Although Wink Martindale was a surprise, the Atlanta Falcons have clearly prioritized experience in their defensive coordinator interviews thus far. Unlike Jimmy Lake, who was entering his first year as a coordinator at the NFL level, Martindale, Jeff Ulbrich, Lou Anarumo and Steve Wilks all have several years of experience in the role. The safest assumption is that the Falcons want a more experienced coach after Lake left after just one year in Atlanta.
The only interview that calls that assumption into question is the one we just learned about, with Packers defensive passing game coordinator Derrick Ansley. That’s not to say Ansley doesn’t have any experience — he was the Los Angeles Chargers’ defensive coordinator under Brandon Staley in 2023, although he didn’t call plays — but that he isn’t in the same league as the other names on this list in terms of time. spent as defensive coordinator.
Ansley coached defensive backs throughout his career, which included stops at Huntingdon, Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky before moving to the pros as the Raiders’ defensive backs coach in 2018. He served as Tennessee’s defensive coordinator from 2019 to 2020. before joining the Chargers as defensive backs coach, earning elevation to defensive coordinator in 2023 before that staff be dismissed en masse. He spent last season with the Packers, as defensive passing game coordinator, where Green Bay finished outside the top 10 defense, as they did in 2023. Ansley had the chance to take over the game over the past three weeks. from the 2023 season with the Chargers after Staley’s team allowed 63 points to the hapless Raiders and he was promptly fired; Ansley’s Bolts have impressively held the Bills to 24 points and the Chiefs to 13 in two of the last three matchups.
Ansley should be considered a favorite for this role, not because of any particular lack of merit – his work in college and in the pros has been quality – but because the Falcons have otherwise interviewed candidates more experienced, knowing that Lake’s inexperience and gambling Raheem Morris faced him and led to such poor results in 2023. He would be an extremely qualified candidate for a defensive passing game coordinator role in Atlanta, a title who does not currently part of the Falcons staff, if he was ready to leave Green Bay under a new defensive coordinator.
We’ll see if Ansley can surprise and land the job, but at the very least it’s good to see the Falcons casting a wide net in their search given the importance of replacing Lake with a very good coach.
