Prior to his firing in October, the Jets ranked first in yards per play, second in yards per pass attempt and opposing yards per game, and fifth in points allowed per game defensively with Saleh as head coach through the first five games of the year.
Regarded as one of the best defensive minds in the NFL, the Jets defense was a top five unit in yards allowed per game under Saleh in his last two full seasons from 2022-23. They were also top four in passing defense and top 12 in points allowed in each of those two years as well.
As mentioned earlier, Saleh served as the defensive coordinator under Kyle Shanahan with the 49ers from 2017 to 2020 prior to taking the head coaching job with the Jets. San Francisco finished 13th or better from 2018 to 2020 under Saleh’s watch, including a 2019 season where the 49ers had the #1 passing defense and #2 total defense that helped propel San Francisco to an appearance in Super Bowl LIV.
2025 will be the 20th season that Saleh has spent in the NFL, beginning in 2005 with the Houston Texans as a defensive intern. He was promoted to defensive quality control coach and assistant linebackers coaching positions before joining the Seattle Seahawks in 2011.
Saleh was a defensive quality control coach on Pete Carroll’s staff in 2013 when the Seahawks won Super Bowl XLVIII. He served as the linebackers coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2014-16 before leaving to take the 49ers defensive coordinator position in 2017.
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