Tag: dennard wilson

Ravens players heap praise on Titans DC Dennard Wilson

Former Ravens players heaped praise on new Titans DC Dennard Wilson and gave some insight into him as a coach.

Before he was hired as the Tennessee Titans’ defensive coordinator, Dennard Wilson served as the defensive backs coach with the Baltimore Ravens.

In his lone season with the Ravens, Wilson helped guide Baltimore to the No. 6 pass defense in the NFL and aided in the development of standout second-year safety, Kyle Hamilton. In addition, the Ravens’ defense finished first in passer rating allowed.

While attending the Pro Bowl Games, Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com had a chance to talk to multiple Ravens who played under Wilson in 2023 and all of them had nothing but great things to say and each provided some insight into who Wilson is.

Here’s a look at the quotes Wyatt compiled:

Ravens hire Doug Mallory as defensive backs coach

The Baltimore Ravens have reportedly found their new defensive backs coach after losing Dennard Wilson to the Tennessee Titans. According to 247 Sports’ Matt Zenits, the Ravens are expected to hire Michigan defensive analyst Doug Mallory to fill the …

The Baltimore Ravens have reportedly found their new defensive backs coach after losing Dennard Wilson to the Tennessee Titans. According to 247 Sports’ Matt Zenits, the Ravens are expected to hire Michigan defensive analyst Doug Mallory to fill the vacant role.

Mallory, 59, will replace the highly-regarded Wilson, who coached the unit for one season before leaving to become the defensive coordinator of the Titans. Mallory will now work under Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh after working under his brother Jim Harbaugh for three seasons with the Wolverines.

Mallory was with the Atlanta Falcons for six seasons before his stint in Michigan, serving as a defensive assistant from 2015 to 2016, defensive backs coach from 2017 to 2019, and as a senior defensive assistant and defensive backs coach in 2020.

Mallory will join a new-look defensive staff for the Ravens under new defensive coordinator Zachary Orr following multiple coaches being hired away this offseason, including defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, assistant head coach and defensive line coach Anthony Weaver, and Wilson.

Grade for Titans hiring Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator

A grade for the Titans’ hiring of defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson.

The first reported hire for Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan was former Baltimore Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator.

Wilson comes over from the Ravens after one season as the team’s defensive backs coach. Baltimore finished with the No. 6 pass defense and safety Kyle Hamilton became a Pro Bowler and first-team All-Pro on his watch.

But that wasn’t Wilson’s first stint as a defensive backs coach. In fact, he has a wealth of experience in that role after holding the same job with the Los Angeles Rams, New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles.

In addition, he also served as defensive pass-game coordinator with the Eagles and Jets.

Wilson overseeing a top-10 pass defense in Baltimore wasn’t the first one he’s been apart of, either, as he coached the No. 1 unit in Philly in 2022, and the No. 10 pass defense in Los Angeles in 2016.

The new Titans defensive coordinator has had no shortage of great coaches to learn under, a list that includes Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, and former NFL head coach and defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams.

He’s cited Williams and Bowles, specifically, as two of the coaches who groomed him for this role.

“I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve been around some great defensive coordinators, in my opinion,” Wilson said. “I’ve been groomed by Gregg Williams, I’ve been groomed by Todd Bowles, who are very good in this league, and they’re very thorough. I’ve been tutored by them.

“I know how to run a ship. I know the responsibilities. So if the opportunity presents itself, I’ll be ready for it.”

While I would’ve preferred a candidate with actual defensive coordinator experience — seeing as how the Titans have a rookie head coach — Wilson has more than enough coaching experience to ease that concern.

Not to mention, there are no shortage of people who are smarter than me that hold Wilson in high regard and say this job is long overdue, including ESPN’s Louis Riddick, who was hot on Wilson in 2016.

Even one of his aforementioned tutors, Bowles, thought Wilson was going to be a head coach one day.

