Robert Saleh is back among the head coaching ranks of the NFL.
The Tennessee Titans are hiring Saleh, the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator, to be their next head coach, a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed to The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet finalized.
NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported on Jan. 18 that the Titans had scheduled Saleh for an in-person interview on Jan. 19, right after their interview with Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy. Saleh had a second interview scheduled with the Arizona Cardinals on Jan. 20, per NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, but Tennessee did not let him leave its building without a deal.
Saleh, 46, spent three and a half years as head coach of the New York Jets between 2021 and 2024. He joined the Green Bay Packers staff in the middle of the 2024 season as an offensive consultant. Before the 2025 season, Saleh returned to San Francisco for a second stint as the team’s defensive coordinator, a role he originally served under head coach Kyle Shanahan from 2017 to 2020.
Tennessee’s head coach vacancy has been open since Week 6, when the Titans fired former head coach Brian Callahan amid his second season in charge after the team got off to a 1-5 start. Callahan finished his tenure with a 4-19 record as Tennessee’s head coach.
Saleh takes over a Titans team that just drafted quarterback Cam Ward with the No. 1 overall pick in 2025 and owns the No. 4 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.