Storied former Seahawks DC joins NFC West rival

More than a decade after leading the Seattle Seahawks defense in the early Legion of Boom days, former defensive coordinator Gus Bradley is heading to the team's most bitter division rival.

Bradley, 58, is joining Kyle Shanahan's coaching staff with the San Francisco 49ers, per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. Though his position is unclear, he will likely be working under defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, who returned to the 49ers this offseason after being fired from the New York Jets' head coaching position.

The Seahawks originally hired Bradley in 2009 when Jim L. Mora was the team's head coach for one season. Bradley was retained when Pete Carroll was hired in 2010, and he quickly helped build what eventually became the Legion of Boom.

Bradley's 2012 Seahawks defense led the league in points allowed per game (15.3) and was top-5 in takeaways (31) and yards allowed per game (306.2). Seattle finished 11-5, falling one win short of an NFC Championship appearance via an Atlanta Falcons game-winning field goal in the Divisional round.

Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals. — Oct 30, 2011; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at CenturyLink Field. The Bengals defeated the Seahawks 34-12. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Bradley was hired as the Jacksonville Jaguars' head coach in 2013, and Dan Quinn was brought back from the college ranks at Florida. The Seahawks proceeded to make consecutive Super Bowl runs, winning the franchise's first championship in the first appearance.

Saleh, who will now likely be Bradley's boss, worked under him in Seattle from 2011-12. He was on staff until 2013 as the Seahawks' defensive quality control coach before joining Bradley in Jacksonville in 2014. It wasn't until 2017 that Saleh landed his first stint as San Francisco's defensive coordinator, and he became the Jets head coach in 2021.

Bradley has held three defensive coordinator jobs since being fired as the Jaguars' head coach in 2016. Those stops were with the Los Angeles Chargers (2017-20), Las Vegas Raiders (2021) and Indianapolis Colts (2022-24). He was fired after the 2024 season after the Colts defensive ranked near the bottom of the league in most major metrics except takeaways (seventh).

Regardless of his success in the most recent stops, Bradley is an experienced coach who has a unique defensive perspective to bring the 49ers. With his connections to Saleh, however, it isn't surprising he would join a division rival.

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