Kyle Shanahan ‘shocked’ by Jets’ firing of Robert Saleh

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke to the media on Tuesday and was asked about the New York Jets’ firing of Robert Saleh.

Saleh was Shanahan’s defensive coordinator with the 49ers for four seasons before taking over as head coach of the Jets, and the two coached together as assistants on the Houston Texans staff from 2006 to 2009, so there’s a lot of history between the two.

Shanahan was “shocked” by Woody Johnson’s decision to fire Saleh on Tuesday morning.

“I texted him, but I couldn’t get a hold of him,” Shanahan said. “And yeah, I was pretty shocked. Those things throw you off, especially when they’re competing for first place in the division this week and I think they’re there on defense and they have a really good team and a chance to have an amazing year.”

Saleh ended his tenure with the Jets with a 20-36 record in four seasons as head coach of the franchise. As Shanahan mentioned, the Jets are one of the best teams in the NFL on the defensive side of the ball, but they have also struggled on the offensive side of the football despite having Aaron Rodgers at center and a plethora of weapons.

The Jets named defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich interim head coach. They face the Buffalo Bills on Monday night.