The Arizona Cardinals will conduct one of their biggest interviews yet, as the team is bringing in 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh for an interview that isn’t yet confirmed to be in person or virtual.
The interview will, in fact, be taking place two days before Saleh, and the 49ers face off against the No. 1-seeded Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field in the NFC Divisional Round.
Saleh, 46, has had head coaching experience before, as he was hired by the New York Jets in 2021. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t even last a full four seasons, as he was fired in October of 2024. Before joining the Jets, Saleh was the 49ers' defensive coordinator. The same scenario this year if he were to take a head coaching job, not just with the Cardinals, but anywhere else.
Despite the history of the Jets franchise, Saleh was able to lead them to a pair of 7–10 starts in 2022 and 2023. However, a 2–3 start in 2025 earned him the early hook.
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A defensive-minded coach, if Saleh chooses to accept this offer, he will be granted the privilege of coaching up some serious talent. The Cardinals have had safety Budda Baker since 2017, and he will continue to be the leader of that defense, as he has two years remaining on the three-year, $54 million extension he signed in 2024.
The Cardinals have Walter Nolen III, Josh Sweat, Cody Simon, and Will Johnson on their defense. That’s a plethora of convincing talent that Saleh may have the chance of coaching. Not to mention that Arizona also holds the No. 3 overall pick in April’s draft.
This will be the Cardinals' third interview of this cycle, as the team has already gone through the interview process with Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur and Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. The team has requested interviews with plenty more candidates.
With an interview scheduled tonight, it will be intriguing to see how it goes for both sides.