The Cincinnati Bengals think they have several future head coaches on the current staff and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo tops that list.
Anarumo has been in the conversation for a couple of years now and was just one of the two finalists after the Super Bowl for the job in Arizona before the Cardinals went a different direction.
For Pro Football Talk’s Peter King Anarumo has started to approach becoming the most overlooked, deserving candidate not named Eric Bieniemy:
“5. I think a few coaches got short shrift—none more than Eric Bieniemy—in the head-coach derby in the past five weeks. Another prominent one, to me, is Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. Anarumo was the architect of a defense that had a three-game winning streak against Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes until the AFC title game, when Kansas City broke the schneid on a last-second field goal, 23-20. The Cincinnati defense, in the game’s last 33 minutes, held Mahomes to punt, punt, TD, fumble, punt, punt, field goal. Anarumo’s a dynamic person, his players love him, and yet he got to the finals of just one job—Arizona. Good for the Bengals that he stays, but I hope he gets longer looks next coaching cycle.”
Unfortunately for Anarumo, it feels harder for defensive-minded coaches to get looks right now. He’s currently serving on the staff of Zac Taylor, one of the big offensive trend-setters whose continued success proves the validity of the approach.
Anarumo’s name won’t just leave the conversation now though and he’s likely to get a job soon. But until he does, the Bengals will enjoy rare continuity the rest of the league doesn’t.
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