Now that the Las Vegas Raiders have officially announced that Josh McDaniels will be their head coach, it’s time for him to fill out his staff. The first order of business is finding a defensive coordinator.
McDaniels should have a lot of options as this is a deep talent pool of potential coaches. That list includes Vic Fangio, Don “Wink” Martindale and Mike Zimmer. However, their first interview will be with Sean Desai, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.
The #Raiders are interviewing former #Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai today for their DC job under new coach Josh McDaniels, source said. He coordinated a Top 10 D last year in Chicago, his first year calling it.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 3, 2022
Desai was the defensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears last season and it was his first year on the job. But with Matt Nagy’s staff all being let go, Desai is now a free agent and can pursue any job he would like.
In his first year as a defensive coordinator, the Bears ranked sixth in yards allowed per game, but 22nd in points. However, the Bears had a number of big injuries this season, including to Khalil Mack and Eddie Jackson.
Desai is one of the younger defensive coordinator candidates in the NFL (38), but he’s been a defensive coach since 2006. He has experience in both the college and the NFL game as he has mostly worked under Chuck Pagano. We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.
