Cincy Jungle
Disclaimer: I don’t think it is going to happen.
If this were the year that the Bengals decided to move on from head coach Zac Taylor, this would be a hot job. Yes, there are some idiosyncrasies to the Bengals’ setup, but it is not very often that a job comes up with a quarterback like Joe Burrow on the squad.
The general rule for coaches is that if you are an offensive coach, you should put a lot of resources into the other side of the ball and use your expertise to be successful on offense. Zac Taylor and the Bengals have just loaded up on offense and have not been able to scheme or develop their way into a successful defense.
So maybe they should go with a defensive-minded coach the next time they hire a head coach.
Most of the coaches on this list are just that.
The 44-year-old Brian Flores got a raw deal in his first stint as a head coach. Although he failed to make the playoffs in his three seasons with the Dolphins, Flores won 10 and 9 games in his final two seasons, respectively. This was no small feat, given the unimpressive quarterback play. In his final season, the Dolphins started slow before going on a 7-game winning streak.
Flores came up under Belichick, working his way up the chain for 11 years before getting his first head coaching gig in Miami. After a year with the Steelers, he headed to Minnesota, where he has led a dynamic defense for the past three seasons.
Flores is a great fit for the Bengals. He has the technical coaching skills as well as the demeanor to bring about a new age of accountability in Cincinnati.
Robert Saleh is another example of a good coach who got shafted out of his first head coaching job. He was starting to build something with the Jets before management burned it to the ground to give Aaron Rodgers everything he wanted.
After that Saleh went back to San Francisco, reuniting with Kyle Shanahan and resuming his duties as defensive coordinator. That was where Saleh’s defense helped fuel the 49ers on a Super Bowl run, posting 48 sacks and 27 turnovers.
Saleh is an established coach who gets results.
Jesse Minter inherited a bad Chargers defense, and at the end of his first season, they led the league with the fewest points allowed per game. This year, they continue to perform at a high level.
Minter is from the Harbaugh family defensive coaching tree, looping between Michigan and Baltimore. Minter had multiple defensive assistant positions under John with the Ravens over a four-year span, before becoming the defensive coordinator at Michigan and then following Jim to the Chargers.
If his name sounds familiar, that may be because...
