They packed the bleachers and chanted “Aar-on Rodg-ers” and marveled at Garrett Wilson’s leaping toe-tap catch in the back of the end zone on a sun-splashed Sunday episode of Must See New York Jets.
Aaron Rodgers will make life so much easier for Robert Saleh.
And potentially so much harder.
Saleh won’t have to 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦sit and coddle Zach Wilson anymore. In Nathaniel Hackett, he has an experienced offensive coordinator who, paired with Rodgers, will be one mind in two bodies. There will be no need for Saleh to start talking about keeping receipts in an attempt to inspire or shelter his players.
It means that there are no excuses.
It is time for Robert Saleh’s Jets to win. And win big.
All the talk has been about what winning a championship in New York would mean for Rodgers’ legacy.
This is Saleh’s golden opportunity — perhaps his last opportunity — to build his own legacy.
We still do not know what kind of coach we have here.
Now we get to find out once and for all.
Jets head coach Robert Saleh watches quarterback Aaron Rodgers during the training camp.USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
“Saleh is a great leader,” Corey Davis told The Post. “He takes a different approach, he’s not a rah-rah guy, kind [who gets] on your [butt] unless you really need that. He definitely takes a different approach and he makes guys play hard for him.
“He has a lot of respect from everyone in that locker room. It’s easy to play for a guy like that. You want to give everything you have for him, ’cause he does the same for you.”
Saleh has done his best work behind the scenes, on Mondays through Saturdays, creating a healthy environment and culture.
It will help Saleh immensely that Rodgers believed in him enough to believe he could win a championship with him.
Rodgers is not alone.
“You want somebody who doesn’t waver with offense going good, defense going good. … Whatever it may be, you want somebody who stays consistent,” John Franklin-Myers told The Post. “It’s easy to get behind [Saleh]. … You’re talking about somebody who tells the truth, who tells it how it is.”
Saleh, clad in all black, will undoubtedly keep wearing that “Positive Vibes Only” T-shirt, but Rodgers’ omnipresence means that reminders are no longer needed.
Rodgers will be the erstwhile coach of the offense.
Saleh is the head coach.
The wins and losses go on the head coach’s record just as the wins and losses go on the quarterback’s record.
And Saleh enters his third season with an 11-23 record after losing the last six games of the 2022 season.
Just win, 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦.
No more growing pains on the sideline.
History tells us he will receive more blame than Rodgers will if he fails to end the Jets’ 12-year playoff drought. Remember, Woody Johnson fired Eric Mangini following his third season as head coach after a compromised Brett Favre failed to take the 2008 Jets to the playoffs.
So it is playoffs-or-bust for Saleh more than it is for Rodgers.
All Gas, No Brake.
Aaron Rodgers speaks at his introductory press conference next to Robert Saleh.Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
It is more difficult to win when you are expected to win, and this is the first time that Saleh will be expected to win. His emphasis is on handling today so you have the optimal chance to win tomorrow.
“The expectation to win is constant in this league,” Saleh said. “You’ve always got that monkey on your back. … The pressure lies in how are you getting better? There’s always that expectation and pressure to win, but that can’t be your focus.”
Brian Daboll was Coach of the Year as a rookie in 2022. How about Saleh making a run at Coach of the Year in his third season?
“I feel that he’s extremely demanding,” Jermaine Johnson told The Post, “but he’s also consistent. So he’s not gonna demand one thing from somebody and another thing from somebody, give somebody some slack here. … Everybody on this team, coaches and staff, we operate at a standard, and I feel like he does a great job of holding us to that standard.”
Saleh has referenced legendary Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo’s belief that, “the best coached teams are the teams that coach themselves.”
Just because Saleh is regarded as a defensive guru hardly means that he can afford to forego the requirements of his job description.
“It makes our job easier because we’re not having to worry about things that we don’t have control over,” Saleh said months ago.
Saleh and inexperienced offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur could not make Wilson a better quarterback. Hackett can make Saleh a better coach.
He is a good man, so easy to root for. Can he lead this team to the Super Bowl? “A hundred percent,” Franklin-Myers said. “Why not us?”
Why not, Coach Saleh?
