The Next DC

[Neophyte]

No, we don't know who the next Head Coach is going to be and we not only don't know who the next GM will be, we don't if there will be one at all.

But I'm reading the headlines about current Head Coaches on the "hot seat" after Week 7 this season (yes, Ron is on the list even though I think Harris gives him the full season) and a couple of names jumped out at me. Not because I would want them here as the next Head Coach but because of their history running the defensive side of a team.

Brandon Staley is currently 2-5 with a loaded Chargers roster that really should be doing better than it is. He was only a DC for one season with the Rams under McVay but what a season. The Rams finished 1st in the NFL in both scoring and yards under Staley. Before the Rams, he was a position coach under Vic Fangio in both Denver and Chicago.

Sean McDermott is also considered by some to be in trouble in Buffalo for a lack of post-season success. He was DC in Carolina under Rivera for a number of years and had a Top 10 defense there from 2012 to 2015. Carolina lost the Super Bowl to Denver 24-10 even though McDermott's unit only surrendered one TD to the Broncos. Interestingly, McDermott was also on Reid's staff in Philly when EB was there in 1999.

 

[Boone]

Great post Neo. I want a HC who is an offensive genius. In todays NFL I feel like teams with Defensive HCs are already behind the curve. That means you have to have a DC who is top notch, aggressive, and who requires no help from above.

The #1 trait I’d be looking for in a DC is aggressiveness and him being a proponent of an attacking D filled with physicality. When’s the last time this team had a defense with a mean streak? I’ve been so disappointed with JDR because I really thought he was an old school coach who would put together some disciplined, tough, physical defenses. We haven’t had anything remotely approaching that in the defense as a whole.

I don’t know if any of the names you brought up meet that standard. I think finding the best college DC and luring him here might be the best bet because the other option is to hire an NFL retread and that’s not often worked out for us. Or perhaps they find an ‘up and comer’ assistant defensive coach on another NFL team who is ready to take the next step up?