Former 49ers DC Saleh Takes LaFleur, Benton With Him to Jets; 49ers Promote Within

SANTA CLARA (CBS SF) -- The San Francisco 49ers made some big changes to its coaching staff Monday in the aftermath of defensive coordinator Robert Saleh taking the head coach job for the New York Jets.

The 49ers announced Monday morning that the team promoted Linebacker coach DeMeco Ryans to Defensive Coordinator to replace Saleh. Ryans, 36, has been with the team since 2017.

The team also broke the news that 37-year-old run game coordinator Mike McDaniel will become the team's new offensive coordinator, as current OC Mike LaFluer announced he'd be joining Saleh as the Jets' new OC. Offensive line coach John Benton is also coming to the Jets to be the new OL coach/run game coordinator, according to NFL Network's Mike Silver.

A former All-Pro linebacker who played with the Houston Texans and the Philadelphia Eagles, Ryans has been the 49ers Linebacker coach since 2018 and is credited with developing inside linebacker Fred Warner into one of the best LBs in the game. Warner won his first AP First-Team All-Pro honors and the first Pro Bowl selection of his career last year, despite the team's losing (6-10) season.

McDaniel has also been with the 49ers for five seasons, following head coach Kyle Shanahan from the Atlanta Falcons to San Francisco. Before the Falcons, McDaniel worked for the Cleveland Browns (2014) and the Washington Football Team (2011-2012).

Under McDaniel's watch, the 49ers developed a successful run game, averaging 131.1 rushing yards per game over the last two seasons (2019-20), making it the sixth best in the NFL. The 49ers 42 rushing touchdowns since 2019 are tied for the third-most in the NFL.

Silver also reported that Saleh hired former Falcons QB coach Greg Knapp to be the Jets' quarterbacks coach and Rob Calabrese, who's been with the Denver Broncos these past two seasons will be the Jets' pass game specialist.

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