The day the Jets introduced Robert Saleh as the new coach, they also said general manager Joe Douglas has more power.
Saleh will now report directly to Douglas and Douglas owners Woody and Christopher Johnson. The last three GM / Jets coach combinations came directly to the Johnsons, making them equal in the organization. Now, Douglas has been given a hit, a sign of the Johnsons ’belief in his GM.
“That structure has changed,” Christopher Johnson said. “Joe will report to me [and Woody]. Robert will inform Joe. It seems like a simple, clean way of doing things, but honestly it doesn’t change much. We already have very good communication. I don’t think this will change things here so much. “
The organizational structure had been a point of consternation for Jets fans, but many teams throughout the league (about half) had the same structure. The problem with the Jets has been the people who held these jobs, not who they reported to.
Woody Johnson is expected to regain control of the team shortly after his term as ambassador to the UK ended on Wednesday. Christopher Johnson, who led the team in Woody’s absence, will maintain an important role in the organization, but Woody will once again be ultimately responsible for decision-making.
The Jets officially announced the hiring of Mike LaFleur as offensive coordinator and Jeff Ulbrich as defensive coordinator. LaFleur arrives at the 49ers Jets, for which he was the coordinator of the passing game. Ulbrich was the Falcons ’defensive coach before being promoted to defensive coordinator after the team fired Dan Quinn and promoted Raheem Morris as interim head coach.
Saleh has yet to hire a special teams coordinator, but said he will keep Brant Boyer, who has worked with the Jets since 2016, when former director Todd Bowles hired him. He said he is also considering keeping defensive end coach Dennard Wilson, who has been working with the Jets since 2017.
The other staff hires Saleh announced were: Rob Calabrese (quarterbacks), John Benton (offensive line), Taylor Embree (runners), Ron Middleton (tight ends), Miles Austin (wide receivers), Greg Knapp (specialist in passing games), Billy VandeMerkt (offensive assistant), Aaron Whitecotton (defensive line), Nate Ollie (defensive line assistant), Ricky Manning Jr. (defensive assistant), Hayes Pullard (defensive assistant).
Saleh also retained three Adam Gase staff coaches: Todd Washington (offensive assistant), Mack Brown (offensive assistant) and Chip Vaughn (defensive assistant).
Saleh talked a lot about DT Quinnen Williams. The 49ers got the No. 2 general election in 2019, when the Jets took Williams ’third place, so Saleh located Williams.
“I absolutely love Quinnen,” Saleh said. “Really excited to take his seat belt out of the harness and let it go. In this scheme to get it to go vertical, for all this mass to move in the direction it needs, I’m really excited about the potential it will have. I loved coming out. Viouslybviament, we took it [Nick] Bosa. It was right there as part of the discussion. I can assure you. As for that young man, his mentality, his athleticism, his power, his love for football, they are very excited to see him in our system, especially up front with the way we design this style of football. ‘attack in front’.