The Las Vegas Raiders have interviewed many high-profile head coaching candidates, but it’s still far too early in the process to know if there’s a favorite in the clubhouse. The team has interviewed coaches from various backgrounds, so it doesn’t seem they are set on hiring either an offensive or defensive mind.
One name who hasn’t been interviewed yet is San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. He’s currently coaching in the playoffs, which is likely why the Raiders haven’t interviewed him.
Despite the fact that the team has been looking at other candidates, ESPN’s Dan Graziano predicted that Saleh will be the head coach they hire in the end.
“Saleh has been on Las Vegas’ short list in the past, and his work in San Francisco this season has caught a lot of people’s attention around the league,” Graziano wrote. “His Jets tenure didn’t go great, but that’s true of most people who coach there. It doesn’t sound like teams will let his Jets tenure deter them from talking to him this time around.
“Whoever gets this job must have a plan for offensive coordinator and the development of a young quarterback, likely Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. But Saleh is part of that Shanahan/McVay network and should have no trouble putting together an offensive staff. The Raiders were last in the NFL with 14.1 offensive points per game and 245.2 yards per game this season.”
Raiders Really Wanted Saleh As Pete Carroll’s DC
Though the Raiders haven’t interviewed Saleh this offseason, they have spoken to him in the past. They considered him for the head coaching job last offseason before landing on Pete Carroll.
According to The Athletic’s Mike Silver, the Raiders wanted Saleh to be the defensive coordinator so badly that they were willing to give him a massive contract and put him on a path to be Carroll’s successor.
“Saleh was even more in demand last January as a potential defensive coordinator, but he made it clear that if he didn’t get a head coaching job, he was overwhelmingly partial to returning to the 49ers,” Silver wrote in October. “That conviction held even when the Raiders, after hiring 73-year-old Pete Carroll, offered Saleh a record-breaking contract to become the team’s defensive coordinator, with the understanding that he’d be in line to succeed Carroll as head coach.”
Is Saleh the Right Coach for Raiders?
Saleh was the head coach as recently as last season. He went 20-36 with the New York Jets in less than four seasons before being fired. The Jets have gotten worse since he left, which makes his tenure look better in hindsight.
At the same time, he had a chance to take over a rebuilding time with a high draft pick quarterback and failed. The Raiders aren’t much different than the Jets, so why would they expect different results from Saleh?
Saleh is clearly an excellent defensive coach and could have success as a head coach, but the Raiders don’t feel like the right fit. Las Vegas has massive issues on offense, so it makes more sense to go with an offense-minded head coach, but it remains to be seen who they’ll favor.
Raiders Predicted to Hire Coach They Haven’t Even Interviewed Yet