49ers notebook: Saleh and Shanahan negotiate over assistants; Juszczyk eyes free agency
The signs point to this being the last season for Robert Saleh as the 49ers defensive coordinator. He’s among the hottest names on the upcoming hiring cycle for head coaches, and it sounds like he’s already having conversations with head coach Kyle Shanahan about which assistants Saleh could take with him to his new club.
“That’s stuff we’re constantly talking about,” Shanahan said over Zoom this week from Arizona. “When it comes up, once you talk about it, there’s not much to keep talking about. You never know until you see what opportunity he gets and you see what his choices are. I keep telling him he’s not allowed to take anyone. Sometimes I can ease up a little bit on that, but I usually set the bar very low and then we’ll see what happens after.”
Saleh is a rumored favorite for the Detroit Lions opening. They fired Matt Patricia last month and Michigan legislators have already made the push to the team’s ownership to bring Saleh back to his home state. He grew up in Dearborn, Mich. Saleh could also be in the mix for possible openings in Houston and Jacksonville, two teams he’s coached for previously, and perhaps the Atlanta Falcons.
As far as assistants Saleh could bring with him, he’s close with one of Shanahan’s top offensive lieutenants, Mike LaFleur, the brother of the Packers’ head coach, Matt, who was the best man at Saleh’s wedding.
Mike LaFleur is currently Shanahan’s passing game coordinator. He’s considered by many a strong candidate for an offensive coordinator job and the 49ers could not prevent him from interviewing as they could in years past. Another name to keep an eye on is linebackers coach DeMeco Ryans. Saleh could tap him as defensive coordinator. Ryans could also be a possible replacement for Saleh on San Francisco’s staff as a leading internal candidate.
“Everybody loves DeMeco,” linebacker Dre Greenlaw said. “Just because you know he’s going to coach you hard and sometimes you ain’t going to like it, but at the same time he’s going to motivate you and tell you good job whenever you do something good. To have a coach that can give you the good and the bad, and just have your back through whatever, that makes him a perfect D-coordinator.”
Saleh has been coy about his future beyond the final three games remaining on San Francisco’s schedule as the 49ers finish a disappointing campaign derailed by injuries. Yet this season might be Saleh’s best coaching job yet since joining Shanahan’s staff in 2017 as a first-time coordinator.
Without All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman for all but all but four games and three of the team’s best pass rushers for the majority of the season — Nick Bosa (out since Week 2), Dee Ford (out since Week 1) and DeForest Buckner (traded to the Colts) — the 49ers defense still ranks fifth in yardage allowed (316 yards per game), eighth in opponents’ red-zone scoring (touchdowns on 56 percent of their trips), fifth in yards per rush (3.9), and fifth in passing defense (210 yards per game).
“You’ve got to give Robert Saleh an abundance of credit,” Sherman said after the win over the Rams last month. “You have to give him an unusual amount of credit, and I don’t think he’s getting enough credit not only here but in the league, in general.”
And despite being a hot name during last winter’s hiring cycle while the 49ers were on their Super Bowl run, Saleh only had one interview with the Cleveland Browns, who passed him over for Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski (who hired Saleh’s secondary coach last season, Joe Woods, to be his defensive coordinator).
Saleh said Thursday his preparation for head coaching interviews happened before the season so he could focus on his current team this fall.
“Because once the season hits, it’s exhausting enough to prepare for one game, let alone trying to prepare for your life after (the football season),” he said. “So all of that stuff goes before the season starts, and after that it’s minuscule in terms of the amount of work and thought that goes into it.”
Juszczyk has informal discussions with 49ers about new contract
Fullback Kyle Juszczyk is one of San Francisco’s most prominent looming free agents in the spring. He’s made the Pro Bowl the last four seasons, including all three of his years with the 49ers, and would be difficult for Shanahan to replace given his value in the running game and versatility in the passing game.
Juszczyk said Thursday he’s had “informal” discussions with Shanahan about getting a new contract before the new league year begins in March.
“But nothing that’s been formally put on the table yet,” Juszczyk said.
Juszczyk said his strong relationship with running backs coach Bobby Turner will be a key factor into his decision. Juszczyk was wearing a shirt during his Zoom availability Thursday featuring Turner’s face and his go-to phrase, “Ready to Ride Dog.”
The genesis of the shirt came from Turner’s willingness to speak up in awkward moments during team meetings. According to Juszczyk, Shanahan will ask players if they’re ready to go and players seldom respond. Then Turner will speak up, saying “Ready to ride, dog!”
Said Juszczyk: “I’ve had a great four years now with the same position coach, a guy that knows me, I know him, and we have a good understanding. It makes for a really good work environment. So that’s definitely something I can’t put a discount on. I definitely have really, really enjoyed my time with Bobby T, learning from him and would love to continue to work with my guy.”
Juszczyk joined the 49ers on a four-year, $21 million contract that was the largest in league history for a fullback. Juszczyk will turn 30 in April and could likely command a similar deal from San Francisco or another team while he still has a handful of years in his prime left.
49ers add another to COVID list
▪ The 49ers on Thursday placed running back Austin Walter on the reserve/COVID-19 list, joining rookie offensive lineman Colton McKivitz as the second player to be added this week. Those two are the only players currently on the list after the team had as many as nine guys on the list during the bye last month.
▪ As expected, starting running back Raheem Mostert returned to practice Thursday after sitting out the first session of the week Wednesday. Mostert has continued to deal with soreness in his ankle injury that cost him four games earlier this season. Shanahan said Wednesday he expects Mostert to be available for Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys.
▪ Reserve center Hroniss Grasu (knee) and receiver Deebo Samuel (hamstring) did not practice Thursday. Limited were offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill (shoulder), defensive tackle D.J. Jones (ankle), cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (hamstring), Mostert (ankle), linebacker Fred Warner (stinger) and slot cornerback K’Waun Williams (ankle).
▪ Defensive tackle Kevin Givens returned to the team this week following the birth of his child that prevented him from playing in the loss to Washington. The team had Givens’ roster exemption lifted to allow for his return to the active roster.
▪ Tight end Chase Harrell was signed back to the practice squad. Receiver Shawn Poindexter was placed on practice squad injured reserve.
This story was originally published December 17, 2020 at 4:31 PM.