Eagles players also wanted Wilson to get the defensive coordinator job in Philly. He did not, and the Eagles have struggled to stick with one since.

Again, I would have preferred a veteran defensive coordinator for the Titans, but there’s enough here with Wilson to like this hire.

Also, having a defensive coordinator who has extensive knowledge of the defensive backfield, an area the Titans have struggled with, is an added bonus.

Grade: B+

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Report: Giants forced to recalibrate DC search after being rejected by top candidates

Due to concern over Brian Daboll and the current direction of the franchise, the Giants reportedly missed out on their top two DC candidates.

The New York Giants remain on the hunt for a defensive coordinator but the well is beginning to run dry.

While other teams fill out their respective staffs with relative ease, the Giants continue to struggle to sell their current vision and brand. Much of that stems from a dysfunctional 2023 campaign that saw in-fighting between head coach Brian Daboll and former defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.

In addition to the optics from that circus, the Giants also regressed on the field and will now enter Year 3 of the Joe Schoen-Daboll regime with those two planted firmly on the hot seat.

With that elephant in the room, ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports that the Giants missed out on two of their top defensive coordinator candidates.

One of those top candidates was likely Dennard Wilson, who chose to join the Tennessee Titans after two interviews with the Giants.

In addition to Wilson, the Giants have also interviewed Minnesota Vikings defensive backs coach Daronte Jones, Brendan Daly (Chiefs linebackers coach), Shane Bowen (Titans defensive coordinator), Derrick Ansley (Chargers defensive coordinator), Anthony Campanile (Dolphins linebackers coach), Jerome Henderson (Giants secondary coach), and Bobby Babich (Bills linebackers coach).

But it’s not just the defensive coordinator position that has resulted in some rejection. The Giants also had at least one rejection in their search for a special teams coordinator before hiring Michael Ghobrial.

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New Titans DC Dennard Wilson: 7 things to know

Seven things to know about new Titans defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson.

The first hire new Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan made to his staff was the addition of Baltimore Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator.

While Wilson wasn’t the experienced coordinator I was looking for the Titans to pair with their rookie head coach, he is no doubt qualified for the job thanks to his extensive and impressive background as a DBs coach.

Adding to that, he’s worked under some impressive defensive coordinators, who he credits with grooming him for the job he currently holds in Tennessee.

We’ll go over all of that and much more as we take a look at seven things to know about the Titans’ new defensive coordinator.

Giants’ options for defensive coordinator beginning to dwindle

The New York Giants have been thorough in their search for a new defensive coordinator but their options are beginning to dwindle.

After an ugly falling out between head coach Brian Daboll and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, the New York Giants were thrust into the hunt for a new DC.

Their search has been thorough but thus far, has yielded no fruit.

Earlier this week, general manager Joe Schoen said he’d like to have a DC in place over the coming days but that clock is ticking.

Nearly a month after the Giants and Martindale “parted ways,’ the Giants are still without a defensive coordinator and following a recent spate of hirings, their options are beginning to dwindle.

Twitter reacts to Titans hiring Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator

How Twitter reacted to the Titans reportedly hiring Dennard Wilson as their next defensive coordinator.

Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan and general manager Ran Carthon have their first major hire to the coaching staff with the reported addition of Baltimore Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as defensive coordinator.

The news comes from Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz, who notes that Wilson was a top candidate for the defensive coordinator jobs with the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers and New York Giants, also.

Wilson, who has a connection with Carthon from their days together in Los Angeles, has a solid resume and is highly regarded around the league. He’s coming off a season in which he helped the Ravens to the No. 6 pass defense.

Speaking of the Ravens: there was some thought that Wilson might stay in Baltimore after defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald was hired as the Seattle Seahawks’ head coach.

It isn’t clear is if that wasn’t offered to him or if he simply chose the Titans.

The only concern with this move is pairing a rookie head coach who calls the plays with a rookie defensive coordinator instead of a veteran one. However, Wilson is experienced enough (nine years as a DBs coach) to not be overly concerned about it.

