For the second straight season, the Cincinnati Bengals missed out on the postseason despite the excellent play of star quarterback Joe Burrow. But moving forward, the Bengals appear dedicated to fixing perhaps their biggest hole by bringing in a familiar face who has made himself known at the college ranks.
On Monday, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish fell just short in the National Championship to Ohio State. But NFL teams have taken notice of the successful season.
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman has been an intriguing name to keep an eye out for in NFL coaching searches. But shortly following Monday’s game, it was reported that Freeman may not be the only coach at Notre Dame on the radar of NFL teams.
According to Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden, who previous served as a linebackers coach for the Bengals for two seasons from 2020 to 2021, is a leading candidate to fill the defensive coordinator vacancy for the Bengals.
Garafalo added in his report that before making a final decision on their new defensive coordinator, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor is expected to talk with Golden to see if he has interest in returning to coach in the NFL.
With the national title game over, the #Bengals can make their push to hire Notre Dame’s Al Golden for defensive coordinator. Sources tell me and @RapSheet he’s a leading candidate and Zac Taylor has paused the search to speak to Golden, his LBs coach in Cincy from 2020-21. pic.twitter.com/iyiHkJ4cMk
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 21, 2025
This past season, the Bengals allowed the seventh most points in all of football. Meanwhile, Notre Dame’s defense was as impressive as any defensive unit in all of college football under Golden, allowing just 14.3 points per game, which ranked as second best behind just Ohio State, the eventual National Champions.
Regardless of whether Golden ends up being named the next defensive coordinator in Cincinnati or not, the Bengals very clearly need to bring in a defensive coordinator who can help turn things around in a hurry.
If this doesn’t happen, the Bengals may waste another season of excellent play of Joe Burrow next year, which nobody wants aside from the Bengals’ rivals in the AFC North.
