Washington Commanders tab new offensive and defensive coordinators

The Washington Commanders continue revamping their coaching staff, with Kliff Kingsbury set to become the new offensive coordinator and Joe Whitt being brought in as the defensive coordinator.

Stanford v USC
Stanford v USC | Jayne Kamin-Oncea/GettyImages

The Washington Commanders have found their new offensive and defensive coordinators

The Washington Commanders are in the midst of a complete overhaul of their front office and coaching staff this offseason.

We've already seen the team bring Dan Quinn in as the head coach. Now it appears they have new offensive and defensive coordinators, too.

On Sunday, Washington made a few moves. First, Adam Schefter of ESPN announced on Twitter that the Commanders hired Kliff Kingsbury to be their offensive coordinator.

Kingsbury spent last season with USC (and quarterback Caleb Williams). Before that, he was the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals (from 2019 through 2022). Arizona had its ups and downs in his tenure.

Importantly, the offense was solid outside of a rough final season under Kingsbury. And USC's scoring was through the roof in 2023. Getting to focus solely on the offense could be great for Kingsbury. Now Washington can focus on how they'll beef up the offensive line and wonder about their next step at quarterback.

Not long after the Kingsbury news, Washington had made another move. Steve Wyche of NFL Network posted on Twitter that the Commanders were hiring Joe Whitt Jr. to be the new defensive coordinator.

Whitt Jr. was the secondary coach (and passing game coordinator) for the Dallas Cowboys. That means Quinn is bringing in someone he's familiar with.

The Cowboys had a phenomenal defense in 2023. Quinn deserves a lot of credit for that. However, Whitt Jr. should receive praise as well.

Dallas allowed the fifth-fewest yards per game (299.7) and the fifth-fewest points per game (18.5). The secondary was phenomenal despite star cornerback Trevon Diggs only appearing in two games this season.

The Washington Commanders have cleaned house and brought in a fresh batch of names to head up the front office and the coaching staff. With Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt Jr. now set as the offensive and defensive coordinators, everything is falling into place.

That means we can turn our focus on how to fill out the roster to fit this coaching staff's vision. Now, the fun begins.