JACKSONVILLE – The staff continues to take shape.
And in the case of the Jaguars' latest coaching announcement, continuity won't necessarily mean maintaining the status quo.
Todd Wash, who led the Jaguars' defense to a Top 10 ranking in his first season as defensive coordinator this past season, will remain in that position. Jaguars Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tom Coughlin and Head Coach Doug Marrone made the announcement Saturday morning.
"Todd Wash is an experienced and creative defensive coach – and he has done an excellent job with the defense here in Jacksonville," Coughlin said in a statement.
Marrone, who served as the Jaguars' interim head coach for the last two games of last season, served as the Jaguars' assistant head coach-offense/offensive line since the beginning of the 2015 season. Marrone in that capacity worked closely with Wash on a weekly/daily basis.
Coughlin, like Marrone, mentioned possible changes to the defense. The Jaguars under former Head Coach Gus Bradley ran a 4-3/3-4 hybrid defense that emphasized single-high safety play and a strong-side defensive end opposite a lighter pass-rushing defensive end known as a "Leo."
"Todd will bring his own ideas and changes to our defensive unit and will make this a strength of our team going forward," Coughlin said.
Wash, 48, is in his 22nd season of coaching and his 12th in the NFL. He joined the Jaguars' staff as a defensive line coach in 2013, serving in that capacity in 2013 and 2014. He was the team's defensive line coach/run-game coordinator in 2015 and coached the defensive line along with coordinating the defense this past season.
"The strength of this team last season was the defensive line and the linebackers – and as a unit, the defense kept this team in games and gave them a chance to win several times," Coughlin said.
The Jaguars in Wash's first season as coordinator this past season finished sixth in the NFL in yards allowed, fifth in passing yards allowed and eighth in third-down percentage. The Jaguars defended 32 passes in December and January and limited opponents to 3.82 yards per carry last season, a figure that tied for sixth in the NFL. The defense also registered 80 tackles for loss, the fourth-most in the NFL.
Wash spent four seasons (2007-2010) with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the last three as defensive line coach. He then coached the Seattle Seahawks' defensive line in 2011-2012 before joining the Jaguars.
The Jaguars had announced Joe DeCamillis, a 24-year NFL veteran, as special teams coordinator Friday morning. The Jaguars have yet to announce an offensive coordinator, though Nathaniel Hackett – the offensive coordinator in the last nine games of last season – remains on staff.
