Bengals begin interviews for coaching vacancies

This is the first major shakeup to Taylor’s staff since he arrived in 2019, as Anarumo became the first coordinator to get fired. Cincinnati replaced offensive coordinator Brian Callahan last year when he became the Titans head coach, and both he and Anarumo were original hires to the staff.

“I think it’s got to be as appealing as it could possibly be,” Taylor said of the openings. “We’ve got some of the best players in the world, and it’s a great organization to work for. It’s a tremendous city to work in. It’s the best fan base in all the world. I can keep listing the positives, but those are some of the main ones.”

The organization wasted no time beginning the search for replacements. According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the Bengals planned to interview Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham on Tuesday and New England Patriots defensive coordinator Demarcus Covington on Wednesday.

Graham also is a candidate for the Jaguars head coaching job, but his contract was up in Las Vegas, where head coach Antonio Pierce was fired Tuesday, and Graham has permission to interview elsewhere. The Patriots are beginning their search for a new head coach and have allowed Covington to interview for other jobs.

Taylor said NFL defensive coordinator experience isn’t a requirement just because he doesn’t want to write anybody off at this point, but it’s a plus for a team that is “ready to win and do great things.” He does have an idea of the traits he would like in Anarumo’s successor.

“They get the most out of the players, certainly, and I think you got to understand our division that we play in,” Taylor said. “You’re going to play six a year. That’s going to dictate, really, where you end up at the end of the season. And so I think this division is different. I think when people come and they play all four teams in this division, they feel that immediately. And so you’re certainly (going to) need a coordinator that has an understanding of that. There’s plenty of the guys in the league that have been around the block, that have done that, and I’ll go through the process and find the right one.”

Whoever gets the job as defensive coordinator has a big task at hand in trying to turn around a defense that was among the worst in the league through the first 12 games. Taylor saw a lot of young players build confidence by the end of the year and believed that had a lot to do with the improvement as the defense limited opponents to 18.8 points per game over the five-game winning streak to close the season.

Changes in player personnel also will be needed, but how much of the defensive scheme and roster gets ripped up will be determined with the new coordinator that is hired. Cincinnati invested a lot of draft picks into the defense over the past few years and haven’t seen enough development from those selected in the top three rounds.

“That’s the process you go through now,” Taylor said Monday. “I know everyone wants answers on exactly what it’s gonna look like. I can’t provide that today. I certainly have a vision for what I want it to look like. We’ll go through the process of finding the right candidates and evaluating them and then finding the right fit. And then from there, how do these players fit with what we’re doing? That will be in conjunction with Duke (Tobin) and his staff. There’s a long process you go through. Just fresh off the season, we’ll close this chapter and be ready to move on to the next one.”

The Bengals haven’t been able to develop guys like 2023 first-round pick Myles Murphy and 2021 third-round pick Joseph Ossai, and the linebackers have taken steps back the past two seasons. The secondary had its own issues, but cornerbacks coach Charles Burks and safeties Jordan Kovacs remain for now until a coordinator decides if further changes are needed.

The offensive line coaching position should be appealing for a chance to be a part of building onto one of the league’s best offenses. Joe Burrow needs better protection, and the running game appears headed in a good direction with Chase Brown taking big steps this season. Pollack was also the running game coordinator, but it’s uncertain yet if that will be the job description for his replacement as well.

“We’ll form a list and go through it in depth of who we thinks fits us best, and we’ll go out and find the best guy to get the most out of what we’re doing,” Taylor said.