(01-30-2023, 06:15 PM)ElkValleyBengal Wrote: I'd do whatever it takes to keep Lou.  It's not fair to him not to let him have the opportunity, but I'd empty the wallet and even give him an assistant HC title.  I think he's arguably the 2nd most important person in the Bengals organization, at least on the field.

Don't disagree with you but his aspiration is to be a HC and that probably doesn't go away.You want to give him a boatload of $$ as an asst. HC, etc. but the $$ will no where be near being a HC, along with the authority/decision-making, etc. that also goes along with that title.

Now, I don't doubt for a second that he wouldn't sign a one year deal with Cinci. for a big raise or even a 2-3 year deal but, imo, he'll always have an out clause in that contract after a year.

Probably wouldn't happen due to pride from Mike and Marvin but I would love Marvin to come back and be our DC if Lou were to get a head coaching job. or Zimmer either 1 would keep the train moving.

I just read where Callihan is heading to his second interview with the Colts.

(01-31-2023, 12:31 PM)Bengalfan4life27c Wrote: Probably wouldn't happen due to pride from Mike and Marvin but I would love Marvin to come back and be our DC if Lou were to get a head coaching job. or Zimmer either 1 would keep the train moving.

please no

I think (luckily for us) Lou will still be here this fall. NFL is all about hiring offensive head coaches at the moment in this copy cat league. Losing Lou would be a huge loss for us when it finally does happen. This guy has been amazing at the things he does with he players on defense.

(01-31-2023, 11:44 AM)Synric Wrote: Brian Callahan to the Colts seems like the best fit to me. Especially since he is a QB guy and they are likely going to draft a QB possibly a guy that needs a little more development like Will Levis. Brian Callahan with an experienced guy at DC like Lovie Smith would be a good match.

Same. Brian fits the Colts in my eyes.

(01-31-2023, 01:05 PM)Frank Booth Wrote: please no

No doubt, elevate Bettcher to DC who is already on the team if Lou somehow wanted to be HC of the Cards.

Never bring back old dogs that cannot win Playoff games.

Any chance Lou declines to take a HC job and says he wants to finish what he started here first?
Probably wishful thinking..
But I'm sure he'd like a SB win to look back on later in life.

If he leaves I think you have to take the same approach as last time and interview a ton of candidates.
Simply hiring from within hasn't been too good in the past.
I liked the due diligance we did when making the Lou hire.

(01-31-2023, 03:55 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: Any chance Lou declines to take a HC job and says he wants to finish what he started here first?
Probably wishful thinking..
But I'm sure he'd like a SB win to look back on later in life.

If he leaves I think you have to take the same approach as last time and interview a ton of candidates.
Simply hiring from within hasn't been too good in the past.
I liked the due diligance we did when making the Lou hire.

I think Lou stays, he loves his players and what he has built on this Defense. It is like his family.

But if he somehow does leave there isn't a better in house hire than Bettcher. Surprised he took the job of LB coach with his 
Defensive mind. He has a better DC resume' than Lou had coming in here.

(01-31-2023, 01:05 PM)Frank Booth Wrote: please no

Yeah, no more retreads. 

(01-31-2023, 03:59 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: I think Lou stays, he loves his players and what he has built on this Defense. It is like his family.

But if he somehow does leave there isn't a better in house hire than Bettcher. Surprised he took the job of LB coach with his 
Defensive mind. He has a better DC resume' than Lou had coming in here.

I'd love to see him stay. Imagine the confidence that would give the team going into the year.

I'll admit, I don't know much about Bettcher. If he's the best man for the job that sounds good. I was only stating that I loved the due diligance we did when hiring Lou. 

In the past we promoted Guenther from within after losing Zim. I thought he was average at best.
We did the same with an OC that was horrible (was he a previous QB coach or something?). That was a disaster.

But we also stockpiled coaches in the past and Hue Jackson was a good in house promotion as OC.

(01-31-2023, 04:04 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: I'd love to see him stay. Imagine the confidence that would give the team going into the year.

I'll admit, I don't know much about Bettcher. If he's the best man for the job that sounds good. I was only stating that I loved the due diligance we did when hiring Lou. 

In the past we promoted Guenther from within after losing Zim. I thought he was average at best.
We did the same with an OC that was horrible (was he a previous QB coach or something?). That was a disaster.

But we also stockpiled coaches in the past and Hue Jackson was a good in house promotion as OC.

Ken Zampese. Ugh......

(01-30-2023, 01:00 PM)Nepa Wrote: Both Anarumo and Callahan. May well lose one of them. 

Losing Lou would be huge. 

We never know when the Bengals will get another run for the Super Bowl, as run into salary cap issues and loss of coordinators.

Losing Both would be very hard to recover from.  I believe we have a plan in place if we lose Brian   but not sure what we do if we lose Lou

(01-31-2023, 04:04 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: I'd love to see him stay. Imagine the confidence that would give the team going into the year.

I'll admit, I don't know much about Bettcher. If he's the best man for the job that sounds good. I was only stating that I loved the due diligance we did when hiring Lou. 

In the past we promoted Guenther from within after losing Zim. I thought he was average at best.
We did the same with an OC that was horrible (was he a previous QB coach or something?). That was a disaster.

But we also stockpiled coaches in the past and Hue Jackson was a good in house promotion as OC.

Lou was like the last option lol

That wasn't due diligence, we lucked out with him. Bettcher actually has been a good DC in the NFL before. Lou came from no
where being a Secondary coach his entire career with the Fins and Giants. Crazy how good of a DC he has become. Blows my 
mind. But I did have a thought that Bettcher was insurance in case Lou did leave. I just don't see it happening unless the Cards
offer him crazy amount of money which they don't really have with all the dead cap with Kingsbury.

