An ex-Jets quarterback recalls the unexpected moment a stressful meeting turned into a kind gesture, revealing the genuine leadership the Titans are gaining in Robert Saleh.
The Tennessee Titans aren't the first team to name Robert Saleh as their head coach.
As fans know, Saleh was the last defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers. He's also spent time with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Seattle Seahawks in defensive assistant coaching roles.
Saleh's last head coaching gig was with the New York Jets from 2021-24. He coached many players during that time, including quarterback Chris Streveler.
Streveler wasn't with the Jets for very long, spending the 2022 season with the Jets. He was the backup QB for the Jets that season, playing in two games with 90 passing yards.
He told a story about Saleh on his personal TikTok that gives fans a pretty good idea of the kind of person he is. Streveler had a solid preseason with the Jets that year and was placed on the practice squad.
However, one day he got word that Saleh wanted to see him in his office. For Streveler, he had been through this kind of thing before. He was with the Arizona Cardinals before this and understood that it probably meant he was going to be released by the team.
The timing was going to be difficult for Streveler if true, since he just moved to the city with his wife and dog.
Streveler said he walked into the office and found Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich there. Streveler had prepared for the worst, but instead Saleh congratulated him on the hard work he had put in during the season.
Saleh wanted to call Streveler in and tell him that they were going to elevate him to the active roster so that he could get more money for all his hard work. He was inactive for the game as an emergency quarterback, but it still meant a bigger check for Streveler, which was a very kind gesture from Saleh.
This tells us everything we need to know about the kind of person the Titans have as their head coach.
"So we get about nine weeks in, I've just moved my whole family out to New York, literally that day," Streveler said. "My dog's coming into town, my girl just got there, and Coach Saleh calls me in for a meeting in his office. I've been cut too many times and know what this looks like. So, I'm like, this is it, I'm getting cut. My whole family just moved out to New York. Sits me down, and Brick [Jeff Ulbrich], the defensive coordinator, is in the room, too. And they say, 'Hey man, we just wanna say how much we appreciate your hard work. What we're gonna do for you in this game is elevate you to the active roster. You're gonna be inactive for this game, but we just wanna get you a real check because you've been working so hard for us, you've been such a great teammate, been going hard in practice. We just wanna pay you a little bit, get you a real check.'"
For reference, a practice squad player earns $5,500 per week for a 17-game season, as revealed by former Titans' cornerback Darrell Baker, who is now on the Miami Dolphins.
This comes out to $93,500 for the year. If they do get cut, the money stops, so being elevated to the active roster is a big deal.
Making $20,000 for a game or two is a big leap after going from $5,500 per week in Streveler's case.
I don't know about you, but that's exactly the kind of person I would want to play for in the NFL. Streveler had a minimal role with the team, but Saleh made sure he felt appreciated for all the hard work he had put in.
We'll have to see how many quarterbacks the Titans keep this year, but they could keep three or four on the roster. Cam Ward, Mitchell Trubisky, Will Levis and Hendon Hooker are on the roster.
Even in other position groups, there will be players like Streveler who are expected to work with the practice squad or scout team to help those ahead of them improve.
Saleh makes sure that everyone's sacrifices are appreciated, which goes a long way in the locker room.
It's no wonder players like Jeffery Simmons have been public about how excited they are to play for Saleh.
