Bengals’ Darrin Simmons now NFL’s longest-tenured special teams coordinator by large margin

During the playoffs, many fans keep a watch on the coaching carousel.

The NFL has long been a “what have you done for me lately” league, but since the beginning of the 2000, we’ve seen owners become more impatient, with many head coaches seemingly receiving only a couple of years, if not one. This may be especially difficult for coordinators around the league, who are frequently blamed for a team’s struggles.

In the middle of these flurry of moves, which includes Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan taking the head coaching job with the Tennessee Titans, Bengals supporters may appreciate the stable foundation of their coaching staff, which has been special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons.

Simmons joined Cincinnati as Marvin Lewis took over the Bengals. Since then, we have seen no change in that position, nor has it ever been in doubt. Kickers like as Shayne Graham, Mike Nugent, and, most recently, Evan McPherson have achieved great levels of success, kicking two last-second field goals in the 2021 playoff run that sent Cincinnati to the AFC Championship game and then the Super Bowl.

It is also worth mentioning that Simmons’ 22 seasons with the Bengals are more than any other head coach entering the 2024 season, with Mike Tomlin (17 years) and John Harbaugh (16 years) coming closest.

Simmons survived a couple of times when Lewis had to replace his defensive and offensive coordinators, as well as staying with the team when Zac Taylor arrived.

Simmons appears to have the freedom to stay as long as he wants. He will lead the search for a potential replacement/competition for rookie punter Brad Robbins, who had a disappointing season.

Otherwise, it will be bringing in the next Stanley Morgans and Cedric Peermans to prepare for 2024.