Woody Johnson will sit in his owner’s suite at MetLife Stadium on Monday night when his Jets play the Bills and hope the magic button he pressed this week produces, well, some magic.
Jeff Ulbrich, the defensive coordinator Johnson promoted when he fired Robert Saleh on Tuesday, will stand on the sideline as an NFL head coach for the first time, hoping he can make a difference for the 2-3 Jets as they play for first place in the AFC East.
Todd Downing, the quarterbacks coach who was elevated to play-caller, will sit in the coach’s box on press level calling plays for the first time, hoping to produce touchdowns for an offense that hasn’t produced enough of them.
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be on the field, taking in the plays Downing calls, hoping the new synergy gives the wayward offense new life.
Nathaniel Hackett, the offensive coordinator and BFOAR (best friend of Aaron Rodgers) who had his play-calling duties stripped away and given to Downing, will be at MetLife Stadium with a role yet to be known.
Saleh, presumably, will be sitting at home, without a team to coach for the first time in three-plus years, either watching his former team or not, but knowing in his heart that it’s a talented team still with a chance to make some noise this season.
It’s been a turbulent week around the Jets, and many questions still persist, beginning with how the team will respond and react to the internal unrest when it finally gets onto the field Sunday night.
Usually, when head coaches are fired — particularly in mid-season — the teams are in a state chaos and/or a free fall in the standings.
Yes, the Jets enter this game having lost in each of the past weeks, but they’re hardly a team in chaos.
A win over the 3-2 Bills on Monday night and the Jets are in first place in the AFC East, tied with the Bills at 3-3 — and with the early head-to-head tiebreaker edge.
How will the players react to the sudden change and the emotions of Saleh being fired?
“The message is playing the way that we want to play, not because our coach got fired, not because we’re playing for the No. 1 spot [in the division], not because it’s the Bills, not because division game, but because that’s what we’re supposed to do,’’ Jets linebacker and captain C.J. Mosley told The Post on Saturday. “Yeah, it’s been a long week. But once we got on the football field, it felt like everything was just kind of back to normal.’’
There’s been a buzz phrase that’s come up numerous times this week since Saleh’s firing: “Lock arms.’’
“Yeah, it’s been a lot of change, but at the end of the day, we’re the same team,’’ right tackle Morgan Moses told The Post. “[Ulbrich] has got the same people in the locker room — great human beings. And if anything, this is going to bring us closer.
“We’ve got a lot of veteran guys have been through numerous situations over the portion of their careers, and I think we’ve done a good job allowing the younger guys to be able to lean on us for answers and leadership.
“That’s what the team is about. We operate as a team, as a unit, as a family. That has allowed us to come closer and really lock arms.’’
Ulbrich, who was brought in by Saleh and remains very close to him, on Saturday described the wild swings of emotions for him this week.
“It’s definitely been challenging, exciting, heavy on the heart at times for sure just because of the whole situation and my connection with Robert — professionally, personally, the whole thing, what he means to me,’’ he said.
Ulbrich, a former player, praised his players for how they’ve handled the tumultuous week.
“I am so grateful for this group of players and coaches that we have in this building because they’ve been so supportive, and the way they’ve all rallied and prepared, really excited about the work we’ve put in this week,’’ he said. “We have a process in place here. We’ve tried to improve it as much as we can in this particular week, and ultimately we’re going to trust that process, earn the right on Monday night … to play free and loose and let it rip, earn the right to celebrate this game with your brothers.
“Ultimately as coaches, this is our opportunity to get out of [the players’] way and give you the keys to the car.’’
The hope of Johnson, as he sits in his suite Monday night after what some believe to be a rash decision to fire his head coach just five games into the season, is that the car doesn’t spin out into a guardrail and careen down a cliff.
