49ers Pick Eric Mangini as Next Defensive Coordinator
In what can be seen as an interesting career move, the San Francisco 49ers have promoted Eric Mangini from tight ends coach to defensive coordinator. At just 44 years old, Mangini has made his round as a coach in the NFL, as San Francisco is his fifth organization in his nearly 20-year career. This will be his second stint as a defensive coordinator.
His career as a coach began in 1996 with the Baltimore Ravens, after a quite successful playing career at Division III Wesleyan College as a nose tackle, where he set the school’s sack records for a season (11.5), and career (36.5). He joined the Ravens as an offensive assistant for one season, before moving to the New York Jets in 1997. He became a defensive assistant coach with New York, studying under Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick.
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When Belichick moved to the New England Patriots, Mangini followed his mentor, becoming the defensive backs coach. He stayed in that role until 2005, when he was promoted to defensive coordinator. After a season in that capacity, Mangini earned his first head coaching gig, rejoining the Jets.
In his first season, the Jets won 10 games, six more than the previous year, and earned a playoff bid. They would eventually lose in the Wildcard round, to none other than Belichick’s Patriots. In 2007, Mangini’s second season, the Jets struggled, winning just four games.
2008 looked like a breakout season for Mangini and the Jets, but after starting 8-3, the team experienced a collapse of epic proportions, finishing the year losing five out of six games and missing the playoffs. He was subsequently fired after the season.
His next stop, in 2009, was with the Cleveland Browns, where he became head coach. He suffered the same fate as so many other Browns’ coaches, as he was fired after the team won 10 games in two seasons. He joined ESPN as an analyst after the season, and would be away from the game for over two years.
August 24, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight ends coach Eric Mangini during the third quarter against the San Diego Chargers at Levi
Prior to the 2013 season, the 49ers hired Mangini to become the senior offensive consultant, and spent one campaign with that title before becoming the teams’ tight ends coach in 2014. He now finds himself in another new role, as he will spend the 2015 season as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator.
Mangini has some huge shoes to fill, as former defensive coordinator Vic Fangio left the team following Jim Harbaugh‘s messy departure. Fangio is now the Chicago Bears’ defensive coordinator.
Fangio followed his friend Harbaugh from Stanford University, when the 49ers hired Harbaugh as their head coach in 2011. In his four years leading the 49ers’ defense, Fangio’s squad never ranked outside fifth in total defense. They were fourth in the NFL in 2011, third in 2012, and fifth in both 2013 and 2014.
2014 may have been Fangio’s most impressive work yet, as his defense was the fifth-best in the league despite having too many injuries to key players to count. Player after player went down, but the “next man up” mantra reigned supreme, and Fangio made the best of everything.
The man they call “Mangenius” will have a lot of defensive talent to work with. But if the injury bug strikes again, will he be able to lead the team in the way Fangio did? Will the defense fight for Mangini the same way they did for Fangio? This hiring raises a lot more questions than it answers, but with an entire offseason ahead of us, there’s plenty of time to ponder those quandaries.