Jets Ruin Robert Saleh's Titans Debut

Robert Saleh's first game as the Titans' head coach came against the team that fired him, and the New York Jets beat him 23-10 at Nissan Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Saleh spent parts of four seasons as the Jets' head coach before New York fired him early in the 2024 season, after a 2-3 start. The Titans hired him this offseason, and Sunday was billed as a homecoming against the team that let him go.

New York never trailed after the first quarter. Kenyon Sadiq's 3-yard touchdown run put the Jets up 7-0, and Joey Slye's 42-yard field goal was the closest Tennessee got the rest of the day. Jason Sanders made field goals from 33, 51 and 52 yards, and Breece Hall scored on a 4-yard run. Cam Ward's 11-yard touchdown pass to Elic Ayomanor in the fourth quarter set the final score. The Jets improved to 1-0. The Titans are 0-1 to open Saleh's tenure.

The Jets controlled the ball for 38 minutes and 46 seconds to Tennessee's 21:14, and outgained the Titans 367 total yards to 195. New York ran for 152 yards to Tennessee's 68, with Hall alone going for 102 and a score. The Titans ran the ball just 14 times all afternoon, seven of them from Tony Pollard.

Geno Smith was close to perfect. He went 19 of 24 for 215 yards, a 104.0 rating, no touchdowns and no turnovers. Cam Ward finished 19 of 32 for just 140 yards and was sacked three times. Both quarterbacks completed exactly 19 passes. Smith needed eight fewer attempts to gain 75 more yards.

By the second half the boos were steady. One fan caught on the broadcast could be heard calling for former Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt, who went 3-20 as Tennessee's head coach twelve years earlier, to come back. The stands were thin by the two-minute warning.

Asked about the reaction afterward, Saleh didn't dodge it. "When you lose, you're a loser," he said, and added that the boos come with the territory.

He wasn't interested in an emotional response. "Before I blurt and start screaming, I'm going to watch the tape and try to make sure we make rational, educated football decisions," Saleh said.

Disruptor Sports' Godzilla's Best Bet column picked the Titans -1.5 this week and predicted a 23-17 Tennessee win. The final was 23-10, Jets. The pick did not hold up.

Saleh spent the offseason selling Nashville on a program built to be tougher than the one that let him go. By the time the Jets ran out the clock, the seats he had hoped to fill with believers were mostly empty. The film session he promised will be a long one.