Bengals to interview Patriots’ DeMarcus Covington

Another name to watch for in Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati Bengals have another interview set for their defensive coordinator position.

According to Tom Pelissero, the Bengals will interview New England Patriots defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington for the same position in Cincinnati.

The interview will happen on Wednesday.

The 35-year-old Covington has been in the coaching ranks since 2012 when he was a defensive analyst at UAB. He got his first NFL break in 2017 as a coaching assistant in New England, was promoted to outside linebackers coach in 2019, and then became the defensive line coach from 2020-23 before taking over as defensive coordinator this past season once Jerod Mayo was promoted to head coach.

In the 2024 season, the Patriots finished 22nd in both yards and points allowed per game, just three spots ahead of the Bengals.

This news follows a report that the Bengals will interview Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham for the same position.

Like Graham, Covington is coming off a disastrous season with his team that didn’t exactly inspire confidence that this could be a good defensive coordinator hire.

However, both interviews could also be to see if either candidate could fill one of the vacant position coach posts.

Graham has an extensive background as both a defensive line coach and a linebackers coach, two spots the Bengals will need to fill. Covington also has plenty of experience coaching defensive lines and linebackers.

So, while the reports say this is for the Bengals’ defensive coordinator position, it’s likely that Zac Taylor will also consider Graham and/or Covington for one of the position coach spots.