Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is fresh off winning the fourth Super Bowl of his career. While there were eight NFL head coaching vacancies open this past offseason, ‘Spags’ didn’t get a single interview.
Related: Highest-paid NFL coaches
Yet, the Chiefs are happy to have their defensive play-caller on track to return for what will be his sixth season running the defense in Kansas City. Now, they’ve even incentivized him even further to help them try and become the first team in NFL history to become back-to-back-to-back Super Bowl winners.
Steve Spagnuolo earns contract extension after Chiefs Super Bowl
No matter what happened in the Super Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs were always going to address their defensive coordinator position this offseason with Steve Spagnuolo’s contract set to expire.
But the good news is both sides were eager to work out a new deal after Spagnuolo helped dial up what wound up being a great gameplan in the Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime win over the 49ers.
On Wednesday, the Chiefs announced they’ve reached an extension with Spagnuolo for an unspecified amount and length. Yet, being that he’s helped them win three Super Bowls, we’re going out on a limb and saying he got a big raise.
Spagnuolo’s defense finished second in the NFL in points and yards allowed and did not allow any team to score more than 28 points across the regular and postseason.
While there aren’t any NFL head coaching vacancies available, it’s a good thing the Chiefs got their defensive coordinator under contract for 2024. It was just yesterday when Los Angeles Rams CEO Kevin Demoff hyped up Spagnuolo as someone who is well deserving of another head coaching opportunity.
It is well past time to see Spags get another head coaching opportunity.
— Kevin Demoff (@kdemoff) February 13, 2024
The team & organization he inherited in STL was a mess, nobody could have had success. Yet he changed the culture/staff & players believed. An amazing human deserving of the real shot we couldn’t give him https://t.co/d82dXjC3W4
Spagnuolo previously held the Rams’ head coaching position from 2009-11 but was let go after leading a win-loss record of 10-38. He then had another brief opportunity with the New York Giants after Ben McAdoo was let go late in the year, leading a 1-3 record.
Yet, with four Super Bowls to his name, it’s hard to suggest there are far more qualified candidates who deserve a second chance than Spagnuolo. It’s hard to imagine him not getting any interviews during next offseason’s hiring cycle.
Related: NFL QB Rankings 2024: From Patrick Mahomes to Aidan O’Connell