Second Half of Season Has Major Implications for New York Jets Coach

Despite incredibly slim postseason odds, the second half of the New York Jets season means a lot for some.

Nov 10, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; New York Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich looks on against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half at State Farm Stadium. / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

The New York Jets built some positive momentum in Week 9 when they defeated the Houston Texans 21-13 to save their season.

Their record was 3-6, but a path to getting their season on track existed. It started with building a winning streak in Week 10 against the Arizona Cardinals, but the NFC West foes had different ideas.

They dominated from the opening kickoff, as the Jets were destroyed 31-6. It was the kind of embarrassing effort that was supposed to go by the wayside with Aaron Rodgers now leading the offense.

Instead, the team is in worse condition now than it was with Zach Wilson leading the way for most of the last two seasons. The team’s postseason hopes are on life support, which could make the rest of the season a difficult one to navigate.

Motivating a team whose playoff hopes are nearly extinguished multiple weeks before Thanksgiving will be a tall task. But, if interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich wants a chance to get the job full time or land a high-ranking job elsewhere, he will do what he can to get his guys going.

As shared by Rich Cimini of ESPN in their playoff tier rankings, an achievable goal of New York down the stretch is for Ulbrich to prove whether or not he will be part of the long-term solution with the coaching staff.

“Ulbrich is popular among players and management, but he is 1-4 since replacing Saleh, and this is a bottom-line business. It will be a disappointing season if the Jets fall short of the playoffs, so Ulbrich faces an uphill climb. But maybe a spirited stretch run will convince ownership he's the right man for the job. That he's a defensive-minded coach probably works against him, but you never know. He has the support of Rodgers, which counts for something.”

If Ulbrich can keep the team’s playoff hopes alive into December, it would be an impressive feat. It would prove that the players didn’t quit on him and he was able to get them to still play hard despite the circumstances.

Alas, that is easier said than done.

A loss like the one suffered on Sunday against the Cardinals could be the final straw. Sloppy play plagued the team once again, as they dropped to 3-7 on the season.

Losers in six out of their last seven games, there aren’t many positives to pull from their performance. But, there are certainly some winnable games over the next few weeks Ulbrich would love to capitalize on.