Gus Bradley Hired By Los Angeles Chargers As Defensive Coordinator

Gus Bradley was reported to be one of the Washington Redskins’ top candidates for their vacant defensive coordinator position. He was hired by the Los Angeles Chargers over the weekend.

Over the course of the past two weeks, the Washington Redskins faithful have listened to a parade of names that could be their next defensive coordinator. Originally, the favorite of the crowd was Wade Phillips, but once he was scooped up, the fans held out hope that Gus Bradley would end up choosing the Redskins. Bradley had initially been one of the team’s top options for the position, but he ended up taking another job.

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Bradley joined the Los Angeles Chargers to serve as their defensive coordinator. He and new head coach Anthony Lynn had long been rumored to be a package deal, but it appears that Bradley was just weighing his options prior to making a final decision.

In many ways, Bradley’s decision makes a lot of sense. The Chargers have a great deal of young talent on the defensive side of the ball including Joey Bosa, Jason Verrett, and Melvin Ingram. They also have talented defensive tackle Brandon Mebane who Bradley worked with in Seattle, so he probably will be able to shape that defense into a solid attacking unit.

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The hiring of Bradley was probably the worst news that the Redskins could have gotten at this point in their search. Of the seven interviewed candidates, Bradley looked to be the best talent and fit for the team. With an arsenal of draft picks and some cap space, he could have created a defense that had a lot of strong, young pieces that could carry them to the playoffs. However, Bradley opted for the sure thing in Los Angeles, as he will likely get at least two seasons with Lynn at the helm. Jay Gruden is a coach that will be on the hot seat if the Redskins cannot improve upon last season, so that may have been a turn off for Bradley.

Still, there is one positive for the Redskins. They interviewed John Pagano, formerly the Chargers defensive coordinator, earlier in the week and he stands a chance of being their top option. Pagano has five years of experience and could be the right man to turn around the Redskins unit. He has experience running a 3-4 and has developed some solid linemen over the course of his tenure. Nothing is certain at this point, but Pagano should be near the top of Gruden’s short list based off of the other candidates he has interviewed for the position.

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At the end of the day, at least the Redskins could still get something positive despite losing Bradley. This was one of the worst case scenarios for the team, but they still will have a chance to hire a quality candidate.

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