Kansas City Chiefs: Who will be the next defensive coordinator?
The Kansas City Chiefs are now in the midst of a search for Bob Sutton’s replacement. We polled some of our writers to see who they wanted in place.
The search is officially on.
Bob Sutton was let go on Tuesday as the Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator, ending two seasons (or more) of fan frustration with the coaching on that side of the ball. Given the Chiefs’ obvious Super Bowl readiness, the search is an important one as head coach Andy Reid looks for someone he can trust on that side of the ball to hopefully match or even come close to the dynamism of what he’s installed on the offensive end.
Sutton was in Kansas City for six seasons and experienced a wide range of results, from decent success when players like Derrick Johnson and Marcus Peters were in fine form to the last two seasons of misery. The Chiefs are now stocked with a lot of promising young players next to developmental guys like Tanoh Kpassagnon and Breeland Speaks who need a system to flourish within.
We recently polled a few of our Arrowhead Addict writers to get some takes on who they would like to see as defensive coordinator.
JACK DEL RIO
I know, I know, Del Rio is hated in Kansas City, and for good reason. Hear me out. Del Rio, in four seasons of being a defensive coordinator, boasted three top three defenses. In his worst year as a DC, he had the 19th ranked defense—still a big improvement from Bob Sutton.
One factor that might make Del Rio a bad fit is the fact that he likes to use a 4-3 defensive scheme, but if the Chiefs were willing to change their scheme, Del Rio would be a major improvement to Sutton. His defenses were good against the run, which is something that would be welcomed with open arms in K.C. He has a history of success with linebackers, which might turn Anthony Hitchens into what he once was and perhaps even turn Ben Niemann into Derrick Johnson 2.0.
Overall, Del Rio would be an excellent DC in replacement of Sutton, but his relationship with Andy Reid and reputation in KC stand in his way. [Drew Brooks]