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The Bengals’ search for a defensive coordinator remains ongoing, and there appears to be a new favorite to land the position.
The University of Florida Gators defensive coordinator Todd Grantham has been requested for an interview by Cincinnati, per Will Sammon.
Bengals have formally requested permission to interview Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham for their open coordinator position, sources tell @TheAthleticCFB.
— Will Sammon (@WillSammon) February 11, 2019
feeling is he is a lead candidate, per sources. unclear when he would interview.
Sometime last week, the Bengals interviewed Aubrey Pleasant, the Los Angeles Rams’ cornerbacks coach, for the same position. According to Sammon’s sources, Grantham is the favorite to get the job.
Grantham has been Florida’s defensive coordinator since 2017. Last May, Grantham signed a three-year contract worth $4.47 million. That deal made him the highest paid assistant coach in school history and one of the highest paid assistants in the country.
After graduating from Virginia Tech, Grantham has spent nearly 30 years coaching at the college and professional level. He comes from several coaching trees such as Nick Saban, Romeo Crennel and Wade Phillips.
Before his one year in Florida, he was the defensive coordinator for Mississippi State, where he coached with Florida’s head coach Dan Mullen. He was also Louisville and Georgia’s defensive coordinator prior to working under Mullen.
Grantham’s last gig in the NFL was as the defensive line coach for the Cowboys under Phillips. In the three years before that, he was the defensive coordinator for the Browns. That was his first and last defensive coordinator job in the NFL, unless he impresses the Bengals with his pending interview.