The New York Jets’ offensive woes fall directly on Robert Saleh

One of the most ill-advised mistakes a football person can make is separating an offensive head coach from his defense, or a defensive head coach from his offense.

Today’s compartmentalized world tends to promote specific roles and ideas—no matter the topic of the day. Never did we see this when Vince Lombardi roamed the Green Bay Packers sidelines, or when Bill Parcells told his New York Giants, “This is why you lift all them weights; this is why you do all that sh*t.”

Yet, today, football fans place their team fandom in one drawer, wholly separate from their fantasy football desires on the top shelf, which is closely residing near the insanely unreasonable NFL betting-wish file cabinet.

It’s this mindset that allows certain head coaches off the hook in a maddening fashion. It’s this idea that allows many New York Jets fans to separate Robert Saleh and his defense from the team’s historically inept offense.

Do not do that.

Nathaniel Hackett cannot be the main culprit

Hey, Nathaniel Hackett criticism is more warranted than a Charlie Manson straightjacket. After coming out roses in the Hackett Bowl—a Jets’ 31-21 victory over the Denver Broncos back in October 2023—the Jets’ offense rapidly nosedived. (Oh, by the way, it immediately nosedived the moment Alijah Vera-Tucker hit the shelf for the year, for the second-straight season.)

The play-calling is unimaginative, the point-of-attack play is porous, and the quarterback play is befuddling. Granted, the personnel is not helping matters, but the Jets’ 2023 offensive coordinator has not enjoyed himself through 12 weeks of the season.

As bad as Hackett’s been, however, that damn compartmentalization forces him to shoulder too much of the blame.

Never does a football offensive coordinator (or defensive coordinator, for that matter) implement a scheme and system independent of all variables. That system must adhere to the overall vision the team trots out on a weekly basis.

With that in mind, Hackett’s offense wasn’t just designed to fit an Aaron Rodgers-led system but also what Robert Saleh envisions his team to be.

Injuries matter … but not this much

As porous as the Jets’ offense and overall coaching have been this season, the team’s devastating injuries remain enemy No. 1.

I’m sorry, but the Philadelphia Eagles aren’t working properly with the following players on the shelf—equivalent in numbers to what the Jets are currently experiencing:

• Starting QB: Jalen Hurts (Aaron Rodgers)
• No. 2 or 3 WR: DeVonte Smith or Olamide Zaccheaus (Corey Davis)
• Starting OT: Jordan Mailata (Duane Brown)
• Starting C: Jason Kelce (Connor McGovern)
• Starting RG: Cam Jurgens (Alijah Vera-Tucker)
• Starting OT: Lane Johnson (Mekhi Becton)
• No. 6 OL: Jack Driscoll or Tyler Steen (Wes Schweitzer)

Therefore, facing the reality that solving the near-fictional injury plague the organization faces year after year, is indeed the top priority, is a must for Joe Douglas and company this offseason.

Yet, the mass injury issue simply cannot account for the entirety of the Jets’ offensive struggles.

And that’s where Robert Saleh truly enters the chat.

In spite of some of the troubling things I see from the #Jets coaching staff—and there are many—it’s critical to keep the team’s top issue in perspective: injuries.

How would the Eagles, Niners, Fins, and Chiefs work if the attached highlighted players were currently on the… pic.twitter.com/jyiPjrkjdS

— Robby Sabo (@RobbySabo) November 25, 2023

It boils down to Robert Saleh’s mindset

The New York Jets’ offensive struggles can be best summed up with one word: limitation.

Yes, the unit faces a limitation in the personnel department, via injuries, but it’s also dealt with limitations from an overall game-planning and mindset fashion since Robert Saleh agreed to become the head coach in 2021.

Game after game, year after year, the Jets offense finds itself playing within a 10-15-yard box of their own making. Cover defenders routinely sit on routes, while defensive coordinators come out with an identical game plan each week.

Whether it’s Zach Wilson, Tim Boyle, Joe Flacco, or even Mike White, the book is out on Saleh’s offense: Dare them to beat you over the top. That means a ton of single-high looks, press on the outside, and linebackers on their toes—itching to stop the early-down rushing attempts. (There were times when White busted through that usual conservative mindset, but let’s not pretend his 8-12 TD-INT ratio doesn’t exist—and there’s no bigger fan of Mike Effing White than me.)

No matter the quarterback, the Jets’ game plan is evident: Try to establish a physical, rushing-first identity, while limiting mistakes en route to not placing the defense in a bad spot.

The problem is quite simple: That idea is nearly obsolete in today’s NFL.

