T
he San Francisco 49ers experienced a very eventful offseason leading up to the 2025 season. Losing a lot of key players from their three straight NFC championship teams, the 49ers will boast a largely new look roster in their quest for another Super Bowl ring. But, the 49ers biggest offseason addition is not a player– it is the return of a well respected coach.
Defensive coordinator, Robert Saleh, returns to the team after spending the previous three and a half seasons as the head coach of the New York Jets. Saleh’s return comes with a lot of anticipation, as in his first tenure, he was instrumental in leading the Niners’ defense to a Super Bowl appearance in 2019. Now back for more, Pro Football & Sports Network released its defensive coordinator rankings ahead of the fall, ranking Saleh as the sixth best defensive coordinator in the league.
Saleh’s Ranking
In PFSN’s article, the writers explained why they ranked Saleh at No. 6– explaining that even though he spent time as a head coach, he is still among the NFL’s best defensive minds.
“Ranking Robert Saleh this high comes with an asterisk, given that he’s returning to the defensive coordinator ranks after being fired as New York’s head coach last year. That said, he remains a top defensive mind in the NFL,” PFSN wrote. “Saleh’s Jets ranked inside the top five in Defense+ in both 2022 and 2023. Before then, his defenses with the San Francisco 49ers played a significant role in their development into an NFC superpower. Now back in his old role as their DC, expect an improvement from a 49ers defense that placed just 26th in Defense+ last year.”
The 49ers defense under Saleh was extremely fast and physical. Now that he is back, expect San Francisco to revert to its original identity and return to being a major threat in the NFL.
49ers Defensive Outlook for 2025
2024 was a rough season for the 49ers, especially defensively. All throughout the season, with injuries being a major factor, the teams struggled against the run and were not as good at getting to the quarterback. And the defensive line receiving a major overhaul, with players such as Javon Hargrave, Maliek Collins and Leonard Floyd being replaced with draft picks such as Alfred Collins, CJ West and Mykel Williams.
But Saleh is very good at maximizing the potential of the players that he has, doing so not only during his first tenure with the 49ers, but also during his time with the Jets. If Saleh is able to do the same this time around and get the new players to play at a high level from the jump, then the 49ers defense could be a problem.
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