Lou loves what he has built. Burrow loves the guy, the Offense loves the guy, Zac loves the guy, the FO loves the guy...

And teams are wanting Offensive minded HC's now more than ever.

(01-31-2023, 03:55 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: Any chance Lou declines to take a HC job and says he wants to finish what he started here first?
Probably wishful thinking..
But I'm sure he'd like a SB win to look back on later in life.

If he leaves I think you have to take the same approach as last time and interview a ton of candidates.
Simply hiring from within hasn't been too good in the past.
I liked the due diligance we did when making the Lou hire.

If he turns down a HC offer and they don't win a SB, does a defensive guy who will be 58 and have zero HC experience ever get an offer again? Older, defensive guy, and no experience. He already has 3 things going against him in the modern HC hiring cycle.

It'd also be him turning down somewhere around 5yr/$25-40m fully guaranteed to come back and make $1-2m/yr.

(01-31-2023, 12:31 PM)Bengalfan4life27c Wrote: Probably wouldn't happen due to pride from Mike and Marvin but I would love Marvin to come back and be our DC if Lou were to get a head coaching job. or Zimmer either 1 would keep the train moving.

It wouldn't be my first choice, but I wouldn't be upset if they brought Zim back, but I do not want Marvin Lewis within 500 miles of this team. He reeks of mediocre.

(01-31-2023, 04:22 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: Lou was like the last option lol

That wasn't due diligence, we lucked out with him. Bettcher actually has been a good DC in the NFL before. Lou came from no
where being a Secondary coach his entire career with the Fins and Giants. Crazy how good of a DC he has become. Blows my 
mind. But I did have a thought that Bettcher was insurance in case Lou did leave. I just don't see it happening unless the Cards
offer him crazy amount of money which they don't really have with all the dead cap with Kingsbury.

Lou loves what he has built. Burrow loves the guy, the Offense loves the guy, Zac loves the guy, the FO loves the guy...

And teams are wanting Offensive minded HC's now more than ever.

His resume may not have been very good with no DC experience. But the point of the interview is to get to know the guy and his understanding of the game. Is he knowledgeable enough? What schemes does he have in mind? Compare that to the rest. Maybe his resume wasn't the best, but I would pick the smartest coach I interview everytime. Interviewing a few outsiders would only give you more information.

(01-31-2023, 04:25 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: If he turns down a HC offer and they don't win a SB, does a defensive guy who will be 58 and have zero HC experience ever get an offer again? Older, defensive guy, and no experience. He already has 3 things going against him in the modern HC hiring cycle.

It'd also be him turning down somewhere around 5yr/$25-40m fully guaranteed to come back and make $1-2m/yr.

He only loses the opportunity to get offers if the defense tanks. They should be able to keep this group intact atleast 2 more years. He'd still get offers next year.

If there's a big difference in the amount of money he makes, obviously that's a big deal.

(01-31-2023, 04:25 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: If he turns down a HC offer and they don't win a SB, does a defensive guy who will be 58 and have zero HC experience ever get an offer again? Older, defensive guy, and no experience. He already has 3 things going against him in the modern HC hiring cycle.

It'd also be him turning down somewhere around 5yr/$25-40m fully guaranteed to come back and make $1-2m/yr.

Cardinals is a risky job especially with Kyler missing alot of time. If I remember correctly there was quite a bit of turnover at HC in Arizona before Kliff Kingsbury. Also what happens if say Kliff comes off the books in 2024 because someone offers him a HC job somewhere. They could take another shot at Sean Payton in 2024 if that happens.


I get the line "There's only 32 of those jobs" but there is also a lot of quick turnover if you don't pick the right opportunity you might never get another chance.

(01-31-2023, 03:55 PM)Bengalstripes9 Wrote: Any chance Lou declines to take a HC job and says he wants to finish what he started here first?
Probably wishful thinking..
But I'm sure he'd like a SB win to look back on later in life.

If he leaves I think you have to take the same approach as last time and interview a ton of candidates.
Simply hiring from within hasn't been too good in the past.
I liked the due diligance we did when making the Lou hire.

(01-31-2023, 04:22 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: Lou was like the last option lol

That wasn't due diligence, we lucked out with him. Bettcher actually has been a good DC in the NFL before. Lou came from no
where being a Secondary coach his entire career with the Fins and Giants. Crazy how good of a DC he has become. Blows my 
mind. But I did have a thought that Bettcher was insurance in case Lou did leave. I just don't see it happening unless the Cards
offer him crazy amount of money which they don't really have with all the dead cap with Kingsbury.

Lou loves what he has built. Burrow loves the guy, the Offense loves the guy, Zac loves the guy, the FO loves the guy...

And teams are wanting Offensive minded HC's now more than ever.

Lou has stated that he wants to be a HC, he is not turning down a HC job.

He is older and one of the least qualified guys out there.  

And I agree that teams are primarily looking for an offensive-minded coach or one with experience. 

Although, Ryans to Houston makes sense as a former player, young, black and the #1 DC.

And I agree Bettcher is the obvious in-house candidate.

(01-31-2023, 04:51 PM)Synric Wrote: I get the line "There's only 32 of those jobs" but there is also a lot of quick turnover if you don't pick the right opportunity you might never get another chance.

True but their Contracts are generally fully guaranteed.

So even if it doesnt work out he would be rich enough to retire (if he isnt already)