This NY Jet has the most to lose if the 2024 season is a bust

As we head into the 2024 season, it seems that the collective football world is divided on the NY Jets. If you read some publications, you would believe that the place is burning down in Florham Park. If you read others, everything internally is completely copacetic.

The only thing that is not arguable, is that the Jets are extremely talented. With so much talent comes a lot of pressure. There are plenty of key figures in the organization that have a ton riding on this season. But one man stands above all the rest in that department — Robert Saleh.

The Jets' current over/under according to the Draft Kings, is 10.5. This is pretty lofty considering we have yet to really see this team with Aaron Rodgers under center. But with firepower everywhere you look, it is understandable why odds makers value the Jets somewhere between 10 and 11 wins.

I'd hazard a guess that if you ask most Jets fans unless they make an extremely deep playoff run, anything short of 10 wins is at least somewhat disappointing. If they finish with less than 10 wins and don't win at least one playoff game, there will be some guys on the chopping block.

Joe Douglas would definitely be on shaky ground if things take a turn for the worse this offseason. He has been with the Jets for five seasons now with little to no success to speak of. Aaron Rodgers is another person whose legacy could be impacted by which way this season goes.

So much attention has been placed on his post-Green Bay career, and whether or not he can lead another franchise to the promised land. It has been 15 seasons since he won a Super Bowl. Whether or not he brings one to New York could determine his place on the all-time QB list.

But of all the men who need 2024 to go well, the Jets' head coach needs to produce results more than any of them. This will be Robert Saleh's fourth season in New York. It has been a failure so far, regardless of how much blame he deserves to shoulder.

If the Jets don't make a deep playoff run, or finish with at least 11 or 12 wins, he is likely going to be looking for work this winter.

Robert Saleh has the most riding on a successful NY Jets season

If this happens, Joe Douglas will almost certainly be in the same boat, but he at least has some home-run level draft picks to hang his hat on.

His resume would come out much less damaged than Saleh's, and Rodgers would miss out on the opportunity to end his career like a fairy tale. But either way, he will be in Canton in five years with as decorated a career as almost anyone.

If Saleh has to face another let-down of a season, he will not be head coaching in the NFL ever again. If he isn't able to win with all this talent on both sides of the field and with one of the greatest players to ever lace up cleats at QB, then he will be remembered as a failure. Plain and simple.

Rodgers will always have his four MVPs and Super Bowl ring, and Douglas will at least get to point to a draft that produced Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, Breece Hall, and Jermaine Johnson. Robert Saleh will just have a lot of question marks and what-ifs.

It is unfortunate for him, as he has had nothing but obstacles since he joined the green and white. If he had gotten his first head coaching opportunity with a different franchise, we may look at him in a completely different light right now.

But he has yet to record more than seven wins in a season, he has not been to the playoffs, he has seen tons of drama under his watch, and he has failed to build a viable coaching staff around him. While there are some positives on the defensive end that you can point to, he wasn't brought in to be a defensive coordinator. His job title is head coach.

If the worst happens, I have no doubt that Robert Saleh will get a coordinator job quickly. No one doubts his ability on that side of the ball. But if he wants to stay a head coach, he needs 2024 to be a great season. He has more to lose than anyone.

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