Baltimore has both sent the most qualified coach onto the market while also having probably the top job available among the current lot of HC-needy teams. The Ravens’ search is starting to take shape.
After sending out a Brian Flores interview request today, the Ravens are aiming to meet with Robert Saleh. The 49ers’ defensive coordinator received an interview slip from Baltimore, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. Among the NFL’s highest-paid coordinators, Saleh can interview virtually beginning three days after the 49ers’ wild-card game.
Saleh’s dance card is filling up. He has now received interview summons from the Ravens, Cardinals and Falcons and mentioned as a candidate with other teams. Saleh’s work with the Jets looks a bit better after seeing what happened after his early-season dismissal in 2024, and he has helped the 49ers back to the playoffs despite major injuries on his side of the ball. Saleh has a loose connection to the Ravens, having worked with ex-Baltimore front office exec (and Eric DeCosta coworker) Joe Douglas for nearly four years.
The 49ers have been without Nick Bosa since September and Fred Warner since October. The team also lost first-round defensive end Mykel Williams midway through the season. The 49ers rank 13th defensively, though both yardage (20th) and EPA per play (24th) slot the unit lower. The team holding the Seahawks to 13 points in Week 18 proved impressive under the circumstances, considering San Francisco’s offensive futility in that matchup.
Saleh, 46, also did well to ignite the Jets’ defense during his time in New York. After ranking last in Saleh’s 2021 debut, New York’s defense rocketed to fourth in both points and yardage in 2022. Saleh’s third Jets defense ranked 12th in points — during a 2023 season in which Zach Wilson needed to replace Aaron Rodgers in Week 1 — but third in yards yielded. The unit cratered following the ousters of Saleh and Jeff Ulbrich, with the Aaron Glenn-Steve Wilks unit struggling before the Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams trades.
The Ravens have already sent out eight interview requests. Via PFR’s Head Coaching Search Tracker, here is how Baltimore’s process looks less than two days in:
- Vance Joseph, defensive coordinator (Broncos): Interviewed 1/8
- Brian Flores, defensive coordinator (Vikings): To interview
- Kliff Kingsbury, former offensive coordinator (Commanders): Interview requested
- Klint Kubiak, offensive coordinator (Seahawks): Interview requested
- Jesse Minter, defensive coordinator (Chargers): Rumored candidate
- Matt Nagy, offensive coordinator (Chiefs): To interview 1/11
- Robert Saleh, defensive coordinator (49ers): Interview requested
- Anthony Weaver, defensive coordinator (Dolphins): Interview requested
- Davis Webb, quarterbacks coach (Broncos): To interview 1/8