Titans agree to hire Robert Saleh as coach as they seek to speed up rebuild

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans agreed to hire Robert Saleh as their coach on Monday night, hoping he can speed up their rebuild and end the franchise's skid of four straight losing seasons, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced. Saleh spent this season as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator, his second stint in that job after spending three-plus seasons as coach of the New York Jets. He did not have a winning season with the Jets and was fired after a 2-3 start in 2024, going 20-36 overall. But the 46-year-old Saleh still had a strong reputation around the league and was a sought-after candidate in this busy coaching cycle. "Playing for him was such a blessing. He's a defensive mastermind," 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir said earlier Monday. "I think he's one of the best to do it." Tennessee went 19-49 over the past four seasons under Mike Vrabel — who was fired after the 2024 season — and Brian Callahan, who lasted just 23 games before being fired on Oct. 13 after a 1-5 start. That made the Titans the first team with a coaching vacancy, only to wind up as one of 10 NFL teams looking for a coach and the fourth to hire one. The Titans interviewed 15 candidates for the job before paring down their finalists to Saleh, Kansas City offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and Green Bay defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley — who was hired earlier Monday as the Miami Dolphins' coach. Of that trio, only Saleh had yet to interview with the Titans until an in-person session Monday. This was the first coaching search run by general manager Mike Borgonzi, who was hired on Jan. 17, 2024. Borgonzi knew he was walking into a franchise needing a major rebuild, and he made clear he had no timetable for making his biggest move yet. Borgonzi started the renovation by taking quarterback Cam Ward at No. 1 overall. His first draft class featured Ward, who started every game and set the single-season rookie passing record with 3,169 yards. He also threw 15 touchdown passes with seven interceptions. Chimere Dike became an All-Pro punt returner, and All Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons had a career year. Simmons shared a googly-eyes emoji on social media as news broke of the Titans finding their coach. Ward, who had said he wanted to be involved in the team's search, was in Florida watching his alma mater, Miami, lose the College Football Playoff national championship gameto Indiana. The Titans go into this offseason with the fourth overall draft pick, about $100 million in salary cap space with the chance to free up more room and an enclosed stadium opening in 2027. Saleh is the seventh coach the franchise has had since moving to Tennessee in 1997 and the fifth since 2014. Before his first stint as the Niners' defensive coordinator that began on 2017, he worked as an assistant with Houston, Seattle and Jacksonville.