Several names have been linked to the 49ers defensive coordinator job.
The San Francisco 49ers search for their next defensive coordinator is currently underway, as the team has already conducted two interviews for the vacancy: former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh and Detroit Lions defensive passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach Deshea Townsend.
San Francisco is searching for their fourth defensive coordinator in four years after DeMeco Ryans left for a head coaching job and the team moved off both Steve Wilks and Nick Sorensen in consecutive seasons.
There’s an argument that the 49ers gig is the most coveted defensive coordinator job on the market, given the amount of talent that San Francisco has on that side of the ball, but reports have suggested that the team is looking at a few familiar faces to fill the role.
Some of those include Saleh, who was the 49ers defensive coordinator from 2017-2020, and Jeff Ulbrich, the New York Jets interim head coach who is a San Jose native and was with head coach Kyle Shanahan as the linebackers coach with the Atlanta Falcons.
Both of those names make sense as the 49ers try and return their defense to the elite levels from the past, as they provide a sense of continuity and familiarity that players have coveted.
But, could there be some wildcard candidates as well for the defensive coordinator opening?
San Francisco has already hinted at that with the interview of Deshea Townsend, who has an extensive background working with aggressive defensive coordinators, most currently working under Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who seems primed for a head coaching job soon.
Another intriguing option could be former New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen, who was fired this season after two-plus seasons on the job.
Allen, a longtime NFL assistant, has been a head coach in the NFL twice and has had multiple stints as a defensive coordinator with the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints.
ESPN’s Nick Wagoner linked Allen to the 49ers opening, pointing to the success the defensive coordinator had against head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense.
“While [Robert] Saleh and [Jeff] Ulbrich are considered top candidates, another name worth keeping a close eye on is former New Orleans Saints coach Dennis Allen,” Wagoner wrote. “Allen has extensive experience, working eight years as a defensive coordinator in Denver and New Orleans, almost six seasons as a head coach with the Saints and Raiders and another year as the Saints senior defensive assistant.
“Shanahan has long respected Allen, as most recently evident in the fits Allen’s defense gave Shanahan’s offense in a Nov. 2022 victory in which the 49ers managed just 13 points on 4.7 yards per play against Allen’s Saints.”
The 49ers are already expected to consider defensive assistant Brandon Staley as an in-house option, Shanahan said, and they could look to interview a number of other candidates with a vast pool of available coordinators.
At the moment, it seems like the team is content moving forward with Saleh or Ulbrich as their top choices. But, there could be some wildcard candidates that find themselves in the mix with an interview as the process drags along as well.