Oakland Raiders: Jack Del Rio could find a new home in Cincinnati
By Brad Weiss
Jack Del Rio was fired as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders back in 2017, but he may find new life in the NFL in the AFC North.
During his time as head coach of the Oakland Raiders, Jack Del Rio led the team to their best season in over 15 years. In 2016, Del Rio helped captain the Silver and Black to a 12-4 record, and had it not been for Derek Carr breaking his leg, they would have been a team to beat in the AFC playoff picture.
Unfortunately, the Raiders had to roll with Connor Cook in his first NFL start in the playoff game against the Houston Texans, and the Raiders would be bounced in the Wild Card Round. The following season, the Raiders were one of the worst teams in football, and the team decided to move on from their head coach.
While Del Rio’s three-year run with Oakland was not that long, he did bring stability to the organization, and turned the Raiders back into a winner, at least for one season. He has not coached since that final game of the season in Week 17 against the Los Angeles Chargers, but he may be back sooner than later.
Ian Rapoport from the NFL Network tweeted this out on Sunday.
From @gmfb Weekend: The #Bengals' will hire #Rams QB coach Zac Taylor whenever their season ends, and keep an eye on Jack Del Rio & Brian Callahan as DC and OC targets; Meanwhile, the #Dolphins will watch their future HC today in Brian Flores. pic.twitter.com/js2Z7lhVbt
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 20, 2019
Cincinnati moved on from Marvin Lewis after a 16-year run that included zero playoff wins. The expectation is they will bring in Los Angeles Rams quarterback coach Zac Taylor to be their head coach when the Rams season is over, and Del Rio would be a great guy to have on his staff as the defensive coordinator.
Not only is Del Rio a great defensive mind, but he would also help the first-year head coach in the ins and outs of being a head coach at the NFL level. In another move surrounding the Raiders, Cincinnati is looking at Brian Callahan to be their offensive coordinator, after spending this past season as the Raiders’ quarterbacks coach.
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The Bengals would be wise to bring Del Rio into the fold, as he has tremendous experience as a head coach, winning nearly 100 games. Taylor is going to have his bumps in his first year at the helm, and having a guy like Del Rio to bounce things off of will only help him be a better head coach down the road.