As news came down on Tuesday that Robert Saleh had been relieved of his duties as New York Jets head coach, the predictable response relating to the San Francisco 49ers surrounded a potential return in his old role as defensive coordinator.
Saleh was the first defensive coordinator hired by Kyle Shanahan when he took over as Niners head coach in 2017. After a slow start, Saleh oversaw two outstanding defensive seasons in 2019 and 2020 and his defenses in New York have continued to excel. The Jets rank sixth in Expected Points Added per play on defense this season.
As such, Shanahan was shocked by Saleh's firing with the Jets only a game back in the AFC East.
Asked about the decision, Shanahan told a press conference: "I sent him a text, but I haven’t gotten to talk to him. And yeah, I was pretty shocked.
"That stuff throws you off, especially when they’re competing for first in the division this week and I think they’re up there on defense and have got a pretty good team and a chance to have a hell of a year. So that was pretty surprising."
Re-hiring Saleh next year would figure to make a lot of sense given his continued success overseeing defenses and the 49ers' failure to match the standards they set back in 2022 when DeMeco Ryans led a defense that was first in the NFL by DVOA.
San Francisco' défense wilted down the stretch of their 24-23 defeat to the Arizona Cardinals , which dropped the Niners to 2-3 going into a Thursday Night Football game at the Seattle Seahawks , but it is still ranked fifth by DVOA, with Shanahan making it clear he is satisfied with first-time coordinator Sorensen.
“I think Nick’s doing a real good job," added Shanahan. "I’ve been impressed with him since the beginning.
"Each week, I like how he handles the defensive staff. I like how they set up the practices and I’ve liked his game plans and I liked how he’s called it. So I’ve been real happy with Nick so far.”
Speaking to KNBR on Wednesday, general manager John Lynch echoed Shanahan's sentiments.
"We're not focused on that right now," Lynch said when asked about the possibility of the 49ers reuniting with Saleh.
"Nick is our coordinator, and I think Nick's doing a really good job coaching. The results haven't been what we wanted, and this is a results-oriented business. Nick understands that. We all understand that. But I watch with the fine-tuned eye, and I think he was the right choice when we chose him. I believe even more strongly in that.
"I think we've just got to come together as a unit. We have endured some injuries, some things of that nature, but ultimately, we've got to pull together. I think, in the last couple weeks, just simple fundamentals, tackling. We want to play aggressive and swarm people, but ultimately, we've got to tackle the guy with the ball. We've got to take the ball away, gotta make the plays when the game's on the line.
"But I do think our unit is well coordinated. Our schemes are sound. It's a big week for everybody. We've gotta come together. We've gotta find a way, and we gotta forge our identity, who we wanna be as this team. And I love the character in our organization. We've put ourselves in a tough hole. We've been here before, and we've come out of it."
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