Ex-Jets Coach Called Possible 'Comfortable Hire' For Surprising AFC Team

Will the former Jets coach land the job?

Sep 29, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh looks on during the first half against the Denver Broncos at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

One former New York Jets head coach is making the rounds this offseason with interviews across the league.

New York cut ties with head coach Robert Saleh in a somewhat surprising move during the season. While this is the case, he has been highly sought-after throughout the offseason. He has been linked to the San Francisco 49ers as a defensive coordinator candidate. There even was a report that the 49ers would make him the highest-paid defensive coordinator if he accepted the role.

The former Jets head coach also has had ties to the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Dallas Cowboys throughout the offseason so far. The Athletic's Mike Sando tried his hand at predicting where the top candidates will go this offseason.

Sando gave a few different names for each team with different tiers. He had a comfortable hire, shake-it-up hire, and wild-card hire for each team with an opening. He had Saleh as a "comfortable hire" for Jacksonville.

"Comfortable hire: Robert Saleh, former Jets coach," Sando said. "Saleh would fit into the current structure, on the assumption he wouldn’t have the leverage to insist upon bringing in his own GM. Although Saleh and (Trent Baalke) did not overlap in San Francisco, where Baalke was an executive from 2005 to 2016 and Saleh was the defensive coordinator from 2017 to 2020, Saleh already has a feel for the Jaguars’ ownership and organization.

"He coached linebackers for the team under former coach Gus Bradley from 2014 to 2016. Whatever challenges Saleh might face working with a holdover GM such as Baalke might seem simple to overcome for a coach coming off a four-year run as coach of the chaotic Jets."

The Jaguars were one of the most surprising teams in the AFC last year. They were expected to be a playoff team but things completely imploded. Hopefully whoever comes in next can right the ship.

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