When Doug Pederson was hired to be the Jacksonville Jaguars’ coach, it wasn’t just the hires on the offensive side that fans were curious about. The reason for that was because the roster took a step in the right direction defensively after Joe Cullen took over, and while the group was far from elite, there clearly was something to build on.
Unfortunately Cullen wasn’t retained by Pederson, but the second time coach brought in an assistant with similar beliefs in Mike Caldwell. In 2020 the Jags were fifth in terms of blitz percentage (31.5%), making them one of the more aggressive teams in the league. However, they ended up with an assistant in Caldwell who will be coming from an even more blitz-heavy team in the Tampa Bay Bucs, who were first in the category (40.8%).
Leading the Bucs defensively was longtime assistant Todd Bowles, who has known Caldwell since their time as Philadelphia Eagles assistants under Andy Reid. And with that being the case, Caldwell had no choice but to be influenced by Bowles as the two remained together during stops in Arizona, New York, and Tampa.
When asked by John Oehser of Jaguars.com about their time together, Caldwell had nothing but kind words for Bowles, who most would say is one of the best defensive minds in football.
“He’s been a great influence,” Caldwell said of Bowles. “We saw things similarly – not always alike, but very similar: His approach to the game as far as pressure packages and just understanding that when you’re on defense and you’re able to dictate to offenses is always a plus.”
While he will be a first-year defensive coordinator, Caldwell has 14 years of NFL assistant experience to his name, so he’s well prepared to make the leap. When adding in the fact that the last 10 were under Bowles, it appears the Jags couldn’t have brought in a more qualified candidate that didn’t have coordinating experience.
That said, with all he’s learned from Bowles, Caldwell sounds like he’s going to hit the ground running with his new players.
“We were together for so long that I was able to understand the role,” Caldwell added. “Now, being put into that role, I have an understanding to have a plan and be detailed about it. It goes back to teaching. I’m able to teach my coaches what I know, what I want to be able to get accomplished. If you communicate and get everybody on the same page, success will come.”
As previously mentioned, Caldwell won’t have stars like Vita Vea, Devin White, and Antoine Duane Winfield Jr. to work with, but if he’s as detailed as a coach as Bowles is, he could still make some noise with Jags notables like Myles Jack and Josh Allen, but ultimately time will tell.