After giving up 82 points the past two weeks, Steve Wilks has paid the ultimate price.
Airplanes Coach Aaron Glenn fired Wilks on Monday after the Jets’ humiliating 48-20 loss to the Jaguars.
Glenn then announced that Chris Harris, who had been the defensive coordinator/passing game coordinator, would be the Jets’ interim defensive coordinator for the final three weeks of the season. When talking about this opportunity to become defensive coordinator, Harris was quick to point out that Wilkes was not responsible for all of the Jets’ defensive shortcomings.
“Steve is a good coach and a good friend of mine,” Harris said Thursday. “I learned a lot from him. It’s unfortunate, at the end of the day, that this happened, but it’s on all of us as a coaching staff.”
“I want to thank AG [Glenn] To put me in this position, but again, it’s not about me. It’s all about us, defensively, trying to make sure we’re doing all the right things we need to do to position players and go out there and have success against the Saints.
Sunday’s game against the Saints won’t be the first time Harris has called a defensive play in the league. He was a player during the preseason. But now, Harris will have a three-game audition to prove he should be the Jets’ defensive coordinator moving forward.
Harris, 43, has a lot to clean up in a short amount of time for a disappointing Jets defense. They have gone from being a top-five defensive unit the past three seasons to one of the worst in the NFL. He ranks 20th in yards allowed (337.4) and 30th in points allowed per game (28.4). The Jets are on pace to give up 482 points in 2025, which would be the second-highest in franchise history, behind a 2021 defense that allowed 504 points.
“I think sometimes people think it’s going to be this sweeping change in the scheme,” Glenn said of the defensive coordinator change. “You can’t do that to players. With only three games to go, everything, all the work they’ve put in up to this point and trying a completely new system is going to be tough on the players.
“Now there will also be some changes that he wants to make himself, and I applaud that for him, but there is a system that the players know. Will there be some adjustments? Are we going to tweak it? Sure, we will, but there will be a lot of things that the players know.”
The Jets’ defense, which was playing better entering December, has been embarrassed over the past two weeks. They lost 34-10 to the Dolphins in Week 14, with the game ending at the end of the first quarter after the Jets trailed 21-0. Miami rushed for a season-high 239 yards in the victory.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence scored six touchdowns in the Jacksonville win. The Jaguars scored eight of the first nine series, and the Jets fell into a quick 14-0 hole, just like the previous week against the Dolphins.
The Gang Green defense under Wilkes, which relied too much on the blitz, barely touched Lawrence after recording just two quarterback hits and zero sacks. After initially supporting him during the post-match press conference, Glenn changed his mind after watching the film and decided to make the change.
The Jets’ defense was among the worst in the NFL during their 0-7 start. But after winning three out of five, they seemed to be on the right track. But the Jets have allowed 41 points per game the past two weeks and have given up an average of 398 yards per game.
The scariest stat for the Jets defense this season is that they have just two interceptions and zero interceptions. The Jets tied the 2024 San Francisco 49ers last Sunday for the longest streak in NFL history without an interception (14 games).
“I don’t want anything to do with me,” Harris said. “But you know, in defence, I’m a former player, so I can talk to the players.
“I understand how they think. So, it’s all about preparation and we want to play with grit, we want to play with intensity, and those are the things we want to try and showcase while we’re out there.”
Harris played eight seasons in the NFL from 2005 to 2012 as a safety. Since retiring, Harris has been working his way up the coaching ladder, waiting for an opportunity like this. Before coming to the Jets, he was an assistant coach with the Bears, Chargers, Commanders and Titans.
Glenn interviewed Harris for the Jets’ defensive coordinator opening last season before Wilkes was eventually hired. Last month, NFL Media named Harris one of the “NFL coaches to watch in the coming years.”
“This is not ideal,” Harris said. “Nobody wants to go through that during the season. It’s something I definitely aspired to do, and again, I’m grateful for the opportunity that AG gave me.”
“Again, Steve, I learned a lot from him, and like I said, what happened is not an indictment of him, it’s our entire defensive staff and we just have to do better.”