Two troubling NY Jets trends that must end after coaching changes

After another disappointing defeat against the Vikings in London, the NY Jets made two major changes, beginning on Tuesday.

Head coach Robert Saleh, who coached 56 games with the team, was fired Tuesday morning, and then on Thursday, interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich announced the team would make Todd Downing the new offensive play-caller, taking over for Nathaniel Hackett.

While the firing of Saleh was surprising, it was something that needed to be done. New York is in an all-in year with Aaron Rodgers and has played well below expectations, especially on offense. The move to demote Nathaniel Hackett as play-caller was long overdue and Jets fans will finally get a new play-caller starting on Monday night.

Despite all the changes and early season turmoil, New York enters Monday night with a chance to take the division lead in the AFC East. With this huge matchup on deck, let's look at two trends that must end starting on Monday against the Bills.

NY Jets must cut down on penalties

Under Robert Saleh, penalties and lack of discipline were a major issue for the Jets and one of the leading causes of Saleh's departure.

Over the last 22 games dating back to the start of last season, New York's 163 penalties committed are the most in the football. Gang Green finished 2023 with the most penalties and is currently inside the top seven in penalties this season.

The Jets' alarming lack of discipline and the same penalties occurring week in and week out couldn't last any longer. In 56 games under Saleh, which only included 20 wins, New York committed 357 penalties for 3,023 yards. These mistakes must be stopped for a team that is all-in this season.

The popular word used this week at One Jets Drive was 'accountability,' uttered by new head coach Jeff Ulbrich and some key players. Accountability is a huge piece to the penalties puzzle that Ulbrich and the rest of the coaching staff will try to solve starting on Monday night.

Something must change from a disciplinary perspective because what Saleh was doing wasn't resonating with the locker room.

NY Jets must start faster on offense

Another big struggle for the Jets this season and last season has been slow starts. This season, Gang Green is averaging 2.8 points scored per game in the first quarter, which ranks tied for 25th in football, and just 8.2 points scored in the first half of games this season, which ranks tied for 24th in the NFL.

To compare these starts to last year, New York also only scored 2.8 points per game in the first quarter while scoring 7.7 points in the first half of games in 2023.

Monday night will be a huge test for this coaching staff and the players to start fast after a chaotic week. Buffalo enters this primetime showdown averaging around 14.8 points in the first half of games this year, which ranks seventh best in the NFL. This means another slow start could cause fans to hit the exits by halftime.

While the blame for these slow starts ultimately fell on Saleh's plate, the offensive staff deserves a lot of blame for these starts as well. Under Hackett as the offensive play-caller, New York very rarely had success with its scripted plays, causing early deficits in many games.

Heading into Monday night, new play-caller Todd Downing needs to have this offense connecting early on against a division rival.

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