Todd Bowles' Jets coaching staff begins to take shape: Chan Gailey, Kacy Rodgers, Joe Danna
Darryl Slater | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com By Darryl Slater | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
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on January 15, 2015 at 4:50 PM, updated January 15, 2015 at 5:20 PM
One potential issue for the Jets, if they kept waiting on Seattle defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, is that Quinn might not be available until after the Super Bowl.
Even if Quinn wanted to take the Jets' head coaching job at that point, it would be a challenge for a first-time head coach to put together a staff of assistants.
The Jets this week pulled the trigger on a hire -- Arizona defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. And he is quickly getting to work with assembling a staff.
Chan Gailey will join the Jets as offensive coordinator, while Kacy Rodgers will be the defensive coordinator. According to Fox Sports, Joe Danna is coming from Atlanta, where he coached defensive backs, to join Bowles' staff.
It looks like Falcons special teams coach Keith Armstrong won't be reuniting with his old Temple teammate, Bowles. At least not yet. Atlanta denied the Jets' initial request for Armstrong to join Bowles' coaching staff, according to ESPN.
Once the Falcons hire head coach Mike Smith's replacement, that new coach will decide the fate of Atlanta's assistants who are still under contract. So Armstrong could soon become available, if Atlanta's new head coach decides to cut him loose.
As you might recall, Bowles had a second interview scheduled with the Falcons for Wednesday, but the Jets were able to land a second interview with him first, on Tuesday. Bowles never made it to Atlanta, because the Jets offered him the job Tuesday and he accepted it.
Now, comes the harder part -- trying to repair the Jets' floundering offense.
Gailey, 63, has been out of football for the past two seasons, so he is an interesting hire. How will he adjust to the NFL in 2015?
He was the Bills' head coach from 2010-12. Before that, he was the Chiefs' offensive coordinator in 2008 and Georgia Tech's head coach from 2002-07. Gailey has also been a head coach with the Cowboys (1998-99) and offensive coordinator with the Dolphins (2000-01), Steelers (1996-97) and Broncos (1989-90). Gailey has no clear previous connections to Bowles.
Rodgers, 45, was the Dolphins' defensive line coach from 2008-14. Bowles coached Miami's secondary from 2008-11. Rodgers has been a defensive line coach for his entire career, which dates to 1994 as a college assistant and to 2003 as an NFL assistant.
Danna had been Atlanta's secondary coach since 2012. In Atlanta, Danna shared secondary coaching duties with Tim Lewis. Like Rodgers, Danna worked with Bowles in Miami. Danna was the assistant defensive backs coach there from 2010-11, so he basically worked alongside and under Bowles.
Danna was a defensive assistant with the Falcons from 2008-09. Before that, he coached defensive backs and wide receivers at the collegiate level. He played at Central Michigan from 1995-98.
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