Robert Saleh has been back in the Bay Area for less than a season, but already his presence has reshaped the identity of a San Francisco 49ers defense ravaged by injuries and uncertainty. After a turbulent four-year tenure as the New York Jets’ head coach, Saleh returned to his roots and reclaimed the role that once made him one of football’s most coveted coaching prospects. Now, even without Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, he has quietly engineered one of the league’s most resilient defensive units — and that revival has put him firmly back on the radar as the 2026 coaching cycle approaches.

In a recent appearance on The Exhibit podcast with Josina Anderson, Saleh offered a rare look into his mindset as another hiring season looms. His words were humble yet unmistakably revealing. “Most of us — I don’t know if every coach does — but we all want to get to the top of our profession,” he said. “But honestly, I’m just in this space right now where I’m solely focused on trying to do my best for the guys here.” It was the closest he has come this season to acknowledging what many around the league already believe: his name will once again headline candidate lists in the coming months.

Saleh didn’t stop there. He admitted the ambition still burns, but insisted that the 49ers’ present — not his own future — commands his full attention. “We all want to be at the top of our profession and show that we can achieve greatness at the top,” he added. “But my focus is here, and just trying our best to get to the playoffs and see if we can make some damage and host a Super Bowl in our building.” It was classic Saleh: competitive, grounded, and relentless in the pursuit of the immediate challenge.

Those qualities made him a rising star during his first stint with the Niners, but his time in New York complicated the narrative around him. While he built one of the NFL’s toughest defenses with the Jets, the offense never came together — and in today’s NFL, head coaches rarely survive without a quarterback solution. The Zach Wilson experiment never ignited, Mike LaFleur was dismissed sooner than expected, and the eventual arrival of Nathaniel Hackett — chosen largely to lure Aaron Rodgers — shifted the offense in a direction that never aligned with Saleh’s original blueprint. Fair or not, those factors defined his tenure as much as his defensive excellence.

San Francisco has given him something he lacked in New York: clarity, stability, and a roster built to play the style of football he coaches. Even without his two defensive superstars, the 49ers are attacking, disciplined, and opportunistic. Saleh’s trademark energy radiates through the group, and his schematic fingerprints are evident in their ability to stay afloat in the NFC playoff race. At 9–4 and riding a three-game win streak, San Francisco sits in the sixth seed, clinging to position in a brutally competitive conference. That the defense has remained both functional and spirited under these circumstances has not gone unnoticed across the NFL.

It’s no secret that several teams are expected to enter the 2026 offseason searching for leadership. Saleh’s résumé is now more complete than it was during his first hiring peak: he has head coaching experience, postseason pedigree, and a deeper understanding of how quarterback situations can undermine even the strongest cultures. League executives value candidates who have learned from adversity — and few candidates will bring lessons as earned, or as painful, as Saleh.

Still, Saleh insists his attention is fixed on the present, not future job interviews. And perhaps that is part of why his stock continues to rise. His ability to tune out external noise, rebuild his identity, and remain fully invested in the players in front of him is exactly the trait that hiring committees covet. The more he focuses on the 49ers’ playoff push, the more the league seems to view him as a coach ready for a second act.

For now, Saleh’s mission is simple: help drag an injury-plagued defense across the finish line and give San Francisco a chance to make a run in January. But make no mistake — while Saleh may not be campaigning, his work is speaking loudly. And as the 49ers fight to stay alive in a chaotic NFC race, their defensive coordinator may soon find himself at the center of another battle — one for a head coaching job he now seems more prepared for than ever.