Ex-Browns Head Coach Hue Jackson Joining Bengals Staff as Special Assistant to Marvin Lewis
Former Browns coach Hue Jackson has been hired by the Cincinnati Bengals as part of head coach Marvin Lewis's coaching staff, the team announced Tuesday. Jackson will serve as a Special Assistant to the Head Coach.
The Bengals hired Jackson one day after relieving Teryl Austin of his duties as defensive coordinator. Lewis will take over coordinating the defense, the team announced Monday. Jackson is also expected to help with those respective duties.
“I appreciate the hard work that Coach Austin has put into our football team, but I felt it best to make a change at this point in time, and I wish him the best,” Lewis said. “I will be coordinating the defense from here on out and I am excited to do that. This football team has a real chance to get back to playing winning football so we can compete for the playoffs, and that is our sole focus."
He added Tuesday: "I have a great comfort level with Hue and his ability to assist me with the day-to-day responsibilities on defense, including analyzing our opponents and helping me on game days with the players and defensive coaches,” Lewis said.
"I'm pleased to have the opportunity to join the Bengals this season," Jackson said. "There is a lot of talent on this team, and I look forward to doing my part to help it finish the season strong.”
Jackson was fired by Cleveland on Oct. 29, and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams took over as interim head coach. Jackson had been the head coach since 2016, but hadn't achieved much success with the team. His first year the Browns went just 1–15, and they followed that up with an 0–16 campaign in 2017. This season, the Browns were 2–5–1 through eight games when Jackson was fired.
Jackson had been having issues with offensive coordinator Todd Haley concerning the play calls. Haley was also fired from the team, and he was replaced by running backs coach Freddie Kitchens.
The Browns are now 3–6–1, while the Bengals are 5–4. The Browns have a bye week ahead of a Nov. 25 matchup against the Bengals. Cincinnati plays Baltimore this weekend.
