The New York Jets made a stunning move on Tuesday with the firing of Robert Saleh. With Saleh out, defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will be taking over for the rest of the season as the team's interim coach.
Ulbrich might not be a household name, but he's well known around the NFL and he's a popular coach in the Jets' locker room. Here are five things to know about Ulbrich as he gets ready to serve as a head coach for the first time:
- He has NFL playing experience. Ulbrich's time in the NFL started in 2000 after the 49ers made him a third-round pick in the NFL Draft that year. The linebacker ended up spending his entire 10-year career in San Francisco. During his time with the 49ers, he started in 75 of the 120 games that he played in.
- He got his first NFL coaching job in 2010. After retiring as player in 2009, Ulbrich got a job as the assistant special teams coordinator in Seattle on Pete Carroll's first coaching staff in 2010. Ulbrich ended up spending two seasons in Seattle (2010-11) before moving on to the college ranks for two seasons with UCLA.
- Ulbrich has coached in a Super Bowl. After his time at UCLA (2012-14) came to an end, Ulbrich returned to the NFL in 2015 as the linebackers coach for the Atlanta Falcons. Ulbrich was on the Falcons' coaching staff in 2016 when the team made it to Super Bowl LI (You probably shouldn't make any 28-3 jokes around him). After four seasons as the linebackers coach, he was promoted to assistant head coach in 2020 and he eventually got the job of defensive coordinator from interim coach Raheem Morris following the midseason firing of Dan Quinn.
- Ulbrich was on Saleh's initial staff. Saleh was hired by the Jets in 2021 and one of his first moves was to bring in Ulbrich as his defensive coordinator. Through five weeks this season, the Jets have allowed the fewest yards per play in the NFL and they've also surrendered the second-fewest yards per game in the league.
According to Sports Illustrated, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was interested in hiring Ulbrich as his defensive coordinator to replace DeMeco Ryans, but the Jets said no. The fact that Shanahan was interested apparently caught the attention of Jets owner Woody Johnson.
"He is a tough coach who has the respect of the coaches and players on this team," Johnson said of Ulbrich on Tuesday. "I believe he along with the coaches on this staff can get the most out of our talented team and attain the goals we established this offseason."
Ulbrich will be getting a tough test in his first game: The Jets will play host to Josh Allen and the Bills on Monday night in Week 6.
