The San Francisco 49ers will have a new defensive coordinator next season.
Robert Saleh agreed to be the new head coach of the New York Jets today, ending a successful run for the 49ers.
Saleh's defense was suspect early in his tenure, but he's proven the last two years that he's a leader of men. Last year, it was the 49ers defense that led the franchise to the Super Bowl.
And this season, with so many dudes out with injuries including all-world DE Nick Bosa, the defense still ranked in the top 5-10 by multiple metrics.
Saleh will be missed. Mike LaFleur, a 49ers offensive assistant who Saleh will take with him to be his OC in New York, also will someone who is hard to replace.
DeMeco Ryans is reportedly who head coach Kyle Shanahan will promote to defensive coordinator. That should keep everything intact from a personnel and scheme side of things. Ryans is one of the best young up and coming coaches in the league and might be one of the guys next in line for a head coaching job at some point.
Saleh taking the Jets jobs gives the 49ers a pair of third-round picks. One will be used this year and one next offseason.
The 49ers didn't have a third-round pick because of the Trent Williams trade last offseason so it will be nice to have that level of a pick back.
Shanahan may have to make another hire and may have to sweeten a few contracts to keep guys from bolting to work with Saleh in New York. He also has plenty of players in red and gold who are free agents that may want to follow Saleh to the Big Apple.
I expect the 49ers to prioritize offensive tackle Trent Williams and fullback Kyle Juszczyk in free agency. But there are plenty of other guys who also need contracts. Who else will SF want to bring back and who won't they be able to afford?
As a fan of the team, I hope they find a way to bring back Jeff Wilson Jr, Kerry Hyder, K'Waun Williams, Jason Verrett, Ahkello Witherspoon, Emmanuel Moseley, Daniel Brunskill and Ben Garland. I also wouldn't be mad if Kendrick Bourne and Jordan Reed were back.
The elephant in the room continues to be the quarterback position. Jimmy Garoppolo is still under contract. But Nick Mullens, C.J. Beathard and Josh Rosen are all free agents.
Will they keep Jimmy G and try to run it back hoping he's healthy? Could they find a trade partner for Jimmy G and draft a rookie at No. 12? Will they make a play for Deshaun Watson or Matthew Stafford in a trade? And which one of the three 2020 backups, if any, will be back?
There are lots of questions. And maybe the 49ers don't have any answers yet. I just hope they are working hard on figuring it out.
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