Jets analyst rips owner Woody Johnson over one aspect of Robert Saleh firing

The NFL world was shocked to learn on Tuesday that New York Jets owner Woody Johnson had fired head coach Robert Saleh with the team at 2-3 on the season.

During an appearance on New York sports radio station WFAN, former Jets offensive lineman and current NFL analyst Willie Colon explained why he felt it's "a wild moment" that much-maligned offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett still has his job with the club due to Hackett's relationship with quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

"Being friends with a guy shouldn’t hold your position, given Hackett’s inability to scheme to his players, especially when you have your guy in Rodgers and everything you technically need," Colon said, as shared by Lou DiPietro of Audacy. "And what’s even more troubling is this is the second week in a row Aaron Rodgers limped off the field. ... You gotta get in your wheelhouse and figure out how to protect your guy because right now, I don’t know how he’s going to make it through the season."

The Jets hired Hackett, Rodgers' OC with the Green Bay Packers from 2019-21, months before New York officially landed the future Hall of Famer from Green Bay in the spring of 2023. Rodgers then went down with a season-ending torn Achilles early into Week 1 of his first campaign with the Jets. ESPN stats show that Hackett's unit ultimately finished last season ranke d 31st in the league with an average of 268.6 yards per game.

Despite such numbers and the Jets' 7-10 record, Johnson retained both Saleh and Hackett because they had Rodgers' support. According to ESPN, the Jets ended Week 5 of the ongoing season ranked 27th in the NFL with an average of 286.6 offensive yards per contest.

Perhaps most worrisome, Rodgers took 25 hits and eight sacks over the past two games that New York lost. He was already dealing with injuries to both of his knees before he suffered a low ankle sprain in this past Sunday's 23-17 defeat against the Minnesota Vikings.

Shortly after the Saleh news broke, Jets/NFL insider Connor Hughes of SNY reported that team staffers were "unsure if additional changes are coming, potentially to the offensive side of the ball." Meanwhile, Colon insisted during the radio segment he thought Saleh hadn't lost the locker room even though he accumulated an overall record of 20-36 as Jets head coach.

"I think they still listen to him and respect him," Colon added about Saleh's relationships with his former players, "but it has to do with the lack of production. They’re 2-3 and don’t have an offensive identity, and the lead horse in Aaron Rodgers isn’t showing the ability that made him a four-time MVP. Something had to be done, and Woody is doing it. They were a 7-10 team without Rodgers. They should be better with him."

With defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich promoted to the role of interim head coach, the 2024 Jets will first have an opportunity to show they're better without Saleh when they welcome the 3-2 Buffalo Bills to MetLife Stadium this coming Monday night.