Lou Anarumo and Frank Pollack are good coaches, but the Bengals had to let them go no matter what
Four assistant coaches have been fired by the Cincinnati Bengals to kick off the 2025 offseason. Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, offensive line coach Frank Pollack, linebackers coach James Bettcher, and defensive line coach Marion Hobby have been relieved of their duties after a second consecutive 9-8 season that resulted in missing the playoffs. Bettcher and Hobby […]
Four assistant coaches have been fired by the Cincinnati Bengals to kick off the 2025 offseason.
Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, offensive line coach Frank Pollack, linebackers coach James Bettcher, and defensive line coach Marion Hobby have been relieved of their duties after a second consecutive 9-8 season that resulted in missing the playoffs.
Bettcher and Hobby were notable staff members of a defense that severely underwhelmed for the past two years. Their dismissals are noted, but weren't going to be enough change for this team.
Anarumo and Pollack are the big fish here. The former has been the leader of the defensive side of the ball for the past six seasons. He enjoyed a two-year high from 2021-22 when his unit was full of savvy veterans creating clutch turnovers and sacks and even got close to becoming a head coach during that timeframe. The latter was brought back to the team in '21 by orders of the front office and oversaw the offensive line going from total patchwork to somewhat stability in his first two years.
Both stayed around for several years because they are quality coaches, but the Bengals had to move on from both, and the reasons why are very simple.
Why the Bengals fired Lou Anarumo
When Joe Burrow has an MVP-caliber season, Ja'Marr Chase wins the receiver triple crown, and Tee Higgins plays nearly 80% of the season, the only conceivable reason as to why you didn't make the playoffs is because the defense was so horrendous. That was the story of the Bengals' 2024 season.
Anarumo's defense made life hell for the offense through the first 12 weeks of the year. The Bengals became the first team to lose four or more games in a season despite scoring 33 points. The defense let them down tremendously in shootouts against the Washington Commanders, Baltimore Ravens (twice), Los Angeles Chargers, and Pittsburgh Steelers.
If any one of those losses was a win instead, the Bengals would be in the playoffs. That's the margin of error Anarumo ran into.
Many have pointed to Cincinnati letting high-end veterans such as Jessie Bates III and DJ Reader leave as pivotal factors for the defense's downfall. Losing elite players is never ideal, but the Bengals' plan to replace them were just as bad. Anarumo was always heavily involved in both free agency and NFL Draft plans for the unit.
Anarumo had input on free agent whiffs such as Nick Scott, Geno Stone, and Sheldon Rankins. Eight top-100 draft picks were spent on defense from 2022-2024. Out of Dax Hill, Cam Taylor-Britt, Zach Carter, Myles Murphy, DJ Turner II, Jordan Battle, Kris Jenkins Jr., and McKinnley Jackson, how many of them can be considered building blocks for the future? Maybe a couple? That's not good enough.
The inability to identify and develop young talent led to Anarumo over relying on washed up vets. He advocated for the re-signing of Vonn Bell and started him over Battle for most of the season, a decision that netted terrible results. Sam Hubbard got extensive playing time over Murphy and Joseph Ossai while he proved to not be the player he was years ago.
Decisions like these cost undoubtedly the Bengals this year, which is why Anarumo is out the door.
What the Bengals will be looking for in a new defensive coordinator
It took the Bengals nearly two months to hire Anarumo back in 2019 after interviewing several candidates. It will not take that long to find a replacement six years later. The allure of coordinating Burrow's defense back to the playoffs will be enticing for big names.
Expect the Bengals to look for a defensive coordinator with an established resume, potentially a former head coach himself. Names like Robert Saleh, Dennis Allen, and Matt Eberflus fit that description. Denver Broncos defensive backs coach Jim Leonhard was a defensive coordinator at the college level and also makes a lot of sense.
Why the Bengals fired Frank Pollack
Offensive line problems have been around longer in Cincinnati than Pollack was here for, but he proved unable to turn water into wine. Handling established veterans wasn't a problem as Alex Cappa, Ted Karras, La'el Collins, and Orlando Brown Jr. all met expectations for the most part. Developing their younger teammates wasn't as successful.
Jackson Carman is widely recognized as a pick those above Pollack made for him, but that's still a second-round pick on a guard burned on fire. Left guard Cordell Volson was more of a Pollack selection a year later, but he's never quite grown to be the starter he needs to be after three years. Amarius Mims looks like the real deal at right tackle, but he was an elite athlete drafted in the first round. Those types are expected to hit under Pollack's tutelage.
The main reason why Pollack is gone involves the run game. He was given the run game coordinator title when he was re-hired in 2021 (he spent one year in Cincinnati in 2018). The problem was Pollack came from an under center wide zone background, and that was not a fit for what the Bengals wanted to pair with their passing game.
This issue became apparent in 2022 when the Bengals completely reworked their run game to a gap-scheme from shotgun. It's been that way ever since, but again, it's not what Pollack was brought in to teach. The fit became nonsensical.
Burrow facing immense pressure also didn't help Pollack's case as his o-line has always had multiple liabilities. Cincinnati needs two new guards for the 2025 season, and finding a coach who can potentially elevate them into quality starters will be very important.
What the Bengals will be looking for in a new offensive line coach
Finding the right match of scheme and floor-raising ability will be important here. The Bengals want to build on what they've evolved their run game to be out of the shotgun and pistol, so a coach with experience with those schemes should be a requirement.
Money to spend on high-end veteran linemen may not be in the cards for the foreseeable future, so a history of elevating young draft picks will also be of upmost importance.