The first head coach of the 2024 season has been fired.

Unfortunately, it’s former San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. The New York Jets relieved Saleh of his head coaching duties following a 23-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Jets are 2-3, so their situation isn’t bleak.

That makes Saleh’s dismissal extremely strange. If the Jets had started 0-5, sure. There is certainly reason to fire him. But at 2-3? There are Aaron Rodgers fingerprints all over that. Even Kyle Shanahan was “pretty shocked” when he heard the news.

“I texted him, but I didn’t get to talk to him. And yeah, I was pretty shocked,” Shanahan said. “Those kind of things throw you off, especially when they’re fighting for first place in the division this week and I think they’re up there on defense and have a pretty good team and have a chance to have a great year So that was quite surprising.”

Indeed. It was quite surprising. You’d think the Jets would have waited until they were out of the playoff race. It’s not like their defense is the weak link. Their offense is the problem. Unfortunately, Saleh is unfairly fired five weeks into the season and ends his Jets’ tenure with a 20-36 record.

Now that Saleh is a free agent, this opens the door for him to return to the 49ers. However, he reportedly has no interest in filling a coaching position for the remainder of the year. So if he returns to the 49ers, it will have to be after 2024.

Doing so would mean Nick Sorensen will be fired or take a backseat. Either way, it’s hard to see where Saleh would fit with the 49ers, and that’s assuming he even wants to return. He will certainly be a hot commodity for defensive coordinator vacancies across the league

This could be a blessing in disguise for Saleh. He no longer has to deal with the New York Jets clown show along with the brash Aaron Rodgers.