Is physicality wholly obsolete? No, nor will it ever be. But it’s getting pretty damn close, courtesy of the rules that protect players at all costs.

Is rushing the ball obsolete? Of course, it’s not. Then again, there are a myriad of ways to “rush the ball,” one of which is a sharp three-step passing game that can replace a struggling rushing attack in an instant—if good enough.

Is not turning the ball over essential to winning football games? Yes and no. In theory, the teams that give the ball away less, tend to come out on top. Then again, the offenses that go out of their way to ensure no turnovers happen, tend to suffer in the end.

Why that’s the case is rather simple: Whether it’s a football team on the gridiron or an individual in life, those who refuse to take chances are those who will allow competitors to pass them.

Imagine Zach Wilson with Andy Reid

Zach Wilson did not throw a single interception in a three-week stretch against the Eagles, New York Giants, and Los Angeles Chargers. Moreover, he threw just one pick in six games, when the prior three contests are included (New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs, and Denver Broncos).

Tremendous.

The Jets went 3-3 in that span, and Wilson threw a grand total of three touchdowns.

Again, tremendous—this time dripping in even more sarcasm.

While it’s hard to have any sympathy for Wilson at this moment—due to his penchant for not taking any chances with that golden arm of his—could you actually imagine the kid struggling to this degree under Andy Reid’s tutelage?

I think not.

Reid’s quarterback bible begins with an incredibly important message. Although this is officially a paraphrase, the note is loud and clear:

“Limit turnovers but never be afraid to make a mistake.”

In Zach Wilson’s case, mistakes were all he worried about.

In fact, we even heard him say as much, following wins when asked by reporters. The BYU product would even go as far as to label his job as playing a smart quarterback role while not turning the ball over.

Guess what? My quarterback would never be this consumed with “turning the ball over,” because if he’s so consumed with the gloom and doom of what could go wrong, generally speaking, something will indeed go wrong. It’s the same principle when dealing with a football player worried about injuring himself.

It all comes back to mindset, Robert Saleh’s mindset, one that focuses on a defensive-first style of play that contrasts with today’s free-wheeling National Football League.

Contrasting with today’s NFL

Saleh’s “All Gas, No Brake” mantra deals in physicality—during a time in the NFL when finesse and strategy rule all. More than ever, offensive magic tricks that aim to take what the defensive is providing, are what it’s all about.

Yet, Saleh’s team vision constantly seeks to keep things tight throughout, only to pull the game out of the fire in the end—when a more aggressive attitude could allow for glorious possibilities earlier in the game. (Just look at Wilson’s play after he fell behind to the Chiefs this year, or what he did in Pittsburgh when he had very little to lose late in the game—as in a low-risk, high-reward situation.)

Worse yet, the New York Jets team identity is unwittingly waiting for something bad to happen—because they’re rarely focused on creating something good themselves via initiative. That would actually require a deep shot or two early in games. Even in situations when you know a completion is slim to none, taking deep shots is never “just for the hell of it,” as each serves a genuine purpose.

Sure, I’m not dense enough to forget that a professional offensive line is required to consistently execute seven-step drops. I’m also not silly enough to turn aside the idea that early-down situations that showcase an ultra-aggressive, on-their-toes defense, are glorious deep-shot opportunities for any offense.

The Jets currently rank 30th in average yards per pass attempt (5.8). In last place are the Carolina Panthers at 5.5. Just ahead of the Jets are the Patriots at 5.9.

The offenses that don’t take aggressive shots to stretch the field are the offenses that struggle in this league. And the offenses that don’t take aggressive shots downfield, are usually the teams that feature a conservative-minded head coach.

From Mike LaFleur’s run-first mentality in 2021 and 2022 to Nathaniel Hackett’s “whatever-this-is” in 2023, never think of the quarterback and offensive coordinator as independent of the rest of the coaching staff. Both parties must fit within the overall vision the head coach has for his squad.

LaFleur was the first scapegoat. Now, it’s Zach Wilson … once again. Could Aaron Rodgers’s presence wash away Saleh’s offensive shortcomings? Sure. But that would indeed just be a band-aid.

Interestingly, playing things close to the chest in a conservative manner, while limiting mistakes and featuring the defense, is a tremendously smart game plan at certain times. The problem in Saleh’s case is that “certain times” give way to “all the time.”

Until Robert Saleh’s overall vision for his football team changes drastically, the New York Jets offense isn’t improving. Period.

Perhaps none other than P.T. Barnum can sum it up best: “Fortune always favors the brave, and never helps a man who does not help himself.”