Robert

Saleh

Saleh previously held the same role with the 49ers from 2017-2020 before taking over as the Jets’ head coach in 2018. He was relieved of his duties during the 2024 season and briefly served as an offensive consultant for the Packers after that. Now back on the defensive side of the ball, Saleh will look to recapture the magic that made him a sought-after head coaching candidate four years ago.

Saleh was widely considered to be the favorite to get the Jaguars head coaching gig not long ago, but it appears that Liam Coen will be the one who gets that job now that Trent Baalke isn’t in the way. It’d be a return to San Francisco for Saleh, as he was the DC under Mike Shanahan from 2017-2020 before taking over for the Jets. Saleh has had plenty of success leading defenses, and assuming this happens, it should be an upgrade for the 49ers’ group.

Saleh is scheduled to meet with the Jags’ front office and ownership on Thursday and Friday. He may now be considered a favorite for the Jacksonville job after Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen — who had been considered a strong candidate for the Jags job — signed a new deal with Tampa on Wednesday morning. A defensive minded coach, Saleh was 20-36 over three and a half seasons with the Jets before being fired. Jacksonville’s defense in 2024 allowed the league’s fifth most points and second most yards.

This news comes shortly after it was announced that Saleh’s chances at landing the Jaguars’ head coaching gig would “increase” after the Bears hired Ben Johnson. Saleh showed well during his initial interview with the Jaguars and could soon find himself back in the driver’s seat of a team just months after being dismissed by the Jets following a 20-36 record over four seasons. It’s possible we’ll know by Friday if Saleh has a new home in Jacksonville.

A rumored “surprise” candidate for the Jaguars, Saleh reportedly impressed there when he was a linebackers coach in the 2010s and would likely be someone who wouldn’t demand a general manager change to get the job. Saleh has also landed interviews with the Raiders and Cowboys (for their head coaching vacancy) and the 49ers (for their defensive coordinator vacancy) this cycle. The Jets were 2-3 under Saleh’s guidance in 2024 and 3-9 under interim coach Jeff Ulbrich.

The former Jets head coach has been a name of consistent interest around the league for the numerous vacant head coaching positions, with is most recent interview completed by the Cowboys. Saleh was fired by the Jets in October after more than three seasons with the franchise. The Jaguars have also been linked to Saleh during this coaching cycle and it appears he will have an opportunity to land on his feet with a change of scenery.

Rapoport said the Cowboys are expected to request an interview with Saleh, 45, who was fired by the Jets in October after a rocky start to the year. He went 20-36 with the Jets over three-plus seasons and has drawn interest from a number of teams over the past couple weeks. The Niners have talked to Saleh about once again becoming the team’s defensive coordinator, and ESPN reported this week that Saleh is a “sleeper” for the Jacksonville head coaching job. The Raiders have also talked to Saleh about their head coach vacancy. He could have his choice of head coaching opportunities over the next week or so.

Graziano is not the first person we have seen using Saleh’s tenure as Jacksonville’s linebackers coach from 2014-2016 as a positive point for Saleh. Saleh clearly has some fans in the building. The Jaguars have been widely expected to hire an offensive-minded coach, but most coaching scoop articles have slowly started to push Ben Johnson to Las Vegas based on not being able to bring his own general manager to Jacksonville. If the Jaguars do want to keep Trent Baalke badly enough to only hire a coach who will work with him, it makes some sense that they’d lean beyond the big obvious candidates and wind up with someone like Saleh.

According to Pelissero, Saleh is scheduled to meet with the Jaguars on Tuesday and will then sit down with the Raiders on Thursday. Despite a disappointing tenure with the Jets that never saw him win more than seven games in a season, Saleh remains a popular head coaching candidate in some circles. If he doesn’t return as a head coach in 2025, the veteran defensive coordinator also has a chance to return to the 49ers in the same he previously served in from 2017-2020. Saleh met with the 49ers last week and is rumored to be high on their list of potential candidates to replace former defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen.

Saleh was the 49ers’ defensive coordinator from 2017-2020 and parlayed his success as a coordinator into the Jets head coaching job. Knowing this, it should come as no surprise that the 49ers are interested in interviewing Saleh for their defensive coordinator vacancy, with Josina Anderson going so far as to report that the 49ers plan to make an offer to Saleh before an interview was even announced. Saleh will logically be considered the favorite to land this gig, but he also has head coaching interviews lined up with both the Jaguars and Raiders.