Video: Robert Saleh Attends Packers Practice After Being Fired by Jets

Julia StumbaughOctober 23, 2024

Mike Stobe/Getty Images

Former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh attended Green Bay Packers practice on Wednesday.

Saleh was abruptly fired earlier this month after the Jets’ 2-3 start to the season.

Rob Demovsky @RobDemovskyRecently fired Jets coach Robert Saleh is at Packers practice. Long history between him and Matt LaFleur. Also has worked with Jeff Hafley.

We’ll hear from LaFleur after practice if he’s hired Saleh in some capacity.

That’s him on the far sideline watching the offense. pic.twitter.com/JjOFAv1iLa

Jonathan Jones @jjones9Packers coach Matt LaFleur says former Jets head coach Robert Saleh is helping the team on the offensive side of the ball. His consulting and how often he’ll be around will be fluid. Not an uncommon setup in the NFL, and these two coaches are very close friends.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur’s brother, Mike LaFleur, worked on Saleh’s staff in New York.

Saleh previously worked with Matt LaFleur on the Houston Texans staff. Before that, LaFleur and Saleh were roommates at Central Michigan, and LaFleur was later the best man at Saleh’s wedding, as reported by ESPN’s Rob Demovsky.

The Packers are currently preparing for a Week 7 road game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Despite Saleh’s previous experience as a defensive coordinator, he spent the open practice watching the Packers’ offense, as noted by The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman.

The Packers’ defense is currently being run by Jeff Hafley, who is in his first year in the role after four seasons as head coach at Boston College. But Hafley’s position in the DC role doesn’t necessarily mean the Packers couldn’t consider adding Saleh to the staff.

LaFleur previously hired Aubrey Pleasant as offensive consultant for the Packers midway through the 2022 season after Pleasant was fired from his position as defensive backs coach for the Detroit Lions. Demovsky reported at the time that Pleasant would be working with the Green Bay offense in order to “give them a perspective from the other side of the ball.”

LaFleur could now be considering adding Saleh to the staff in a similar role.

Michael Silver of The Athletic reported after Saleh’s firing earlier this season that the former Jets coach would look for defensive coordinator roles ahead of the 2025 season, but that he had “no plans to join anyone’s staff during the 2024 season.”

Now that Saleh has had some time to process a firing that reportedly “blindsided” him, that might change, especially if his next role comes with the chance to work with an old friend.