NFL GM shares gloomy prediction about Jets' Robert Saleh

New York Jets owner Woody Johnson retained both head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas after that duo produced a third straight losing season, but at least one league executive believes Saleh could be shown the door before the 2024 campaign concludes. 

"Saleh won’t make it to the finish line," an unnamed general manager predicted about the coach's run next season while speaking with NFL insider Jason La Canfora of The Washington Post.

Saleh accumulated an 11-23 record during his first two seasons as Jets head coach before Johnson and/or Douglas landed quarterback Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers last spring. New York then went 4-3 even after Rodgers suffered a torn Achilles four offensive snaps into the season, but Gang Green ultimately lost six of seven games en route to finishing Week 18 with a lackluster 7-10 mark. 

It's widely believed among reporters and analysts throughout the NFL community that Rodgers has a significant say regarding personnel decisions such as who serves as head coach and GM under his watch. One so-called "longtime NFL personnel executive" told La Canfora that the Jets are "set up to fail" with Rodgers adding to the drama that hovers over the franchise seemingly every year. 

"The quarterback is somehow even more empowered now, and he only played four snaps," the personnel executive added. 

If Saleh truly doesn't "make it to the finish line" next season, logic suggests offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett will receive an opportunity to audition for the long-term gig. Hackett served as Rodgers' OC with the Packers from 2019 through the 2021 season, and the two remain close. Additionally, Rodgers indicated in December he'd like to give the Jets a minimum of two healthy seasons even though he turned 40 years old that same month and is coming off an injury known to threaten careers.