While his first head coaching gig ended midway through the 2024 season, Robert Saleh was a busy candidate during the interview cycle this winter. After received a look from the Cowboys, Raiders and Jaguars for another HC opportunity, he returned to San Francisco to reprise his role as the team’s defensive coordinator. 
Saleh had a second interview lined up with Jacksonville, and he may well have been the team’s top choice after Liam Coen. The latter briefly appeared to be out of the running for the Jaguars, but he wound up agreeing to take charge of the team. That left Saleh to head back to the Bay Area where he spent the four years preceding his Jets tenure as the 49ers’ D-coordinator. When reflecting on his decision, the 46-year-old said he was not interested in a DC gig with any other team.
“I have a tremendous amount of respect for this organization,” Saleh said (via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner). “They gave me so much and during the first two years, if you think about those first two years as the coordinator in ’17 and ’18, it wasn’t easy and it could have been very easy for them to move on for me… They stuck with me and we made it happen. We did what we needed to do and the rest is history and I’m excited about the opportunity to get a chance to do it again with them.”
San Francisco ranked 25th and 28th in scoring defense during Saleh’s first two years as DC. His unit took a notable step forward after that, though, and the 49ers posted a top-five finish in yards allowed during each of the following two campaigns. That level of success made Saleh a head coaching candidate, although his stock took a hit over the course of his stint in New York. The Jets went 20-36 under Saleh, struggling during that time to produce on offense (while, on the other hand, ranking in the top four in total defense over each of the past three years).
In 2024 – Nick Sorensen‘s first and only season as defensive coordinator – the 49ers finished eighth in the NFL in points allowed but 29th in scoring defense. Improvement in the latter category will be critical to the team’s efforts at returning to the postseason. If Saleh can duplicate the success from his first stint in San Francisco, that could take place while also helping to rebuild his coaching stock for the future.
Can someone explain scoring defense vs points allowed? Is it a rate thing, like “points per drive” or something?
I take scoring defense as any points they score. Pick 6’s, Safeties, Fumble return for a score, etc…I may be completely wrong however.
I’m not convinced Saleh was anything more than a “in the right place at the right time” sort of guy. Sort of like most of those New England coordinators…
It would have been interesting to see if he could have succeeded in Jacksonville if he had gotten that job.