Brandon Staley's LA Chargers tenure went down as one of the most disappointing in franchise history. Despite having ample talent to contend, Staley led the Chargers to the playoffs just once and coached the team to a historic blown playoff lead.
Despite being a defensive wizard, Staley continually failed to piece together even an average defense while in Los Angeles. Fittingly enough, Staley made team history in his last game coached with the Bolts allowing 63 points against the rival Las Vegas Raiders on primetime.
Staley was unable to land any defensive coordinator jobs after his poor Chargers tenure, settling instead for an assistant job with the San Francisco 49ers. After one year in that role, Staley has found himself as a coordinator once more thanks to an old friend.
Kellen Moore has officially hired Staley to be the New Orleans Saints' defensive coordinator, per Adam Schefter. The former Chargers head coach was long considered the favorite for the job and now it is official.
Saints hire former Chargers head coach Brandon Staley as defensive coordinator
Staley's lone tenure as a defensive coordinator did go well in 2020. Staley led the LA Rams to the No. 1 scoring defense in the entire league. This was ultimately what got him hired by the Chargers in the first place.
Staley's Rams tenure feels like an eternity ago after what he did in three years with the Chargers. Los Angeles never ranked in the top 20 in defense under Staley, often wasting special performances from quarterback Justin Herbert.
Staley's biggest strength was his downfall on the Chargers. There is no denying Staley has a great mind for a schematic defense on the chalkboard. However, where Staley faltered was coaching his players to execute the designs he drew up.
A bad coach tries to force players into a system that doesn't play to their strengths. A good coach builds a system around his players to play to their strengths. Staley did the former.
Chargers players have since spoken out about Staley's defense and how it's over-complicated nature led the team to struggle. The opposite has been true under current defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who coached the Chargers to the No. 1 scoring defense in the NFL.
If the current players on the Saints roster are suited to play in Staley's defensive scheme then it might not be as big of a disaster for New Orleans. But if they aren't, and if Staley didn't learn from his failed Chargers tenure, then Saints fans are in for an ugly defensive season.