The 49ers and Jets both enjoyed top-five defenses under Saleh. There’s little reason to expect Saleh to stray away from what’s made his defenses elite. There also may not be m

The San Francisco 49ers might have pulled off the coup of this year’s coaching cycle, bringing back Robert Saleh to coordinate their defense.

As Robert Saleh brings in his own assistant coaches, the San Francisco 49ers are forced to say goodbye to part of their current staff.

Saleh, who was fired in October as the New York Jets head coach five games into his fourth season, generated interest on the head-coaching front and was seen as one of the frontrunners for the Jacksonville Jaguars job. He also interviewed with the Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys.

Robert Saleh is back as defensive coordinator of the 49ers, and all is right with the world. For now, anyway. Coach Kyle Shanahan has cycled through DeMeco Ryans, Steve Wilks and Nick Sorensen after Saleh’s departure following the 2020 season to become head coach of the New York Jets.

Robert Saleh, who ran the Niners' defense from 2017 to 2020, is heading back to San Francisco for the same role after a three-plus-year stint as Jets coach.

Saleh had interviewed for three head coaching positions but had committed to head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch that, should be not get another head coaching job, he would return to San Francisco as defensive coordinator,

The San Francisco 49ers are bringing back Robert Saleh for a second stint as defensive coordinator after a failed tenure as head coach of the New York Jets.

The biggest concern surrounding the San Francisco 49ers' reunion with Robert Saleh is the possibility of him becoming the team's third consecutive one-and-done defensive coordinator.