Getty Image / Ian Johnson
The Cincinnati Bengals’ season came to a disappointing end last night.
After another impressive playoff run that saw them dominate the Buffalo Bills on the road, the Bengals came up just short against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.
A day later, teams are already looking to hire the coaches that helped get them there.
Today, NFL Network’s Peter Schrager reported that the Arizona Cardinals requested an interview with Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo.
This just in….
The Cardinals have requested to interview Bengals DC Lou Anarumo for their vacant HC job, per league source.@gmfb @nflnetwork
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) January 30, 2023
The defense has been the unsung hero for the Bengals during their last two playoff runs. Last year, they held the Titans to 16 points on the road, only allowed 24 against the Chiefs at Arrowhead, and even in their Super Bowl loss, only allowed the Rams to score 23 points.
This year, they allowed the league’s 6th least points per game throughout the regular season and continued to perform in the playoffs.
Last week, they went not the road and shut down the Bills en route to a 27-10 win. Yesterday, they only allowed 23 points to the Chiefs on the road.
However, Anarumo isn’t their only coordinator getting attention from other teams.
According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the Cardinals have also requested an interview with Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan.
The #Cardinals also requested an interview with #Bengals OC Brian Callahan for their head coaching job, per source. Callahan also is a candidate for the #Colts job.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 30, 2023
Callahan’s unit is the one that gets most of the attention and there’s a good reason for that. The Bengals offense was 7th in scoring this season and 8th in yards per game despite missing star receiver Ja’Marr Chase for 4 games.
With the rapid rise of the Cincinnati Bengals over the past couple of years, it wouldn’t be surprising to see both of these coordinators get a shot at head coaching jobs in the near future.
Maybe that first job for one of these coaches will be with the Arizona Cardinals.