After a disappointing loss in London, Jeff Ulbrich was surely planning on spending his Tuesday morning devising a scheme to slow down Josh Allen on Monday night.
That was until the Jets fired Robert Saleh and named Ulbrich, their defensive coordinator, as the interim head coach, tasked with turning around the disappointing season.
Ulbrich’s first priority, however, was addressing a team — now his team — that suffered two straight bad losses and is now dealing with a midseason transition.
“It’s time to lock in arms,” Ulbrich, 47, said in a news conference about his message to the Jets. “We go back to back, and it’s us against everybody. With the talent that we have in that room, in my opinion, we have everything we need to be successful and have the season that we know we’re capable of having.”
It will be a tall task to unite the 2-3 team, which has yet to live up to expectations with Aaron Rodgers back under center after taking just four snaps last season before tearing his Achilles.
The Jets lost their season opener to the 49ers, but beat the Titans and Patriots before cratering.
In an ugly 10-9 loss to the Broncos in Week 4, the Jets committed 15 penalties (13 accepted), including five false starts.
The next week, Rodgers threw three interceptions in the loss to the Vikings in London.
This is an opportunity for Ulbrich to ignite a spark in the Jets and show what he can do as a head coach.
“I’ve seen him coach and I know the relationship he has with the players and they respect him,” Jets owner Woody Johnson said. “They trust him. I’ve seen it at halftime and I’ve seen it at practice. When he talks, they listen to him in a way that probably represents the fact that he did play the sport at linebacker for 10 years, which is pretty unique. So, he brings that knowledge and that respect, and the knowledge to the game in a way that I think will be very good for the players going forward.”
Ulbrich, who spent his entire playing career with the 49ers, has been with the Jets since 2021, when Saleh took over as head coach.
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His defense has been the bright spot this Jets season.
They have allowed the second-fewest yards per game (255.8) and are tied for sixth in scoring.
Ulbrich’s defense also ranked first in the league in yards allowed per game in 2021.
Ulbrich said there are still conversations to be had about other possible changes in staff and positions, including how he will handle the defense and who will be named play-caller.
He admitted he will confer with Rodgers for advice in regard to the offense.
“We are going to take a hard look at all that we do and the process of which we get to Monday night and make the changes that we think are necessary,” Ulbrich said.
