Bengals fill the assistant coach role defensive coordinator Al Golden held the last time he was in Cincinnati
The Cincinnati Bengals are continuing the process of filling out the coaching staff under new defensive coordinator Al Golden. Defensive line coach/run game coordinator Jerry Montgomery and linebackers coach Mike Hodges have officially been announced as new hires Monday morning ahead of Golden's first press conference as DC. Montgomery was reportedly tabbed to become the […]
The Cincinnati Bengals are continuing the process of filling out the coaching staff under new defensive coordinator Al Golden.
Defensive line coach/run game coordinator Jerry Montgomery and linebackers coach Mike Hodges have officially been announced as new hires Monday morning ahead of Golden's first press conference as DC.
Montgomery was reportedly tabbed to become the team's new DL coach late last week. He spent most of his NFL coaching career with the Green Bay Packers from 2015-23. Four of those years he spent coaching against Golden's Detroit Lions when Golden was the tight ends coach from 2016-17 and linebackers coach from 2018-19. Last year, he was the DL coach for the New England Patriots.
Hodges has spent the past five seasons as the LB coach for the Saints. He began his stint with the organization in 2017 as a defensive assistant and was the assistant LB coach in 2019.
The connection here goes all the way back to Hodges' first coaching gig after college. He played linebacker at Texas A&M from 2008-11, the same years Taylor was a graduate assistant for the program. Per SI Bengals Talk's Jay Morrison, Hodges then became a strength and conditioning assistant for the Aggies while Taylor was still there.
Hodges, just 38, is an important hire for the Bengals not only because the Saints consistently had quality linebacker play under his coaching, but because Golden was Cincinnati's linebackers coach from 2020-21. The team valued Golden in that role a ton, so this hire was always going to be of upmost importance. It's interesting that Hodges' connection is to Taylor rather than Golden.
As of this posting, the Bengals are up to 23 coaches on staff. There are two vacancies from last year remaining in senior defensive assistant and defensive quality control, which were previously held by Mark Duffner and Louie Cioffi.
Logan Wilson’s recollection of Al Golden is just what Bengals fans want to hear about Cincinnati’s new defensive coordinator
Wilson and Golden are excited to be working together again.
