Bradley reunites with Saleh, bringing his veteran defensive mind to Tennessee after the 49ers opted for an outside hire.
The San Francisco 49ers are losing another key member of their defensive staff.
Gus Bradley is heading elsewhere to become a defensive coordinator this offseason…just not in Santa Clara.
According to NFL Network’s Albert Breer, the Tennessee Titans are hiring Bradley as their next defensive coordinator under newly hired head coach Robert Saleh. Bradley and Saleh worked together on the 49ers’ staff this past season, and Bradley was firmly in the mix for San Francisco’s defensive coordinator vacancy following Saleh’s departure.
Ultimately, the 49ers opted to go in a different direction.
Bradley was a legitimate option in San Francisco
After Saleh accepted the Titans’ head coaching job, Bradley quickly emerged as one of the internal candidates to replace him. San Francisco interviewed only a small pool of candidates for the role, and Bradley’s familiarity with the system, players, and coaching staff made him a logical option.
Instead, head coach Kyle Shanahan chose to make an outside hire, bringing in former Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris as the 49ers’ next defensive coordinator. Shanahan and Morris have an extensive history together, having previously worked with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington, and Atlanta.
Once Morris was hired, Bradley began drawing serious interest elsewhere around the league.
Titans win Bradley
Bradley reportedly garnered attention from multiple teams with defensive coordinator openings, including the Arizona Cardinals, but ultimately decided to join Saleh in Tennessee. The move reunites the two coaches and gives the Titans a veteran defensive voice to pair with Saleh’s vision.
Bradley brings decades of experience to the role. He began his career as a defensive coordinator at the collegiate level, spending time at Fort Lewis and North Dakota State from 1992 to 2002 before transitioning to the NFL.
At the professional level, Bradley served as the Seattle Seahawks’ defensive coordinator from 2009 to 2012, overseeing the early stages of the Legion of Boom before earning a head coaching opportunity with the Jacksonville Jaguars. While his tenure as a head coach was short-lived, Bradley quickly re-established himself as a respected coordinator around the league.
Following Jacksonville, he held defensive coordinator roles with the Los Angeles Chargers (2017–2020), Las Vegas Raiders (2021), and Indianapolis Colts (2022–2024) before joining the 49ers’ staff this past season.
Now, he’s back calling defenses.
Continued turnover on the 49ers’ defensive staff
Bradley’s departure marks yet another change for the 49ers on the defensive side of the ball. San Francisco has already lost Saleh, Bradley, and defensive backs coach Daniel Bullocks, who was hired by the Green Bay Packers earlier this week.
With Morris now in place as defensive coordinator, the 49ers will continue filling out the rest of their defensive staff in the coming weeks. While the core players remain intact, the coaching turnover underscores how highly regarded San Francisco’s defensive brain trust has become around the league.