The rivalry between Robert Saleh and Liam Coen is back in the spotlight ahead of the Week 10 showdown between the Tennessee Titans and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The two traded heated words on the field last season, but Saleh now sounds ready to bury the hatchet. He recently had kind words for Coen and the Jaguars’ coaching staff, a turn that caught NFL fans flat-footed.

Fans React to Robert Saleh Squashing Beef With Liam Coen

The tension between the two coaches dates back to September 2025, when Saleh was the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator. He made headlines after praising Jacksonville’s offensive preparation, describing Coen’s staff as having “legally, a really advanced signal-stealing-type system.”

Coen apparently took the comment as an accusation and confronted Saleh after the Jaguars defeated the 49ers 26-21. The two coaches exchanged heated words at midfield and had to be separated. Coen was reportedly heard telling Saleh, “Keep my name out of your mouth.”

What looked like the start of a bitter coaching rivalry, however, didn’t last long. Both men later said they had cleared the air at the NFL’s annual league meetings in Phoenix in March.

Saleh’s comments on Friday suggest the hatchet is still buried.

“Liam’s great, man,” the Titans head coach said. “We’ve had plenty of interactions. The whole thing is what it was: a little misunderstanding, poor words on my part. But they’re doing a great job. I love what they’re doing offensively. They’ve definitely got an identity. And then [defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile] on the other side. Overall, as an organization, they’ve done a really nice job.”

However, Saleh’s friendly comments didn’t sit well with some NFL fans, who took to social media to criticize him for backing away from the rivalry.

One X user suggested Saleh was steering clear of another blowup because of Jacksonville’s current form. “He knows he’s getting belted and can’t talk crazy like he did on the Niners,” they wrote.

Another fan wasn’t buying Saleh’s sudden change in tone, commenting, “Oh come on, don’t be a [expletive] now.”

“Ahhhh, don’t act soft now,” another user added.

Others were already counting the Jaguars’ win. One commenter put it bluntly: “Yeah, you’re gonna get smoked, buddy.”

Another fan predicted a lopsided result,posting, “38-7 Jags incoming.”

Meanwhile, one fan wanted the rivalry to have more bite, writing, “Man, they are acting too nice. I wanted them to hate each other like the NFC North.”

With the disagreement seemingly behind Coen and Saleh, the focus now shifts to what their teams do on the field on Sunday.

The Titans enter Week 10 at 1-7 and sit at the bottom of the AFC South. They rank 29th with a PFN Offense Impact Score of 66.1. Jacksonville, meanwhile, is 6-2 and ranks sixth with an 83.1 grade, keeping the Jaguars firmly in the hunt near the top of the conference standings.