Getty Former Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Paul Guenther.
Prior to joining Jon Gruden and the Raiders in 2018, Paul Guenther was a respected defensive coach. As the defensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals from 2014 to 2017, his group was never worse than 17th in scoring defense and they were second in the NFL in 2015. He was considered a pretty strong pickup for Gruden when he hired him.
The Raiders haven’t been good to defensive coaches and Guenther was no exception. His defenses were very bad over the three years with the team. He was fired before the 2020 season ended after his defense got lit up by the Indianapolis Colts in Week 14. He’s got some serious work to do if he plans to get another defensive coordinator job in the future.
As for right now, it appears he’s going to take a smaller role with the Minnesota Vikings. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Guenther will be taking a job as a senior defensive assistant.
Guenther worked for Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer from 2008 to 2013 when the two were in Cincinnati. It’s safe to say the two are very familiar with each other. While his time with the Raiders didn’t work out, there’s still plenty of time for Guenther to turn things around.
ALL the latest Raiders news straight to your inbox! Subscribe to the Heavy on Raiders newsletter here!
Sign up for the Heavy on Raiders Newsletter!
Raiders Move Past Guenther
Gruden was once very high on Guenther. He even went so far as to say he’d be a head coach one day. Obviously, the relationship between the two men soured. Guenther appears to be a solid defensive coach but he was never a good fit with the Raiders. He had experience working with a veteran team in Cincinnati and that worked out well. With the Raiders, he had to help mold young players. That clearly wasn’t something that he thrived at.
Regardless of what he’s doing now, both sides have officially moved on.
Gus Bradley Should Be an Upgrade Over Guenther
With Guenther gone, the Raiders hired Gus Bradley to take over as defensive coordinator. He has a long track record of success and has done well with multiple teams. From a personality standpoint, the two men are very different. Bradley is a motivator and charismatic while Guenther is more quiet and cerebral.
Bradley’s skill set should translate better to a young defense. He had a key role in developing late-round draft picks like Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor into superstars. The Raiders are littered with young talent all over their defense, they just haven’t lived up to their potential quite yet. Bradley is the type of coach who should be able to get the best out of them.
The Raiders’ defense has been among the league’s worst for over a decade. Successful defensive coaches Jack Del Rio and Dennis Allen had chances to fix it but couldn’t. Bradley has a very tough job on his hands. If he can finally be the man to fix the defense, he’ll be a hero for the Raiders.
READ NEXT: Plead for Raiders to Sign 8-Time Pro Bowl Defender Emerges