The 49ers’ season just ended with a loss to the Seahawks, but things are just getting started for Robert Saleh. The San Francisco defensive coordinator is expected to be a hot coaching candidate this cycle, and it sounds like he’s got his first move lined up. Saleh will interview with the Falcons over Zoom for their job on Monday, San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan revealed during his postgame press conference.
Atlanta won’t stop there, as the Falcons also are going to interview Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy on Monday, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). They clearly aren’t honing in on anything specific, interviewing coaches with defensive and offensive backgrounds. Saleh is a highly regarded leader who always has his defenses playing with high intensity, and when they were healthy, the 49ers had one of the league’s best defenses last year.
Bieniemy has a ringing endorsement from Andy Reid, which obviously goes a long way these days. He’s been in Kansas City with Reid since 2013, previously as his running backs coach. Bieniemy is widely considered to be one of the frontrunners for the Texans’ job.
The Falcons won’t be the only team interested in Saleh, and Shanahan even said that he would have several more interviews in the coming days. Saleh is from Michigan and has also been linked to the Lions’ job. Get ready, the coaching carousel is just starting to heat up.
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