Robert Saleh's Injury-Plagued Defense Has Turned Into the 49ers' Saving Grace

On Sunday night, NBC cameras showed a video of Fred Warner with his right leg propped up, his dislocated ankle in a cast.

Warner, the 49ers’ four-time All-Pro middle linebacker, was watching while out for the season. While he would certainly have preferred to be on the field, he got a great view of his defensive coordinator lighting up the Falcons.

In a 20–10 win for San Francisco, Robert Saleh was coaching with a diminished roster. The 49ers lost a litany of defensive talent this offseason, when corner Charvarius Ward, safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Dre Greenlaw left in free agency. Ward and Hufanga were All-Pros, while Greenlaw became a star alongside Warner before tearing his Achilles in Super Bowl LVIII.

Going into the season, most would agree the two players Saleh couldn’t afford to lose were Warner and edge rusher Nick Bosa. In Week 3, Bosa was lost to a torn ACL. Three weeks later, Warner dislocated and fractured his right ankle.

In the first game without both, Saleh put on a masterclass. Atlanta was held to 10 points, the latest conquest for Saleh in his first season back with San Francisco after leaving for the Jets’ head-coaching job. The 49ers limited superstar running back Bijan Robinson to 40 yards on the ground, and star wideout Drake London to four catches and 42 yards. This after Robinson and London accounted for 396 total yards and two touchdowns in a 24–14 win over the Bills in Week 6.

Saleh’s only star on the field was slot corner Deommodore Lenoir, and yet the Falcons were held down time and again. On nine drives, Atlanta mustered only two scores. Michael Penix Jr. was harassed in the pocket, throwing for 6.3 yards per attempt while being sacked twice and hit five times.

Perhaps nobody sums up Saleh’s sterling effect on the team more than Warner’s replacement, Tatum Bethune. A 2024 seventh-round pick, Bethune entered the night with 21 career tackles (nine solo). Against the Falcons, Bethune took the green dot, called the plays and recorded 10 tackles (four solo), including a tackle for loss.

Bethune played only 7% of the defensive snaps as a rookie, largely sitting and watching Warner both in the film room and on the practice field. Now, he’s thrust into the starting role in the middle of a defense for a 5–2 team.

As the season churns on, Saleh’s job is only going to get more difficult. Bosa and Warner aren’t coming back this season, and there are bound to be more bumps and bruises along the way. He’ll need to hope the offense can be healthier, specifically with the eventual return of quarterback Brock Purdy and receiver Brandon Aiyuk.

In the meantime, Saleh must continue to call his defense as though 20 points is the benchmark, considering San Francisco has only eclipsed that threshold three times in seven games.

Of course, Saleh has plenty of reason to believe he can do it. Although his first tour with the Niners gave him a much more talented unit to coach, he was phenomenal. Under Saleh, San Francisco ranked 13th, second and fifth in yards allowed per game over his last three years before he took over the Jets. While Saleh was 20–36 in New York, his defense was fourth- and third-ranked, respectively, in 2022 and ’23 before he was fired during the ’24 campaign.

Tied atop the NFC West with the Rams, the Niners are in terrific position. They also have an advantageous schedule, with the Cardinals, Browns and Titans still on the slate among others. Nothing will be easy considering the state of San Francisco’s health, but there are reasons to believe.

Chief among them is Saleh, who has shown time and again he knows how to win through design and strategy.

Warner had to love what he saw Sunday night. He might love what he sees going forward, too.