According to multiple reports, the Jaguars are closing in on a defensive coordinator hire to join new coach Doug Pederson’s staff. As was first reported by NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, the team is looking to bring on Tampa Bay Buccaneers inside linebackers coach Mike Caldwell to join the staff.
The 50-year-old has been around the block a few times. After an 11-year playing career in the league, he became an assistant coach for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2008, beginning a 14-year career as an assistant.
He worked with Pederson when they were both assistants in Philly, and he has since become Bucs defensive coordinator Todd Bowles’ right-hand man, taking on an assistant head coach role under Bowles with the New York Jets and following him to Tampa. This will be his first stint as a defensive play-caller, making him the second-straight Jacksonville defensive coordinator hire without DC experience.
Still, there’s a lot to like about this move. He was one of several coaches to interview for the vacant defensive coordinator position in Baltimore earlier this offseason, and he runs a similar scheme to the one previous defensive coordinator Joe Cullen utilized.
The defense improved quite a bit down the stretch in 2021, and keeping the philosophy largely the same during the transition could pay dividends next season.
Caldwell is a guy with a sterling reputation around the league, and though this is a big leap for him, it’s one that many feel he’s ready for. But we want to hear from you. Do you like this pending hire for the Jags? Or should Pederson — an offensive-minded coach with a background in tutoring quarterbacks — have opted for a more experienced defensive coach? Let us know in the poll below.
