There was much debate over whether or not the Tennessee Titans should hire an offensive minded or defensive minded head coach. After interviewing nearly 20 candidates, it was announced the Titans were
going with Robert Saleh on January 22nd. Roughly two weeks later, defensive coaches took center stage in Super Bowl LX.
Both the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots feature defensive-minded head coaches in Mike Macdonald and Mike Vrabel. It was Macdonald’s Seahawks who dominated, winning Super Bowl LX 29-13. And with that, the Titans’ decision to hire Saleh indicates they are moving in the right direction.
The NFL is a copycat league. Macdonald became the first defensive play-caller to win a Super Bowl. Naturally, Saleh has already announced his intention to call defensive plays for the Titans.
The Titans have an ascending franchise quarterback in Cam Ward. The thought behind hiring an offensive-minded coach was to prioritize his development. The Titans ultimately went with the best leader in Saleh, in an attempt to course-correct the Vrabel-Brian Callahan mistake.
Saleh, like Macdonald and Vrabel, will be tasked with ensuring his team has the right offensive system in place to support the quarterback. Hiring Brian Daboll as OC was a home-run for Ward’s development. All defensive coaches encounter challenges here. Macdonald is about to lose his OC Klint Kubiak, forcing him to hire his third coordinator in as many seasons. Vrabel was fortunate to be saddled with Josh McDaniels.
Defenses dominated Super Bowl LX. Both head coaches were of that variety. Their offensive coordinators are current/former head coaches in Kubiak and McDaniels. Saleh should have a similar set-up with Daboll on his staff.
The Titans fired Vrabel and also interviewed Macdonald before hiring Callahan. Those are tough truths to swallow. But as Tennessee moves forward under Mike Borgonzi, appointing Saleh should come with promising returns.
