It was just over a year ago that the Las Vegas Raiders envisioned going on a run of success with Pete Carroll at the helm before handing the reins over to Robert Saleh, the man they hoped would become their defensive coordinator and “coach in waiting.”
While Carroll did become Vegas’ head coach for the 2025 season—a brutal 3-14 one-and-done campaign—Saleh spurned the organization and returned to his former post as the defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers.
Although Saleh is about to embark on a postseason run with the 12-5 Niners, the transition from Carroll to him could still occur in a much different fashion than the Raiders would have hoped.
Although Saleh’s three-plus-year head coaching stint with the New York Jets wasn’t very successful—the team went just 20-36 under his guidance—he has consistently proved he’s one of the very best defensive minds in football at every stop.
During a six-year span from 2019 to 2024, Saleh oversaw defenses that ranked No. 5 or better. The lone outlier was a last-place finish in 2021, his first year on the job with Gang Green. New York immediately regressed upon Saleh’s exit, ranking in the bottom-eight in 2025 under new head coach Aaron Glenn.
While Saleh’s current defense only rates No. 20, he’s done an admirable job keeping the 49ers in contention despite a myriad of injuries to players like Nick Bosa, Fred Warner and other key starters.
The Raiders have a long way to go before they can get back in contention, but rapidly improving a defense that underperformed this season would go a long way towards a return to respectability.
