A fired former New York Jets coach could get back in the big chair this offseason.
ESPN NFL Insider Dan Graziano recently predicted that San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh would end up becoming the next head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
“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. 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,” Graziano explained.
“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,” Graziano wrote.
Saleh Is One of the Hottest Candidates on the Market
The 49ers have made it to the divisional round of the NFC playoffs. Saleh has found a way by hook or by crook to survive all of the key injuries on defense.
That has garnered respect around the league, and that has fueled a busy coaching cycle for the former Jets coach.
In Graziano’s column for ESPN, Saleh was listed as a “known candidate” for five head coaching jobs in this league this offseason.
That group includes: the Arizona Cardinals, the Baltimore Ravens, the Raiders, the Miami Dolphins, and the Tennessee Titans.
There are now nine job openings this offseason in the NFL at the head coaching position after the Pittsburgh Steelers and Mike Tomlin parted ways.
Ravens Might Have Dropped Saleh Hint During Presser
The Ravens fired longtime successful head coach John Harbaugh this offseason.
Baltimore owner Steve Bisciotti gave an interesting answer on what he is looking for in his next head coach.
“Unlike 18 years ago, I’m very intrigued by coaches that were the hottest OCs and DCs five, six, seven years ago in their cycles, got jobs and got to teams that were non-competitive and didn’t have a QB, and they grind for three to four years, and they’re caught up in the cycle,” Bisciotti explained via Kevin Oestreicher.
“Unlike 18 years ago, I’m very intrigued by coaches that were the hottest OCs and DCs 5,6,7 years ago in their cycles, got jobs and got to teams that were non-competitive and didn’t have a QB, and they grind for 3-4 years and
While he didn’t mention Saleh by name, that felt like some subtext about a coach he has already interviewed this cycle.
Saleh Was a Disaster in New York
The former Northern Michigan product got to be the HC of the NYJ for three and a half seasons. He finished with a 20-36 overall record.
Woody Johnson has owned the Jets since the turn of the century. During his 26 years of ownership, he had never fired a head coach in the middle of the season. Well, that all changed amid Saleh’s fourth year on the job.
He was unceremoniously thrown out the door, and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich took over as interim for the rest of the season.
After leaving the Jets, Saleh returned home to the 49ers to rebuild his image. That didn’t take long. Now he is in a great position to become a head coach once again.
Fired Jets Coach Predicted to Land Raiders HC Job This Offseason