Haven't the Tampa Bay Buccaneers inflicted enough damage on the Green Bay Packers in recent years?
Tom Brady got bored of dominating the AFC, so he swapped conferences and eliminated the Packers one step before the Super Bowl. Baker Mayfield threw a perfect passer rating at Lambeau Field — the disrespect.
Now, the domino effects of the Liam Coen drama have impacted Green Bay.
If you missed it, let's break down what happened. Deep breaths. Coen, the soon-to-be-former Buccaneers offensive coordinator, was heavily linked with the Jacksonville Jaguars' head coach vacancy. On Wednesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Coen had pulled out of the running to sign a lucrative new deal with the Bucs.
The Jaguars subsequently fired general manager Trent Baalke. According to The Athletic's Dianna Russini, Coen then ignored calls from the Buccaneers and never showed up to sign his new contract. He is now back in Jacksonville to take the job, after all.
OK, how does this relate to the Packers? It's all about Saleh, who spent time in Green Bay as a consultant following his departure from the New York Jets. We knew he would leave for another job this offseason, but Coen's indecisiveness has turned Saleh's future into a Packers nightmare.
He was one of the top candidates for the Jaguars' head coach vacancy, which would've been perfect. Saleh could become a great coach elsewhere and not impact the Packers in the NFC. Instead, the opposite is true.
Robert Saleh is reportedly heading back to 49ers after missing out on Jaguars job
With Coen heading to Jacksonville, Saleh misses out on the top head coach vacancies. According to The Athletic, he is expected to return to San Francisco as the defensive coordinator, a role he previously held between 2017 and 2020.
Saleh's excellent work with the Niners led to him becoming a head coach. He now returns with more experience and a deep understanding of the Packers' playbook, thanks to sitting in LaFleur's meetings in the second half of the season.
Not. Ideal.
The 49ers failed to make the playoffs this year, but there's every chance they will quickly spring back into contention next season. Saleh can drastically improve their defense.
We all love Jeff Hafley, and we're certainly thankful he will be back in 2025. But it's not controversial to say Saleh is probably the better defensive coordinator. That doesn't mean the Packers should fire Hafley for Saleh, but it's a bizarre situation that Green Bay is losing him to an NFC rival when he might be the best defensive coach currently in the building.
Thanks for nothing, Coen. Saleh to San Francisco is bad news.