Within the wake of one other poor outing on defense, the Jets have made a late-season change on the sidelines. Head coach Aaron Glenn announced on Monday that defensive coordinator Steve Wilks has been fired.
Pass-game coordinator Chris Harris will handle DC duties for the rest of the yr. Glenn added (via ESPN’s Wealthy Cimini) Harris may also call plays for the unit. The Jets have been eliminated from playoff contention, but as they spend their final three games attempting to bring about needed improvements on defense Wilks won’t play a component.
As a part of the Jets’ sweeping changes on the sidelines and within the front office this past offseason, Glenn (a rookie head coach) hired Wilks to steer the defense. Things haven’t gone in response to plan on that side of the ball, nevertheless. Recent York sits thirtieth within the NFL in points allowed, and the last two weeks particularly have seen the team regress defensively. The Jets have yet to record an interception through 15 games.
After all, the trade deadline saw major subtractions made on defense within the team’s case. Cornerback Sauce Gardner and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams were dealt to the Colts and Cowboys, respectively. Recent York landed a notable haul within the case of each swaps, but expectations were tempered for the second half of the season. Nevertheless, the early portion of the campaign also included subpar performances on defense.
Because the Jets plan for the 2026 offseason, today’s news confirms Wilks won’t be within the organization for next yr. The veteran staffer’s NFL tenure dates back to 2005 and it includes three stints as a DC. Wilks, 56, was also the Cardinals’ head coach in 2018 and he took over the Panthers in 2022 following Matt Rhule‘s dismissal.
More to come back…