Cincy Jungle
The Cincinnati Bengals fired defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo after last season and brought back former assistant Al Golden to take the reins of the defense. The unit, which was historically bad under Anarumo, has been historically worse this season.
Golden was brought in to develop talent, but thus far, the three rookies, who have all gotten significant playing time, have a developmental curve that resembles a roller coaster.
So what now?
Do they go out and look for a new defensive coordinator, again? Perhaps this time the search isn’t conducted by Zac Taylor’s neighborhood watch association.
With this team, who knows?
If they do decide to conduct another search, here are 10 names they should focus on.
True, Jim Schwartz has a job, but with Kevin Stefanski on the hot seat, he is worth mentioning.
The 59-year-old Schwartz has 17 years of experience as an NFL Defensive Coordinator as well as head coaching experience. He won a Super Bowl as defensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018 and was named AP Assistant Coach of the year in 2023.
Schwartz is one of the best defensive coordinators in the league and is known for building his defenses from the trenches. He is currently a coach in the AFC North, and his defensive system is a perfect fit.
Having started his coaching career when Zac Taylor was in first grade, Schwartz could give Taylor the experienced “head coach of the defense” that we have long hoped he’d be paired with.
In a sharp contrast from Schwarz, Christian Parker is only 33 years old and only started coaching in the NFL in 2019. Parker started out in Green Bay as a quality control coach, before moving to Denver as the defensive backs coach, and finally ending up with the Eagles.
Serving under Vic Fangio in Philadelphia, Parker has been a key part of developing a secondary that includes recent draftees like Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, and Andrew Mukuba. He has also helped to transform a pass defense that was one of the worst in the league a few seasons ago, into one of the best.
Parker is a bright young star who could be just the guy to facilitate the defensive turnaround.
With the increased creativity in offensive play-calling over the past several seasons, it only makes sense to look at college defensive coordinators for NFL jobs. After all, those guys have to defend everything from the triple option to the pistol and everything in between.
Lupoi’s Oregon defenses are known for not giving up big plays. Prior to heading out west, Lupoi spent five seasons winning National Championships with Nick Saban at Alabama. He has coached in the NFL as well, with experience as the defensive line coach of the Browns, Falcons, and Jaguars.
The 44-year-old Lupoi...
