Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi before the start of a football game in Nashville, Tenn, Dec. 28, 2025. (Photo Credit/George Walker IV)

Near midnight on Monday, the Titans made the move to hire their new head coach and leader of the franchise, San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator (DC) Robert Saleh.

Saleh led the 49ers defense this past season all the way to the NFC divisional round with very little talent on his side of the ball. Both of his All-Pro defenders—linebacker Fred Warner and defensive end Nick Bosa—missed this season with severe injuries and left behind a shell of the 49ers defense that was meant to be. Despite this, Saleh’s defense ranked 13th in the league in scoring defense, allowing just 21.8 points per game this season.

Saleh’s style is simple: aggressive, swarming defense with the energy to back it up. You can find countless videos and images of him celebrating with his players as if he had made the play himself. A true players’ coach.

You can all but guarantee Saleh will have a top-end defense in Tennessee, and his style of leadership already seems to resonate with some players in Nashville, including All-Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons.

“That excites the hell out of me,” Simmons said in an interview with Jordan Schultz. “To see his energy on the sideline, like that’s contagious, and to have that from a head coach now … I want to celebrate with my coach. I want to see that fieriness on the sideline. That’s what excites me.”

A former head coach of the New York Jets, Saleh has some experience in his new position. However, his first job did not go so well. Saleh’s record with the Jets was a disappointing 20-36 before being fired five games into the 2024 season.

Saleh’s Jets were plagued by poor ownership and poor offensive performance throughout his time. Owner Woody Johnson is famously known for evaluating players based on Madden ratings and reportedly “can’t make a good decision,” according to a prominent coaching agent in an ESPN article covering the 25th anniversary of Johnson owning the team.

On the offensive side of things, Saleh’s Jets were a bottom-10 unit in each of his four seasons with the team and even finished No. 31 in 2023. This might be something you could absolve Saleh of. After all, he’s a defensive coach. However, he decided to hire Mike LaFleur—the younger brother of Matt LaFleur and current offensive coordinator (OC) of the Los Angeles Rams. LaFleur was with the Jets for two seasons, in which the Jets landed 25th and 24th, respectively, in total offense, and if you go by points, they were 28th and 27th, before being fired in 2023.

Saleh then followed that up with the hire of Nathaniel Hackett, who would coordinate for the next two seasons before Saleh was fired in 2024. In those two seasons, the Jets offense became even worse, despite the addition of Aaron Rodgers over Zach Wilson.

Now in his second opportunity as a head coach, Saleh has a chance to right his wrongs and hire an OC who will both put points on the board to support his defense and develop quarterback Cam Ward into the franchise guy he has the potential to be.

As simple as it sounds, these guys are rare. Guys like Kyle Shanahan, Kevin O’Connell or Ben Johnson don’t just grow on trees, and if they are available, they are likely a head coach already.

A likely candidate is former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll who, after being fired this offseason, is in high demand. Daboll wants the newly available head coaching job for the Buffalo Bills — a team he worked for from 2018-21 before becoming the Giants head coach. However, if that doesn’t come to fruition, Daboll will most likely be taking the Titans OC job, according to a report by The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.

Daboll is most known for his work with Bills’ superstar and former MVP Josh Allen. However, he has also shown promise in developing other quarterbacks like Jaxson Dart just this past season. He also happened to be in Alabama in 2017 as the OC and quarterbacks coach. His quarterback room that year included Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones.

This past season, Daboll’s Giants averaged 333.5 yards per game and 22.4 points per game, both ranking in the top half of the league. His offense and quarterback expertise would be a blessing for the Titans, who desperately need Cam Ward to turn into a star if they want any success soon.

Other OC candidates for the Titans include former Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, 49ers tight ends coach Brian Fleury and Packers offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich.

Defensively, Saleh will be running the show. In his previous years with the Jets, Saleh handed defensive play calling to defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, but this time Saleh wants to handle that part as well. Saleh felt that not calling plays left him disconnected from the game at times and that he would do it differently in his next opportunity, according to a report by NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.

Despite that, the Titans still need a DC. Look for Gus Bradley to be the man here unless he fills Saleh’s old job for the 49ers. Bradley would bring a veteran presence to the Titans coaching staff as a former head coach and multiple-time defensive coordinator. He’s best known for his job with the Seattle Seahawks from 2009-12, where he coordinated the “Legion of Boom” defense.

Another interesting candidate, if Saleh wants to lean toward the younger side, is Jaguars linebackers coach Tem Lukabu. Lukabu is the current linebackers coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars and has coached on the defensive side of the ball for 18 years. He got his start in the NFL in 2012 as the Buccaneers linebackers coach before finding himself in San Francisco in 2017 with Saleh as his defensive coordinator. Lukabu has played a major part in the breakout season of linebacker Devin Lloyd and is likely to find himself in a defensive coordinator position sooner rather than later. He even has some buzz to be the next Dolphins DC with their new head coach, Jeff Hafley. However, keep an eye out for Lukabu to be on Saleh’s staff as well.

Other DC candidates for the Titans include Titans cornerbacks coach Tony Oden and Giants defensive backs coach Marquand Manuel.

The Titans and Saleh are expected to bring back special teams coordinator (STC) John “Bones” Fassel on next year’s staff as well. Fassel has been a top STC in the NFL for quite some time since his first job with the Ravens in 2005. Fassel’s experience and energy will pair nicely with Saleh and will be some nice continuity for a Titans special teams unit that was one of the best in the league last season.

Expect Saleh to come into Nashville and immediately make not just a defensive impact, but a culture and energy impact as well. The Titans will return to their classic tough defensive identity that they’ve had for decades, but will that come at the cost of the offense and development of Cam Ward? We will just have to wait and see.

Best of luck, Bob.