions (3) and touchdowns.
What if Rattler plays so well, they decide to stick with the hot hand?
The only reason Davante has the Saints on the list is Carr. So, with Carr’s future a bit uncertain, do the Saints still step up and meet the Raiders’ demands in a trade? Will they even have made that decision yet before the trade deadline? Important questions.
Despite the Steelers being 3-2 with Justin Fields at QB, the team has not been pleased with his performance and are now considering benching him for Russell Wilson.
Even if the Steelers are interested in Davante, would it be wise for him to jump from one team with a QB controversy to another? Wilson hasn’t played well in some time. There’s a reason he was run out of Seattle and the Broncos are now paying him starting QB money to NOT play for them.
Oh, and the Steelers are coming to Las Vegas this week, so no chance that trade would happen this week.
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys…are actually pretty stable at the moment. They are 3-2 and have won two straight. Though they scored just 20 points in each of those wins, which means they could certainly use a weapon like Davante Adams.
Hired in 2021 after helping the 49ers reach the Super Bowl in 2019, Saleh posted a 20-36 overall record. After his departure, San Francisco elevated Ryans from linebacker coach to defensive coordinator.
Two years after helping the 49ers remain a postseason contender, Ryans was hired to replace Lovie Smith as the Texans’ head coach. Entering the season, many believed the Thursday Night Showdown could have significant playoff implications headlined by Aaron Rodgers and C.J. Stroud.
Houston enters Week 6 at 4-1 with a chance to secure its best start since 2012. New York sits at 2-3 but remains in the hunt for the AFC East division title behind the 3-2 Buffalo Bills.
Following Saleh’s dismissal, defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich has been named interim head coach.
