NFL insider claims Woody Johnson consulted Jets QB before making decision to fire Robert Saleh: "There's blood in the hand of Aaron Rodgers"
The New York Jets' decision to fire Robert Saleh came as a surprise as the team is just one game behind .500 and still very much in the AFC East race. Since the Jets made the announcement on Tuesday morning, there have been rumors that Aaron Rodgers may have suggested the idea of Saleh's dismissal.
On Wednesday, Craig Carton said on 'Breakfast Ball' that Saleh discussed the idea of taking offensive play-calling decisions away from offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.
Carton suggested that Rodgers didn't agree with that decision and approached either general manager Joe Douglas or owner Woody Johnson. Carton believes that Saleh's decision about Hackett did influence his dismissal.
"You let the general manager know, Joe Douglas, and at some point you let Aaron Rodgers know, and Woody Johnson, the owner. And this is where everything blew up, because after Robert Saleh made the decision to take away play calling from Nathaniel Hackett, because the offense has such a problem. Woody Johnson gets on the phone with Aaron Rodgers.
"Now, the one part of this which is important, that I don't know the answer to. I do not know if Aaron called Woody or Woody called Aaron, which is important. But they did have a conversation. Woody Johnson acknowledged it, and then part of the conversation was, what do you think about the decision to take play calling away from Hackett? I don't like it. Five minutes later, Robert Saleh gets fired. So there is blood on the hands of Aaron Rodgers," said Craig Carton.
Craig Carton stood by his thought that Aaron Rodgers did have a hand in the decision to fire Robert Saleh after just five weeks of the NFL season.
Aaron Rodgers 'resents' idea that he was responsible for Robert Saleh's dismissal
Aaron Rodgers' weekly appearance on 'The Pat McAfee Show' was delayed until Wednesday. He addressed the rumors that he was responsible for Saleh being fired. He also stated that he doesn't have as much power as many people give him credit for.
"I resent any of those accusations because they are patently false. It's interesting the amount of power that people think I have, which I don't," Aaron Rodgers said on The Pat McAfee Show.
Rodgers did tell McAfee that he was looking forward to working with interim New York Jets coach Jeff Ulbrich, who was the defensive coordinator.