Woody Johnson sensed his struggling New York Jets needed a change — and now.

So the owner made the stunning decision Tuesday to fire coach Robert Saleh just five games into his fourth season after the team's 2-3 start following a 23-17 loss to Minnesota in London on Sunday. Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, a University of Hawaii alumnus, was elevated to interim head coach.

“This is one of the most talented teams that has ever been assembled by the New York Jets,” Johnson said during a conference call with reporters. "I wanted to give this team the most opportunity to win this season. I feel that we had to go in a different direction and that’s why I did that today.

“This change, the change that we made today — that I made — I believe will bring new energy and positivity that will lead to more wins, starting now.”

Saleh was 20-36 as coach of the Jets, who are trying to snap the NFL’s longest active playoff drought at 13 seasons. The move marks the first time in Johnson’s 25-year tenure that a head coach has been fired during the season.

Ulbrich will be in place for the rest of the season — with the Jets maintaining expectations to make the playoffs.

The Jets face the Buffalo Bills (3-2) on Monday night, when they have a chance to share the AFC East lead with a victory. But instead of Saleh, it will be the 47-year-old Ulbrich leading the team on the sideline.

“He’s going to add a spark of positivity," Johnson said of Ulbrich, a UH linebacker who was part of the turnaround from a winless 1998 season to nine wins under June Jones in 1999.

Ulbrich, who played linebacker for 10 seasons with San Francisco from 2000 to 2009, joined the Jets as part of Saleh's initial staff in 2021. Ulbrich was an assistant with Atlanta for six seasons before coming to New York.

In a Jets press conference, Ulbrich expressed a fondness for Saleh. 

“Great gratitude for him bringing me here,” Ulbrich said. “Great gratitude for staying by me. ... Year 1, we didn’t play the level of defense necessary to win games. He stuck with me, had great belief in me. The success I have today, he’s a huge part of that.”

"Today's an exciting day for myself, from the standpoint of getting this opportunity, but at the same time, heavy in my heart for Robert."

The surprising move came a day after Saleh said he was confident Aaron Rodgers and the Jets would be able to turn things around after losing two straight, including falling to undefeated Minnesota. Rodgers had his worst game with New York, throwing three interceptions.

"There’s so much football to be played,” Saleh said Monday. “There’s so many things that we can get better at, and there’s so many things that we can continue to build on, the things that we are doing well.

"So, I’m not panicked. Nobody in the building is panicked.”

But Johnson had seen enough from Saleh, who became the NFL's first coach fired this season. Saleh, who had one year remaining on his contract, had the worst winning percentage — .357 — of any Jets coach with at least 40 games.

“It’s not just the last two games that has precipitated this decision,” Johnson said. “It’s a longer time frame. I’ve had a couple of years to think about this and I just think we can do better. The team can do better. As we have this new leadership, I think that’s going to bring out the best in these players, I really do. I feel confident that that’s going to happen.”

Ulbrich said he agreed with Johnson about the talent on the roster.

"We have been underperforming, for whatever the reason," Ulbrich said. "We're going to take a hard look at all of it. At the end of the day, I'm going to be me. ... I really believe, if we lock arms, we commit to the process we put in place, we will have success. We will."

Johnson said he spoke with Rodgers — but not about a possible coaching change — on Monday. He also chatted with general manager Joe Douglas, but added “this was my decision and my decision alone.”

It's the 12th time since 2000 that a team has changed coaches just five games or fewer into a season, and the first since Matt Rhule was fired by Carolina after five games in 2022.

After success as San Francisco's defensive coordinator for four seasons, Saleh replaced the fired Adam Gase in January 2021 after the Jets went 9-23 in his tenure.

Saleh, the son of Lebanese parents, was believed to be the first Muslim head coach in NFL history when the Jets hired him. Saleh wore a patch of Lebanon's flag on his left arm during the game in London on Sunday, something he also did at times last season. The NFL encouraged players and coaches to represent their heritage.

Saleh's tenure began with a major decision as he and Douglas moved on from quarterback Sam Darnold — the No. 3 overall pick in 2018 — to draft Zach Wilson with the second overall pick in 2021.

While Saleh and Ulbrich's defense was a strength for the Jets, Wilson and the offense struggled mightily.

The Jets traded for Rodgers in April 2023, adding the four-time NFL MVP to a franchise looking for a winner. But last season was short-circuited when Rodgers tore his left Achilles tendon four snaps into his debut.

New York limped to a 7-10 record and while Johnson wouldn't specifically say there was a playoff mandate for this season, the owner made it clear during the offseason he needed to see marked improvement by saying “we have to do a lot better than seven games.”

Rodgers healed and was ready for the season opener, but he has been banged up the past two weeks and is dealing with a sprained ankle that hobbled him throughout the Jets' loss to Darnold and the Vikings. Saleh said Monday that preliminary tests indicated Rodgers should be able to play against the Bills.

But now Saleh will be only a spectator.

There were questions about his relationship with the 40-year-old Rodgers, but both denied any friction as recently as last week in London when the quarterback said “there’s some driving force trying to put a wedge outside the facility” between the two.

The Jets now will try to become the third team to make the playoffs with an interim coach leading the way, hoping to join the 2021 Raiders with Rich Bisaccia and the 1961 Oilers with Wally Lemm.

“This is a new day for the team and it’s a new day that’s welcome,” Johnson said. “And as the team realizes what opportunity this is for them, I think they’re going to go to a level that we haven’t seen in a while.”