After Dirk Koetter was hired to replace Lovie Smith as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2016, he hired his own former head coach Mike Smith to run the defense. They had been together in Atlanta for several seasons before being fired in favor of Dan Quinn and Kyle Shanahan.
Perhaps there’s something to be said about familiarity. Perhaps there’s more to be said about nepotism and hiring friends, as opposed to the best people you can find for the job.
The Bucs had struggled for years to put together a good defense.