Jeff Ulbrich is struggling with the Jets' decades-long coaching misery

It was Saturday afternoon, the end of a long, tumultuous and emotional week for Jeff Ulbrich, who had been promoted to head coach of the Jets after Robert Saleh, the man who brought him to the Jets, was fired five days earlier.

It was at the end of his final press conference of the week before Monday night's game against the Bills at MetLife Stadium when a reporter asked Ulbrich this question: “When did you know you wanted to coach?”

Ulbrich was an NFL linebacker with the 49ers for 10 years from 2000 to 2009, collecting 501 tackles, 5½ sacks, two interceptions, six forced fumbles and one safety.

He began his coaching career with the Seahawks in 2010 as an assistant special teams coordinator, then worked at UCLA before joining the Falcons' staff in 2015. From Atlanta, Saleh hired Ulbrich as his defensive coordinator in 2021.

And here we are now: Ulbrich in the first head coaching role of his career, at home, against the AFC East favorites, under the lights of national television.

So back to the answer to the question he was asked on Saturday.

“Yeah, it was really late in my (playing) career because I remember early in my career saying, 'Why would I want to do this?' said Ulbrich. “And later in my career … we had drafted (linebacker) Patrick Willis. I became the backup and spent a lot of time with him. We watched a lot of tapes together. We did a lot of extra (work) on the field.

“I remember it was like yesterday, we were playing the Cardinals and I was standing on the sideline watching. I remember him making a play at the Cardinals game, giving me a quick look and I looking at him. (The piece) was something we had been working on and focused on that particular week, and it felt better than any piece I've ever done for myself. And it was like, “I’m addicted.” ”

Ulbrich's romantic recollection of becoming interested in coaching made me think of all the Jets head coaches I've covered in my 40 years with the team.

Ulbrich is the lucky (?) 13th Jets coach I've covered since the first one I covered, Joe Walton.

Saleh's shocking and untimely death was the latest evidence that things never end well for the Jets' head coaches.

In 1989, Walton was met with chants of “Joe Must Go” from angry Jets fans who showered him with cups of beer on his final trot through the stadium tunnel.

Bruce Coslet was arrogant and combative until the end, having not had a winning season in his four years and only appeared in the playoffs once (a wild card loss after an 8-8 finish).

Pete Carroll, who succeeded Coslet, lasted just one season and when he was fired, then-owner Leon Hess stood in front of reporters in a rare public appearance and, as he introduced Rich Kotite, famously rantd: “I'm 80 years old and I want results now.”

The front page of the Post the next day read: “Dumb and Dumber,” with photos of Carroll and Kotite.

The Kotite era requires no instruction. He is widely considered perhaps the worst head coach in NFL history, going 4-28 in his two seasons.

Enter Parcells, who (temporarily) changed the losing culture in the building but turned out to be a joke and only served as coach for three years before resigning after the 1999 season when he lost Vinny Testaverde to a torn Achilles tendon in the opening game.

Then came the bizarre resignation of Bill Belichick as “HC of the NYJ” on the day he was to be introduced as Parcells’ successor. Belichick's reason for resigning was Woody Johnson. He thought coaching a rookie owner was an unstable situation and orchestrated his way to New England.

So Al Groh took over for 2000, posted a respectable 9-7 record and headed straight after the season to coach his alma mater, Virginia, for a life with less pressure.

Groh was replaced by Herm Edwards, who coached for five seasons and took the team to the playoffs three times. Then he decided he had had enough of Johnson's meddling and went to Kansas City.

Eric Mangini coached the Jets to two winning seasons in his three years and was fired by Johnson after losing 9-7 in 2008 to a weakened and ailing Brett Favre, who Johnson pushed on him at the start of the season and promised him job security .

Rex Ryan's six-year era was perhaps the most entertaining of all – two AFC Championship appearances and plenty of turmoil and drama. But he eventually ran out of luck with Johnson and was fired after going 4-12 in 2014.

Todd Bowles lasted four years, one playoff season followed by three clunkers, and was replaced by Adam Gase, who was skewered before coaching his first game for his awkward and bizarre introductory press conference.

Then came Saleh, and you know how that ended.

With that… Good luck to Ulbrich.

If he's done his research, he knows that these things never end well.