The San Francisco 49ers would love to see ESPN’s head coach predictions come true.
It appears that former 49ers defensive coordinator and New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh sits atop their list of preferred replacements for Nick Sorensen. He’s already interviewed for the job and he checks all the boxes the team is looking for in the new head of their defense, on top of his experience with the 49ers as their DC from 2017-2020.
While the 49ers would like to lock down a DC, they’ll have to wait on Saleh who is interviewing for head coaching jobs. A bit of good news on that front for San Francisco comes in via predictions on the six head coaching vacancies from ESPN’s Dan Graziano.
Saleh isn’t one of the people predicted to land a head coaching gig in this cycle. In fact, Graziano only has Saleh listed as a candidate for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Las Vegas Raiders. He does describe Saleh as a “sleeper” for the Jags job.
Via ESPN:
A sleeper here could be Robert Saleh, whose interview with the team will happen Tuesday. Saleh, who was fired as the Jets’ head coach early in the 2024 season, spent three seasons as the Jaguars’ linebackers coach on Gus Bradley’s staff from 2014 to 2016.
It wouldn’t be a surprise if Saleh is passed over in this cycle given some of the high-profile names on the open market and his lack of overall success with the Jets. Saleh was 20-36 while leading the Jets and was fired only five games into this season.
He should get another shot at being a head coach eventually, but the 49ers would love to see him get that chance in a different year so he can run their defense in 2025.