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, 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.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Robert Saleh is reprising his role as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator, the team announced Friday night. Saleh returns to a vastly different unit than he left behind four years ago.

Robert Saleh has been a popular name mentioned as a potential candidate to succeed Aaron Glenn as the defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions. The former New York Jets head coach is a Detroit native who was a finalist for becoming the Lions’ head coach when the team hired Dan Campbell.

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. A person familiar with the choice told The Associated Press on Friday night that Saleh will rejoin the Niners after leaving to take over the Jets following the 2020

Saleh was previously the 49ers defensive coordinator from 2017–20 until taking the head coaching job with the New York Jets.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is welcoming 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh back to the same role, per NFL Media. Saleh served as Shanahan's original 49ers defensive coordinator for four seasons from 2017 to 2020,