Saleh, NFL’s first Muslim head coach
For the past two months, 42-year-old Robert Saleh has been the head coach of the New York Jets in the United States National Football League (NFL).
In 2019 he became the first Muslim defensive backs coach to reach the Super Bowl. His team, the San Francisco 49ers, lost 31-20 to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Abe Gibron and Rich Kotite, of the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles respectively, were the first Arabs to coach an NFL franchise. They do not profess the Muslim religion. Robert Saleh becomes the third Arab and the first Muslim to lead an NFL team.
He was born in Dearborn, Michigan, and attended Fordson High School, a college in Northern Michigan. His family is of Lebanese descent.
He has been the defensive backs coach for the San Francisco 49ers for four years. He transformed them into one of the NFL's elite units. During this time he has been widely praised for his leadership skills.
Robert Sherman, star of the 49ers, commented of Robert Saleh that "he is a leader of men". Despite injuries, he never made excuses during the season and managed a defence ranked among the top 5 teams in the league.
"He’s a natural-born leader" whose "humility is what sets him apart and what makes him an embodiment of our working-class Arab American community".
In addition to his experience and expertise, the fact that he is of Lebanese descent helped him become a sought-after coach. The Rooney rule, named after the former owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers who started it, helped him. In coaching selection, two candidates from minority backgrounds are required to be interviewed. The position of "Head Coach" has to go through a selection process. This system is also used to hire "General Managers" after it has been established that none of them are of any race other than Caucasian.
Robert Saleh's challenge is a tough one. The Jets won only two regular season games last season. They haven't made the playoffs in ten years. They won one Super Bowl, many years ago, in 1968 to be precise. Hence Saleh's challenge with the New York team.
His bet in the first season is to have experienced players to help the team assimilate his system. His goals are long term, but this strategy can get them results in the short term to be more competitive than in recent seasons.
The Muslim coach had contacts with four other franchises: Detroit, Atlanta, Jacksonville and Los Angeles. His 16 years of NFL experience sparked interest from several teams.
Saleh, of Lebanese origin, is responsible for one of the most important teams in one of the most important sports in the United States. It is a historic milestone, especially as the country is embroiled in a racial justice reckoning.
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) spokesman Ibrahim Hopper said they welcomed the news as another sign of the growing inclusion and recognition of American Muslims in our diverse society.
Also Detroit Lions Muslim player Oday Aboushi commented that Saleh is just a pioneer for many Muslim coaches who need to know that it is possible to become a head coach in the NFL.
He grew up in a Muslim-majority working-class community. The largest Muslim community in the United States. His father worked in construction and found stability in Dearborn like many Arab refugees fleeing the war. His school was 95% Arab and it was there that he found his passion for football.
After finishing his studies in finance at the university, Robert had a stable job. But the fateful 9/11 was to change his career preferences. His brother David miraculously saved his life in the South Tower of the World Trade Center. At that moment Robert decided to follow his vocation: to be an American football coach.
In 2002 he started coaching at the college level and in 2005 he was hired by the Houston Texas of the NFL. From there he moved on to the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Seattle Seahawks.
In 2017 he was hired by the San Francisco 49ers as defensive coordinator.
When he reached the Super Bowl in 2019, he told the Washington Post that he might have contributed to "some Americans seeing Muslims in a different way".
Saleh has made Dearborn, Saleh's hometown where the Islamic faith and football have a unique synergy, very proud.
At his school, Fordson High School, Saleh's first family member attended in 1961. In addition, the cafeteria serves halal food to its students.
The first year Robert studied there, 2006, the school won its fourth state football championship with a 99% Muslim college football team. The school has also made an effort to take Ramadan into account when scheduling football practices and other events.