Now, here’s a look at how Twitter reacted to the hiring.

Titans expected to hire Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as their new DC

The Tennessee Titans are expected to hire Baltimore Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as their new defensive coordinator

The Baltimore Ravens are losing another critical assistant coach, as Dennard Wilson is expected to be named the Tennessee Titans’ defensive coordinator.

Wilson played a vital role with the Eagles’ defensive backs for two seasons. He was a popular choice among players to earn a promotion to defensive coordinator last season before Sean Desai received the job.

Wilson and the Eagles parted ways, and he landed with Baltimore, helping the Ravens unit become one of the NFL’s best in 2023.

Wilson now gets the opportunity to run his unit under first-year head coach Brian Callahan, the Bengals’ former offensive coordinator.

Titans hiring Dennard Wilson as next defensive coordinator

The Titans are reportedly hiring Ravens DBs coach Dennard Wilson as their next defensive coordinator.

The Tennessee Titans have reportedly decided on who their next defensive coordinator will be.

According to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report, the Titans are hiring Baltimore Ravens defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson as their new defensive coordinator.

In his first year as the DBs coach with the Ravens, Baltimore sported the No. 6 pass defense in the NFL. Prior to his stint with the Ravens, Wilson worked as a defensive backs coach with the Los Angeles Rams, New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles, and was a pass-game coordinator for the latter two.

Wilson’s connection with the current Titans comes from his time in Los Angeles, where he spent two years with general manager Ran Carthon, who was serving as director of player personnel.

Wilson was highly sought after in this cycle, with the Rams, New York Giants and Green Bay Packers having interest. The Giants in particular brought him in for a second interview.

After the Seattle Seahawks hired Mike Macdonald as their new head coach, it was thought that perhaps Wilson would get a promotion to that position and stay in Baltimore, but clearly that isn’t the case.

With Wilson hired as defensive coordinator, we’d expect the Titans to make a hiring of an offensive coordinator soon. You can follow the latest with their search with our offensive coordinator interview tracker.

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Packers to interview Ravens secondary coach Dennard Wilson for defensive coordinator job

The Packers will interview Baltimore Ravens secondary coach Dennard Wilson for the team’s open defensive coordinator job, according to NFL Network. 

The Green Bay Packers will interview Baltimore Ravens secondary coach Dennard Wilson for the team’s open defensive coordinator job, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Wilson is a hot candidate; he’s interviewed or will interview with the Tennessee Titans, Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants.

A collegiate cornerback and safety, Wilson played briefly in the NFL before entering the scouting ranks with the Chicago Bears in 2008. He transitioned to coaching in 2012 and has been in the NFL for the last 12 years.

Wilson was a defensive quality control assistant for the Rams from 2012-14, the defensive backs coach for the Rams from 2015-16, the defensive backs coach for the New York Jets from 2017-18, the passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Jets from 2019-20, the defensive backs coach for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021, the passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Eagles in 2022 and the Ravens defensive backs coach in 2023.

The Packers could see Wilson as the perfect candidate to lead a team with All-Pro cornerback Jaire Alexander and what is likely to be a rebuilt group of safeties.

This past season, Wilson was instrumental in the development of Kyle Hamilton, who produced an All-Pro and Pro Bowl season. Wilson has also worked closely and helped develop other top defensive backs such as Jamal Adams, Darius Slay, James Bradbury and Marcus Maye, among others..

This past season, the Ravens defense finished first in points allowed, takeaways and passer rating, second in passing touchdowns allowed and third in passes defensed. The team intercepted 18 passes and allowed only 4.7 net yards per passing attempt.

While with the Eagles in 2022, Wilson helped Philadelphia rank first in passing defense by total yards allowed.

Wilson is the fifth known interview for Matt LaFleur and the Packers, who are attempting to replace Joe Barry. Packers Wire is tracking the interviews here.