It is now official, Teryl Austin has left the Detroit Lions to become the new defensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals. Austin, the former defensive coordinator of the Lions, spent the last four seasons in Detroit.
This was first reported by Josina Anderson of ESPN and then was confirmed by NFL Networks’ Ian Rapoport on Twitter:
The #Bengals & #Lions DC Teryl Austin have agreed to terms and he’s their new DC. #Raiders tried, but Cincy closed, as @JosinaAnderson said
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 8, 2018
This news doesn’t come as much of a surprise, as it was reported last night that Austin was likely to be named the Bengals new DC. The Oakland Raiders also made a late push towards hiring Austin, but the Bengals were able to finish the deal.
A New Chapter in Cincinnati
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He will replace Paul Guenther, who is expected to join Jon Gruden on the Oakland Raiders coaching staff. Gruden was just recently hired by the Raiders as their head coach.
Austin has been in Detroit since 2014 under the recently fired Jim Caldwell, with whom he had an extensive history. They were both assistants at Penn State under Joe Paterno, and then again at Wake Forest.
His first season in Detroit was his best, as the Lions’ defense ranked second in yards allowed and third in points allowed per game in 2014. After that Detroit’s defense spiraled downhill, ranking 18th, 18th and 27th in yards allowed from 2015-17. They also finished 23rd, 13th, and 21st in points per game allowed in that same time span.
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Austin was the defensive backs coach for the Arizona Cardinals from 2007-09. He helped the Cardinals reach Super Bowl XLIII, as they went on to lose to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Austin then went back to the college ranks, as he was the defensive coordinator for the Florida Gators in 2010. He then went to be a secondary coach for the Baltimore Ravens from 2011-13.
Though neither was expected to be hired as head coach, GM Bob Quinn interviewed both Austin and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter for the head coaching position. The Lions are continuing to interview candidates, but reports indicate that they’re likely to hire New England Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia.
Austin also attempted to interview with the Green Bay Packers, but Detroit blocked this from happening.