Robert Saleh hires Titans’ new Defensive Coordinator, hitting the jackpot on both coordinator waiting games for his new staff

The Titans are hiring Gus Bradley as defensive coordinator.

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
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Robert Saleh now has a pair of coordinators in place for his 2026 Tennessee Titans.

After landing former Giants HC Brian Daboll as his all-too-important offensive coordinator last week, moving pieces around the NFL led to him finally locking down his new defensive coordinator on Monday: former 49ers assistant head coach Gus Bradley.

Saleh and Bradley have a very strong working relationship. He played the waiting game to land his top choice on both coordinators, and it’s set the Titans up beautifully to maximize the new talent they infuse this roster with in the coming months.

Robert Saleh reunites with Gus Bradley in Tennessee

Let’s begin with the most important angle on this news: I’m not sure the world has seen a mightier collection of balds than what Mike Borgonzi has gathered in Nashville for 2026.

First Robert Saleh, then OC Brian Daboll, DL coach Aaron Whitecotton, RB coach Randy Jordon, OL coach Carmen Bricillo, and now DC Gus Bradley. This freight train will be experiencing zero wind resistance.

As for why this took a while to come to fruition, Bradley was in contention for the 49ers defensive coordinator job once Saleh departed to take the Titans head coach offer. The 49ers ended up waiting to fill that DC position while former Falcons head coach Raheem Morris was under consideration for the Cardinals head coach job. Rams OC Mike LaFleur ultimately won that job, so Morris took the 49ers DC job. Bradley had been passed over.

It wasn’t hard to connect the dots on Saleh’s likely interest in bringing Bradley with him to Tennessee, because it’s what he did last year in San Francisco. Bradley and Saleh have a working history that goes back many years, beginning with Saleh working as a quality control coach under DC Bradley in Seattle from 2011-2012. Then Bradley got the Jacksonville head coach job, and he brought Saleh on to be his LB coach for the Jaguars from 2014-2016. They spent the next stretch of time apart, with Saleh taking the DC job in San Francisco before getting the Jets head coach job. Bradley went on a tour of DC jobs during that stretch, coordinating the Chargers (2017-2020), Raiders (2021), then Colts (2022-2024).

They reunited once more in San Francisco, when Saleh returned to the 49ers DC role in 2025. He and Kyle Shanahan brought in Bradley as Assistant Head Coach to advise and assist them both.

Even with all of this shared history, the Cardinals coaching situation made it unclear in the end whether Saleh would get his guy. New Arizona head coach Mike LaFleur was reportedly interested in giving Bradley his defensive coordinator job too, and his was arguably more attractive on paper because it was a play-calling position. In Tennessee, Saleh is calling plays this fall.

In the end though, Saleh convinced Bradley to work with him once more.

Titans fans may very well have a preexisting opinion of Bradley from his time with the division rival Colts, coordinating somewhat rough defensive units. What’s important to point out is that no matter what your opinion of Bradley is as a coordinator or play-caller, the defense in Tennessee is going to be Saleh’s. He’s the brains and the play-caller in this situation. What Saleh needed to find was somebody he trusted to see the game the same way he does, install his defense, and lead a group that he will have to split at least some time overseeing due to his head coaching duties. I’m not sure there was a stronger available candidate for such as role than Gus Bradley. As an aside, the word I’ve heard back from league coaching sources on Bradley is that he is an all-time person and a very strong football mind.

Saleh played the waiting game on Bradley and, after movement in Arizona and San Francisco, won out in the end. He did the same to land OC Brian Daboll last week, waiting on the Bills and eventually the Raiders’ head coaching searches to land his top option. Both waits were a risk, but he hit on his parlay and landed both of his top options. The hope is that the Titans greatly benefit from this gamble.

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