Former Buffalo Bills assistant coach Phoebe Schecter is an NFL pundit and plays for the British Flag Football team.

Robert Saleh became the first NFL head coach to lose his job this season when he was fired by the New York Jets after last Sunday’s loss in London, and I was surprised it happened so early.

It’s not that they have a terrible track record. They are 2-3 heading into Monday Night Football against Buffalo, their division rivals. They could be playing for first place in their division, so it actually felt a little abrupt, but ultimately I don’t think Saleh was the problem.

When you land a quarterback like four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers – one of the biggest names in sports – you get a lot more than just a player. He almost becomes his own offensive coordinator, right? That’s not necessarily an easy relationship for a head coach and a quarterback, and there were signs of the water being muddied between Saleh and Rodgers.

Rodgers had a really good game against the Patriots three weeks ago, but there was a moment when Saleh went to hug him and Rodgers pushed him away. After losing to Denver, they both talked about cadence issues and people being held accountable. Those were signs that things were heading this way, but because it’s coming so quickly, I think it’s unfortunate for Saleh.

The Jets have named (defensive coordinator) Jeff Ulbrich as interim head coach and he said (quarterbacks coach) Todd Downing will be the offensive play-caller.

He essentially demoted (offensive coordinator) Nathaniel Hackett, which I think is what Saleh wanted to do before he was fired. But Saleh, a defensive head coach, had lost that strength on the offensive side of the ball and I don’t feel like Rodgers would have created a nice environment for him there.

I think it’s telling that once Ulbrich steps into the role, he demotes Hackett. Ulbrich has been there, he’s seen what’s going on, he’s been to all the team meetings, so he’ll know what the problem is.