Why a Kyle Shanahan-Robert Saleh reunion with 49ers is unlikely this season

Eric Williams

NFL Reporter

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was surprised to see his former defensive coordinator Robert Saleh back on the job market after an unceremonious firing as the New York Jets head coach by owner Woody Johnson — a dismissal that included reportedly being escorted from the facility by security.

“I sent him a text, but I haven’t gotten to talk to him,” Shanahan told reporters this week. “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.”

While Saleh might be available, a return to San Francisco’s coaching staff this season appears unlikely. According to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle, Saleh plans to regroup and spend some time vacationing with family as he prepares for the next coaching cycle.

Saleh also has a guaranteed contract signed through the 2025 season at a reported $5 million a year, and any money he made with San Francisco would be offset by his current deal with New York.

But it wouldn’t be out of the question for Shanahan to explore a potential reunion with Saleh, who served as San Francisco’s defensive coordinator from 2017 to 2020, after this year.

Like Bill Belichick did during his two-decade tenure as the head coach of the New England Patriots, Shanahan would be welcoming back someone from his coaching tree who could bring a fresh perspective to a defense that has been inconsistent so far this season, struggling to find a rhythm under new defensive coordinator Nick Sorenson.

“You don’t ever have regrets,” Sorenson told reporters this week, when asked if he second-guesses himself after a rough game. “But there’s always things you want to improve on. And if I’m honest, there’s times I’m like, ‘God, I could have done this, but no, I believe in that.’ You know, we can coach this better, or we can execute that better. You don’t want to get too far off your fundamentals of your beliefs either.

“And so that’s what I lean into more than anything. And then it’s just how can we get better fundamentally, and that’s with coaching and with how we play and how we practice, and I think there’s always going to be calls that aren’t perfect for what they do. I think it’s the whole whoever has the pencil last. And depending on the route or the run versus the pressure or the coverage. So, there’s always a little bit of that, but you also have to trust your process.”

Shanahan replaced Steve Wilks after one season with Sorenson soon after his team’s Super Bowl loss to Kansas City, a defensive assistant already on San Francisco’s staff. And Shanahan had reached out unsuccessfully to hire Jeff Ulbrich, the Jets’ defensive coordinator now elevated to interim head coach after Saleh’s departure. The 49ers also have defensive guru Brandon Staley on the staff as assistant head coach/defense. Staley observes the games from the coaches’ booth on game days.

So, the return of Saleh to San Francisco in some capacity, either as an assistant coach or consultant, could help smooth things over by having one of the architects of the defense in the building as San Francisco chases a Super Bowl.

During the team’s 2-3 start, San Francisco is allowing 21.2 points per game, No. 12 in the league. The 49ers rank 22nd in third down defense (43.3%). The 49ers have suffered late-game collapses twice this season against NFC West foes in losses to the Arizona Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams.

Now 0-2 in the division, San Francisco must travel to the Pacific Northwest to face the Seattle Seahawks on a short week.

“It’s not a must win because technically your season is over if it’s a must-win,” San Francisco edge rusher Nick Bosa told reporters this week. “But it definitely feels like it, so we’re treating it that way.”

Bottom line, Sorensen is five games into his tenure and working through the expected growing pains of a first-time defensive play caller. Like DeMeco Ryans and Saleh before him, Shanahan will have to show patience and grace as Sorensen goes through a learning curve, even though the 49ers are a team that is expected to compete for a Super Bowl.

“Nick’s doing a real good job,” Shanahan said. “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.”

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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