Dom Capers declines Bengals’ offer, per report

Now that the Bengals have officially hired Zac Taylor as their head coach, they can start filling out their coaching staff.

One such hire was thought to be Dom Capers, who the Bengals had seemingly zeroed in on. In fact, they apparently made Capers an offer, which he’ll be turning down:

Capers is one of the most experienced coaches in the football, something the Bengals would be good for Taylor in Year 1 of his head-coaching career.

Capers’ career started in 1972 as a graduate assistant at Kent State. He entered the NFL in 1986 as the Saints’ defensive backs coach.

After nearly 20 years as an assistant on the defensive side of the ball, Capers finally got his shot as a head coach when he became the first head coach in the history of the Carolina Panthers in 1995. After lasting four seasons there, he had a two-year stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars as their defensive coordinator.

Capers took on the responsibility of coaching the next expansion team to join the league in the Houston Texans and lasted through the first four years following their inception. That was his last opportunity as a head coach.

From 2006-07, Capers was the defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins. In 2008, he accepted the same position with the Green Bay Packers and lasted there until 2017. He did not coach in 2018.

His experience is the most impressive and probably the most attractive part of his resume. Even though he spent nine years as the Packers’ DC, he has little to show for his legacy. His Green Bay defenses were usually mediocre at best, and he was eventually fired after his unit was ranked 22nd in total defense and 26th in scoring defense in 2017.

Now, the Bengals will interview other candidates, one of which could be Aubrey Pleasant.