A New York Jets coach has now been suspended indefinitely - instead of for the rest of this season - after the team learned he instructed players to stand with him near their sideline before he tripped a Miami Dolphins player, the team said Wednesday.
The Jets said they're still reviewing the case of strength and conditioning coach Sal Alosi, and that they could opt to fire him. Alosi tripped rookie Dolphins cornerback Nolan Carroll during a punt in third quarter of the Dolphins' 10-6 win over the Jets.
"The players at the Miami game were instructed by Sal to stand where they were, to force the gunner in the game to run around them," Jets General Manager Mike Tannenbaum told reporters Wednesday.
Carroll, covered by two Jets players, was running along the sideline toward the Jets punt returner when the incident happened at the New Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey. Video shows Carroll was out of bounds and trying to run back in the field of play when Alosi - standing with Jets players on the out-of-bounds edge of the sideline - leaned his left knee forward. The knee caught Carroll, who tumbled to the ground.
Carroll was shaken up but eventually walked to his sideline on his own power. He returned to the game in the fourth quarter.
Alosi apologized to Carroll, the Dolphins' coach and others Sunday, and on Monday he told reporters that he "wasn't thinking." Asked that day whether someone had instructed him and other Jets personnel to stand close to the sidelines to prevent the Dolphins from running out of bounds - something for which Miami was penalized earlier in the game - Alosi said: "No, that wasn't anything that was instructed."
On Monday the Jets suspended Alosi for the rest of the season and fined him $25,000. But the Jets continued to look at the play and then talked with players "who appeared to be standing in a wall-like formation with Alosi," the Jets said in a statement.
"It looked to me that it was unusual for them to be standing that way, and then on Tuesday we talked to the players involved, and that's when we were told they were asked to stand there by Sal," Tannenbaum said in a conference call with reporters Wednesday. "They were instructed by Sal throughout the game, but specifically when Miami was punting, they were asked to stand there by him."
"Once we got this new information, we actually met with the commissioner [Roger Goodell] and [vice president of football operations] Ray Anderson this morning. They support this initial decision that we presented to them, but the league is going to look into this as well, as they should," Tannenbaum said.
The Jets said they could choose to terminate Alosi's services.
"All options are certainly on the table," Tannenbaum said. "We're going to complete the review, get all the information. [Special teams coach] Mike Westhoff was not involved, [head coach] Rex Ryan is not involved, but we just want to be thorough and then make the best decision."
Alosi, who played linebacker at Hofstra, joined the Jets as an intern in 2002 before serving as their assistant strength and conditioning coach from 2003 to 2005. He worked one year with the Atlanta Falcons before returning to the Jets as their head strength and conditioning coach in 2007.
I thnk with these revelations, it is obvious this was premeditated—he had a plan set down here! This is not professionalism, ethical conduct, a display of integrity or honesty—which the game sorely needs now! Fire him!
Fire him & ban him from pro sports!
Let him work for the mob.
They fined this guy $25,000? That is the fine they give millionaire players for similar actions. That is a drop in the bucket for the average player, but the conditioning coach? What does he make per year, $90,000?
This guy was told by Special Teams coach Mike Westoff to form this wall. Westoff was with Miami for 7 years and knew they run along the sidelines. Check the tape from the Sept Miami match up and you’ll see the same formation on the Jets sideline. This goes deeper than just Sal Alosi, and the Jets are covering it up.
well of course he did, his story made no sense, he said he wasn't thinking...B.S., if he hadn't been thinking then the natural instinct would have been to step back, cuz that's who they're trained, took a conscious thought to step forward and trip that player, imo, not only should he be fired but banned from football foreever
Good thing he isn't in the players union
What Alosi did was flat wrong. What is worse is the Jets as an organization for making him the fall guy for their decision. Are we to believe Ryan or other coaches were not aware of this? Strange how Ryan has a big mouth when it comes to others, but it is shut when it comes to his team.
As much as I agree that this was a stupid thing to do, how about players staying in bounds and not using the entire stadium for a field? Why not make the sideline 10 yards wide to accomodate. If it's legal to run OR BE RUN out of bounds but not legal to hit anyone out of bounds just make the sideline bigger...This also seems necessary to keep other players back from the field. No brainer to me
Why are we still talking about this? Fire him and let's move on.
Now they're talking about firing him? That never even should have been up for debate. He should have been tossed out by security with his desk contents in a box before the game was even over.
The Jets are in pure free-fall mode hahahaha
Bad for sports, this should be dealt with forcefully.
I'm an ardent Jets fan, but this incident is imbecilic and unacceptable, and Alosi should already have been dismissed - permanently, and without the possibility of employment from another NFL team. And an investigation into whether anyone higher up (Ryan) gave the order to harrass or harm the gunner should be launched immediately. If anyone else is guilty let them get axed too. Alosi's stupid act could have ended Nolan's career, so his career with the Jets should come to an end pronto. I don't want to see my team become the Raiders, and that's probably not even being fair to the Raiders, because I don't recall any of their coaches ever doing anything so stupid. Most importantly, in a violent game where careers can end at any time on the field, it's unacceptable to have somebody not involved in a play go out of his way to do something that could end a player's career. The NFL has to ensure that an example is set so we never see this happen again.
the guy is a thug and has no business on the field or in the game; he's an accident waiting to happen
It is the head coach that needs fired. You really think a S&C coach is going to have the power to make 5 players on IR risk their safety and reputation without blessing from the head coach? This guy is just taking the fall for the Jets as far as ordering the line goes. He still should be punished for tripping but whatever punishment he gets should be given to Rex as well.