Weeks of speculation that 49ers assistant coach Gus Bradley would be promoted might prove to be correct—just not in the manner some envisioned.
The Tennessee Titans are hiring Bradley as their defensive coordinator, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Monday, citing a source, where he joins new head coach Robert Saleh after each spent the 2025 NFL season in San Francisco.
After Saleh’s second stint as 49ers DC ended with his acceptance of the Titans job, rumors floated that Bradley was the clubhouse favorite to replace him. Kyle Shanahan later added to the buzz during a postseason press conference in January.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a real wide net, but I mean, Gus is the obvious one to everyone and is to us too,” Shanahan told reporters. “Gus would be the main internal candidate.”
Ultimately, San Francisco hired former Falcons head coach Raheem Morris for the position, leaving Bradley free to join Saleh in Nashville.
Bradley, who served as assistant head coach with the 49ers in 2025, first established himself on the NFL scene as defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks’ fledgling “Legion of Boom” defense. He left Seattle in 2013 to become the head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, lasting four seasons before returning to the DC ranks with the Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders and Indianapolis Colts.
With San Francisco in 2025, Bradley worked closely with Saleh in attempting to bring a young, injury-riddled defense up to speed. And while the results weren’t always pretty, the process clearly convinced Saleh that Bradley should be his right-hand man in Tennessee.
As for 2026, the 49ers are counting on Morris—and the return of unit cornerstones Fred Warner and Nick Bosa—to elevate the team’s defense back to Super Bowl contender status. San Francisco recorded the fewest sacks in the NFL in 2025 and finished 20th in yards allowed per game, numbers that must improve if Shanahan and company are to reclaim NFC superiority.
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