With the Detroit Lions ownership recently deciding to move on from former coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn, current San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh has emerged as a strong candidate as the next man at the helm for the Lions. So much so, that a group of Michigan legislators have penned a letter addressed Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp urging her to hire Saleh as the team's new head coach.

The letter was authored by Rep. Abdullah Hammoud, who spoke very highly of Saleh, who himself is a native of Dearborn, Michigan. Here is an excerpt from the declaration, courtesy of Michael Rothstein of ESPN:

“We understand the difficulty of these upcoming decisions,” the letter reads. “As passionate and loyal Lions fans, we are asking you to hire Robert Saleh as the head coach of our team. He is the best candidate for the job and measures as such across every metric. A head coach like Robert can bring tremendous energy and heart to the franchise and would help us reach peaks that have seemed unobtainable for so long. We have an exceptional opportunity here and we trust you to make the best decision.”

It is worth noting that Saleh played college football in Michigan and that his family has “long football ties” with Michigan State. It comes as no surprise that he has become a local favorite and that more than a few Lions supporters are hoping that Saleh gets the nod.

For his part, however, Saleh emphasized that his focus remains on his current job, and that at the moment, he is not paying any attention to any outside noise:

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“This league is so week-to-week, and the most important week right now is Monday Night Football against Buffalo,” Saleh said Friday afternoon. “We've got a team that's in the middle of the playoff hunt. It's really a non-issue for me. I don't talk about it. I don't really even see it. I don't have social media. I don't look into the news. So, it's probably more for family and friends to enjoy and get a kick out of than it is for me. We're completely locked into Buffalo.”

That's not a surprising response from Saleh, whose loyalty lies with the 49ers. Nevertheless, it would not be surprising if he ends up taking the Lions job sooner rather than later.