The Moment the New York Jets 2024 Season Was Ruined: Week Four Fallout

Woody Johnson’s hasty decisions, including firing Robert Saleh and Joe Douglas, derailed the Jets’ 2024 season, unraveling a team with playoff potential.

East Rutherford, NJ -- September 29 -- Jets head coach Robert Saleh as Aaron Rodgers of the Jets walks off the field in the first half as the Denver Broncos edged the New York Jets 10-9 at MetLife Stadium. / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In a lost season where everything seems to go wrong, it’s often hard to pinpoint when a team’s decline began. Was it a critical injury? A string of tough losses? Or the gradual erosion of confidence?

For the New York Jets, the answer is painfully clear. Their downward spiral began after their rain-soaked, gut-wrenching Week 4 loss to the Denver Broncos.

The 10-9 defeat was riddled with mistakes and poor performances, but the turning point came off the field and after the game.

Following the loss, owner Woody Johnson reportedly convened a contentious meeting with key figures, including general manager Joe Douglas, head coach Robert Saleh, and the coaching staff. During the meeting, as outlined by The Athletic, Johnson reportedly floated the idea of benching quarterback Aaron Rodgers in favor of Tyrod Taylor, blaming the quarterback’s underwhelming performance for the team’s struggles.

While the staff talked him out of the decision, the mere suggestion sent shockwaves through the organization. It was the first clear sign of Johnson’s growing distrust of his leadership team, a fracture that would deepen in the coming weeks.

This loss of confidence at the top had a cascading effect on the entire organization. A week later, Johnson fired Saleh after losing to the surging Minnesota Vikings in London. The decision shocked players and staff alike.

Despite the team’s 2-3 start, Saleh had been a stabilizing force for the Jets, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. His dismissal left the locker room reeling, causing leaders like Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams to express their disbelief publicly.

Gardner described Saleh as someone who “changed my life,” exemplifying the respect and trust he had earned from his players, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

The impact of Saleh’s firing was immediate and catastrophic. Without his leadership, the Jets’ defense went into a complete freefall, especially in its ability to limit explosive plays. Under Saleh, the defense had been a disciplined and cohesive unit, capable of keeping the team competitive even as the offense struggled to find its footing.

But in his absence, the group unraveled, allowing big plays at an alarming rate and losing the identity that had made it one of the league’s most formidable units. The results were stark: a 1-5 record in the six games after Saleh’s departure, with the defense routinely failing in crucial moments.

Jeff Ulbrich, who had been a seemingly capable defensive coordinator, was thrust into the interim head coaching role under challenging circumstances. While respected as a coordinator, Ulbrich appeared out of his depth as the interim head coach, struggling to command the entire team and make the adjustments necessary to stop the bleeding.

The defense, the team’s backbone under Saleh, became a liability under Ulbrich’s leadership, further eroding the morale of a locker room already reeling from upheaval.

In retrospect, Johnson’s decisions may have set the Jets back further than anyone imagined. The panic over two early-season losses — against the Broncos and Vikings, now playoff contenders with top-tier defenses — was catastrophically shortsighted.

At the time, the Jets’ defense kept the team competitive, giving the offense time to find its rhythm as Rodgers acclimated to a new system after his Achilles injury. Instead of recognizing the strength of his defense and allowing time for the team to adjust, Johnson’s hasty firings shattered that stability, derailing a season that was still salvageable.

The final nail in the coffin came with the firing of Douglas. Despite his shortcomings, Douglas had built the team's young core, including Garrett Wilson, Gardner, and Williams. His dismissal last week further alienated the locker room, sending a clear message that no one was safe, no matter how much respect they commanded.

Williams, in particular, voiced his frustration, tweeting: “Joe embraced me from the moment he joined this organization, and I have nothing but respect for him. He built an incredible and promising roster, but we just haven’t been able to finish games the way we know we can. I’m thankful for him fighting to keep me a Jet and wish him nothing but the best.”

At its core, this lost season isn’t about underperforming players or difficult matchups — it’s about the ineptitude of an owner whose impulsive decisions have left the Jets rudderless.

Johnson’s inability to exercise patience and trust in his leadership team has created a toxic culture of instability. Until the Jets’ ownership adopts a long-term vision and allows football professionals to do their jobs, this franchise will remain trapped in mediocrity, unable to be a contender in the NFL.