Darrell Bevell: A Deeper Dive

Edition #306

Good morning.

The Jets have kindly given us a focus for the week with the firing of Mike LaFleur, sorry, I mean the “mutual parting” with Mike LaFleur.

Over the coming days, we’re going to hear names pop up in terms of interviews, remember the golden rule around coaching cycles. Just because you don’t hear that someone has been interviewed, it doesn’t mean they haven’t.

Today I’ve decided to pick out one of the favorites and take a look at his resume, Darrell Bevell, you’re up to bat.

One very quick note. Watch for Bill Callahan's name to come up in connection with the Jets OC job over the coming week. The former Jets assistant head coach and current Cleveland Browns offensive line coach. I published a piece on GGN today about that possibility.

💼 Coach Saleh confirmed that Woody Johnson gave him full autonomy to make any coaching decisions in the best interest of the team.

🚨 The Jets are also moving on from offensive line coach John Benton. I expected John Benton to lose his running game coordinator position but thought he may be kept on as a positional group coach.

🎲 He also stated that the WR coach job is open with Miles Austin facing gambling charges and a suspension. However he confirmed that no other changes are being made, so Rob Calabrese will remain the QB coach.

🔴⚪ Jets assistant defensive line coach Greg Scruggs has taken the role of defensive line coach at Wisconsin, which means the Jets will be looking for a new member of the defensive staff.

OC - Mike LaFleur ❌

OL - John Benton ❌

WR - Miles Austin ❌

TE - Ron Middleton ✅

QB - Rob Calabrese ✅

RB - Taylor Embree ✅

🕸️ Saleh said that the Jets are casting a “wide net” in their search for an offensive coordinator. He said they weren’t focusing on any specific scheme, just the right man for the job.

🗞️ When talking about the appeal of the job, he said: "We do have a top-five defense. … And we’ve got a really, really good core group of guys. ... We are going to be aggressive as heck as far as [improving at] quarterback."

🔋 Woody Johnson also met with the media and while he said there is no playoff mandate for Joe Douglas and Robert Saleh, he believes the team is “loaded” and ready to “win” now.

💰 He also confirmed that he is absolutely open to the Jets pursuing a veteran QB, believing good QB play is the missing piece for this team. Although he did still say he had confidence in Zach and wants to keep and develop him.

📝 In that mold, Derek Carr’s agent released a statement yesterday basically stating the obvious, his time in Las Vegas is over:

“Derek’s tenure with the Raiders effectively is finished. Relationships do end, but as is the case here, a treasure of memories and friendships remain, along with a very special bond with the fans. These won’t end. Teams constantly search for franchise players who invest themselves completely, as Derek did for nearly a decade, maybe even to a fault. That’s his true legacy here, much more so than the numerous team records he holds. He always showed up first; he played hurt, and through some tumultuous times, he led from the front and never complained. He will carry a piece of this organization with him always, and that doesn’t include the hardware souvenir in his ankle. Now, he looks forward to the opportunity to write a new chapter for himself and his career”

Derek Carr then posted his own message on Twitter, which you can read HERE.

“We’re a running team, running philosophy, so we know that to hand the ball to the running back 25, 30 times is exactly how we want to play the game. You can still throw the ball in that, you just have to protect the ball, be smart with it and that’s what we plan on doing.” - Bevell circa 2016

“We want to be a run-first team. We added a second running back in the draft [Robert Turbin], so we still end up having that size, that big strong runner, once Marshawn Lynch comes out of the game. But, I think the important part of the passing game is that it needs to be explosive. That’s what we want to do, it’s what we want to be. It gives us opportunities to throw it, not just the little, you know, West-Coast Offense style where you’re going five or six yards, we want to be able to get big chunks. If you’re going to drive the length of the field, you’re going to have to do that, and I think that’s something that we’re still working on.” - Bevell Circa 2012

When I started researching this piece I wanted to get a true understanding of who Bevell was. My initial takeaway is that Bevell is the epitome of a flexible coach. He worked under Brad Childress (a West Coast Offense guy) while he was in Minnesota. When he got to Seattle he worked with Tom Cable and as a result, we saw a lot more zone-running plays. When Seattle recruited Russell Wilson we saw Bevell move away from the shorter concepts and attack deep down the field, while still maintaining the crossing routes and curls that are a West Coast staple.

During his entire career as offensive coordinator with the Seahawks, Wilson was usually in the 10 QBs in terms of passes attempted over 20 yards, and many years he was in the top 5.

Some coaches are really set in their ways, others are flexible. It’s usually the flexible ones that last the longest, and Bevell has been in the NFL since 2000.

“We are always trying to tailor the offense to the strengths of those players, so the different types of players we have will enable us to do different things, the subtle changes you are talking about, just to try to accentuate and get the ball to our best players.” - Bevell

Here’s how his offenses have performed over the years: