Coordinators sounding boards, advisers to title game coaches

All four NFL teams playing in the conference championships have a defensive coordinator who flopped as a head coach but who has the chops as a lieutenant to help his team and his head coach get to the Super Bowl.

The NFC championship pits high-powered offenses led by Tampa Bay’s Tom Brady and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers.

Which of the iconic quarterbacks makes it to Super Bowl 55 in Tampa next month might come down to the chess moves made by Mike Pettine of the Packers and Todd Bowles of the Buccaneers on Sunday.

In the third consecutive AFC championship contested at Arrowhead Stadium, it’s Steve Spagnuolo trying to outwit Bills breakout quarterback Josh Allen and Leslie Frazier tasked with prying the Lamar Hunt trophy from the grip of Chiefs young star QB Patrick Mahomes.

Together, the four defensive coordinators won 33.6% of their games as head coaches and made it to a single playoff game (Frazier’s Vikings lost to Green Bay in a wild-card game in

January 2013). But all are credited with providing a steady helping hand, a sturdy shoulder and a willing ear to their team’s current coach.

Pettine

Pettine went 10-22 (.313) as coach of the Cleveland Browns from 2014 to 15, before joining Matt Lafleur, who was named Packers coach in 2018 after two seasons as an offensive coordinator, a year each with the Rams and Titans.

Pettine, 54, has provided Lafleur, 41, advice on the bigger things and suggestions on the day-to-day routines.

“From the first day that we started working together, he’s been just a great sounding board because he’s been through a lot of these situations in terms of practice schedules and certainly many other things,” Lafleur said. “I think he’s been awesome for me; a great resource for us as we’ve built this thing over the last two years.”

Bowles

Bowles, 57, compiled a 26-41 mark (.388) as New York Jets coach from 2015 to 2018. He was fired around the same time Bruce Arians, 68, came out of retirement to take the Buccaneers’ job in 2019.

The Bucs have improved from No. 27 in total defense the year before Bowles arrived to No. 6 in two years.

“Todd is one of those guys, he’s here at 4:30 (a.m.), so there’s guys coming in the door to sit down and watch film with him every single day,” Arians said. “Todd does a great job. He’s a great communicator, he’s a great teacher. It’s really, really helped their growth as players and their confidence, too.”

Frazier

Frazier, 61, went 21-33-1 (.391) at Minnesota from 2010 to 2013. He was among the first hires by Sean Mcdermott, 46, in 2017.

Mcdermott has talked about how Frazier’s experience has been invaluable to him, and how he uses him as a sounding board on addressing issues within the team.

Frazier called it “an honor to stand alongside Sean” and said he appreciates his voice being valued.

“Now, you have to be an ego-less guy in Sean’s shoes to take some of that conversation and not feel threatened,” Frazier said. “So I just appreciate his willingness to allow me to share my thoughts and then to listen and give feedback. … At the end of the day, these have to be his decisions. I’m so thankful that I worked with a guy and we could have that type of dialogue and come to a conclusion that’s best for our team and someone willing to utilize my experience. That’s not always the case. It’s a business with a lot of egos, a lot of people concerned with who gets the credit.”

Spagnuolo

Spagnuolo, 61, compiled an 11-41 record (.212) as coach of the St. Louis Rams from 2009 to 2011 and was 1-2 as interim coach of the New York Giants in 2017. He joined Andy Reid, 62, in Kansas City in 2019 and played a big role in turning around the Chiefs’ defense in their Super Bowl-winning season a year ago.

Spagnuolo didn’t shy away when asked if he wanted another crack at a head coaching job.

“Certainly. The fire burns in me for that,” Spagnuolo said. “I had that one opportunity, things didn’t work out. But, yeah, listen, I want to say this: I’m really happy with the job I’ve got. I’m good there.

“But someday I would love that opportunity.”