Bengals fill vacancies on coaching staff
The Cincinnati Bengals coaching staff is staying mostly intact after the team’s Super Bowl run this past season.
Cincinnati replaced two departing coaches with the hiring of linebackers coach James Bettcher and secondary/cornerbacks coach Charles Burks, and the staff added a second assistant offensive line coach with Derek Frazier teaming up with Ben Martin in a shared role.
Additionally, Jordan Kovacs, who is entering his fourth season with the Bengals, has been promoted to assistant linebackers coach after serving as the team’s defensive quality control coach the past three seasons.
Bettcher, 42, served as senior defensive assistant/ running game specialist for the San Francisco 49ers in 2021 and replaces Al Golden, who served as the Bengals’ linebackers coach for the 2020 and 2021 seasons before taking the defensive coordinator job at Notre Dame. Overall, Bettcher brings nine years of NFL coaching experience, including as a defensive coordinator for both the N.Y. Giants (2018-19) and Arizona Cardinals (’15-17). He also served as outside linebackers coach for the Cardinals from ’13-14 and special assistant to the head coach/outside linebackers for the Indianapolis Colts in 2012.
Burks, 34, joins the staff after spending the 2019 through 2021 seasons with the Miami Dolphins, including as cornerbacks coach the past two years, and he replaces Steve Jackson, who had been with the staff since 2020. Burks coached eight seasons in the college ranks prior to his time with the Dolphins with stops at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Texas A&M University-Commerce, West Texas A&M University and East Central (Okla.) University, where he had played cornerback from 2008-10.
Frazier, 48, comes to Cincinnati after spending 2021 as offensive line coach at the University of Wyoming. He reunites with current Bengals offensive line coach/run game coordinator Frank Pollack, who was the N.Y. Jets’ offensive line coach in 2019 and 2020 when Frazier was an assistant offensive line coach. Prior to his time with the Jets, Frazier spent 21 seasons coaching offensive lines in the college ranks at Central Michigan University, Colorado State University, Fresno State University, Northern Arizona University, Adams State (Colo.) College and Nichols (Mass.) College.
Frazier played center at the University of Northern Colorado from 1992-96 and helped the Bears to an NCAA Division II National Championship as a senior in 1996.
In other news Tuesday, the Bengals signed wide receiver and punt/kick returner Trent Taylor to the offseason roster. A sixth-year player in 2022, Taylor played eight total games with Cincinnati last season, including all four postseason contests. He had two receptions for 41 yards in the regular season and seven punt returns for 52 yards (7.4 yards per return) and four kickoff returns for 68 yards (17.0 yards per return).