New York Jets Have To Conduct Head Coaching Search Due to NFL Rule

Due to the Rooney Rule, the New York Jets can't give Jeff Ulbrich the head coaching job in the offseason without a coaching search.

East Rutherford, NJ -- October 14, 2024 -- Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich leaves the field at the end of the game. The Buffalo Bills came to MetLife Stadium to play the NY Jets. The Jets played their first game under new interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich. / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The New York Jets are 0-2 since they fired former head coach Robert Saleh. Firing Saleh when they did was viewed as an interesting decision, but the higher-ups believed it was time for a change.

The Jets named Jeff Ulbrich as the interim head coach, an easy choice after helping New York's defensive unit be among the best in the NFL over the past few years.

How Ulbrich coaches for the remainder of the season will likely decide his future with the Jets. If he turns this thing around, it would make sense to bring him back.

If not, Ulbrich could be out of the organization, as he might be unwilling to return as the defensive coordinator if that's the position they offer him.

Even if he goes on an improbable run during the remainder of the campaign, Ulbrich can't just be given the job.

Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic highlighted that New York would have to conduct a coaching search due to the Rooney Rule.

"Whether Ulbrich leads the Jets on an improbable postseason run or not, the Jets will be conducting a coaching search this offseason. Even if Ulbrich did engineer a turnaround, by league rules he can’t simply be handed the job since the Jets would have to interview minority candidates to comply with the Rooney Rule. But if Ulbrich does somehow pull the Jets out of this hole and snap the postseason skid, he will have certainly earned the full-time job."

The Rooney Rule aims to increase the number of minority coaches in the NFL, something the league is trying to improve on.

While Ulbrich's future with the Jets remains uncertain, tough decisions will need to be made regardless of the remainder of the season.

With hot names potentially on the market, New York could prefer an offensive-minded head coach, as that's been their biggest issue in recent years.

Rosenblatt listed a few names they might consider.

"There are some obvious candidates with experience (Mike Vrabel tops the list) and other up-and-coming coaches who should be interviewed (like Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson). It wouldn’t be surprising if Woody Johnson prefers an offensive-minded coach considering all their issues on that side of the ball in recent years, though that didn’t exactly pan out when he hired Adam Gase in 2019."

It's also fair to question whether a coach would want the Jets' job. They haven't played well, and this might just be the beginning of their struggles for the foreseeable future.