We might not be done.
In a move that many have expected for a couple of weeks now, the Cincinnati Bengals officially announced Al Golden as their next defensive coordinator on Thursday. Golden returns to Cincinnati after three seasons with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
It was also revealed that Jerry Montgomery would be taking over as the team’s defensive line coach.
Three coaches remained from the Bengals’ 2024 defensive staff, those being cornerbacks coach Charles Burks, safeties coach Jordan Kovacs, and defensive assistant Ronnie Regula.
Per James Rapien of BengalsTalk.com, those three may not be completely safe despite making it through the initial firings.
“We’re still working through things,” a source told Rapien.
As Golden settles into his new role, he will undoubtedly begin evaluating the team’s roster to see which players fit his scheme, but he will certainly do that with the coaching staff as well.
If he doesn’t feel Burks, Kovacs, and/or Regula fit his vision for the Bengals’ defense going forward, the team could choose to move on from them.
It’s no secret that the Bengals secondary saw a massive dropoff this past season, so it won’t be a surprise if Burkes or Kovacs is let go after how poorly their units performed in 2024.
The Bengals did release a quote from Kovacs Thursday, where he spoke about Golden.
“We’re on the clock. Time to get to work.” – @CoachAlGolden
More on Golden → https://t.co/vAVoWn7KQJ pic.twitter.com/BcyHtr3q0K
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) January 23, 2025
Golden is tasked with returning the Bengal defense to the form we saw when Golden served as the linebackers coach in 2021. While he works toward what that will take, the three remaining assistants may not be safe quite yet.
