If you're going to take a stand against Israel, the National Football League might not be the wisest place to start.
Former New York Jets coach Robert Saleh was fired yesterday. The move was surprising to many, coming after only week five in the season. Yes, the Jets have struggled of late, but showed life coming back late in the game against the undefeated Minnesota Vikings, but came up short, falling to 2-3.
The plot thickens regarding Saleh's fashion sensibility. The coach wore a Lebanese flag patch on his shoulder for the past two games. He was born in Lebanon; his parents immigrated to the US legally when Saleh was a child.
The flags are NFL-approved. The league began a program promoting the growing international diversity of players and coaching staff last year. Saleh wore the same Lebanese flag then.
From the NFL's website, a 2023 description of the program:
Fans will see 70+ nations and territories represented by athletes including Tua Tagovailoa, Fred Warner, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Puka Nacua, Chris Olave, DJ Moore, Jimmy Garoppolo, Aaron Jones, Efe Obada and Jordan Mailata, among others, as well as coaching staff across 17 clubs including Bill Belichick, Arthur Smith, Ron Rivera, Brian Daboll and more.
That's nice. But in 2023, barrages of missiles weren't flying out Lebanon into Israel, and Israel wasn't increasing troop presence in Beirut and Damascus.
Whether one has to do with the other is merely speculation at this point, and Saleh has been gracious in his exit, saying that he is grateful for his time in the NFL in a heartfelt statement.
“To the Jets Organization, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with so many incredible people. I will always be appreciative of the love and support from everyone at 1 Jets Drive. To all of the players, I truly love and appreciate every single one of you. The character of the men in the locker room made coaching you guys the ultimate privilege. Through all the ups and downs, each and every one of you showed up everyday and attacked every moment. To my fellow coaches and staff, it has been an honor to work with all of you. Every one of you were “all in” and made sacrifices for one another that will never be forgotten. I wish you all the very best of luck for the remainder of the season. To the most passionate fan base in the NFL, thank you for embracing my family. It has been a pleasure calling New York our home and we will forever appreciate all of the memories that were created here. With Love and Regard, All Gas No Brake!!!”
