Seattle Seahawks Promote Kris Richard to Defensive Coordinator

The Seattle Seahawks have been hunting for a new defensive coordinator after Dan Quinn departed to Atlanta. Defensive backs coach Kris Richard was the favorite for the job, and on Monday the team announced he'll fill Quinn's vacancy.       

Continue for updates.

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Seahawks Name Richard DC

Monday, Feb. 9

The Seahawks announced four coaching moves on Monday, including the promotion of defensive backs coach Kris Richard to defensive coordinator.

Travis Pittman of KING TV in Seattle previously reported on Feb. 6 that Richard would be named the team's new defensive coordinator.

Richard had been the favorite from the beginning of the search, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting Feb. 2 that he was likely to land the job.

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Seahawks Begin DC Search

Monday, Feb. 2

Fresh off a crushing defeat in the Super Bowl, the Seattle Seahawks must now begin the search for a new defensive coordinator.     

With Dan Quinn announced as the Atlanta Falcons' new head coach, per the team's official website, Seattle is reportedly looking in-house for a replacement, according to Ian Rapoport:

A former cornerback who played with the Seahawks from 2002 through 2005, Kris Richard was hired as the team's defensive backs coach in 2012. In three short seasons, he has helped develop Seattle's secondary into arguably the most dominant unit in the NFL. 

All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman recently talked about what made Richard a great coach, via Sports Illustrated's Doug Farrar:

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It’s his attention to detail. And he does a great job managing, I guess, our personalities. We have a few different personalities, obviously, in that DB room and we have over the years. Kris does a great job understanding who everyone is and not coaching everyone the same, understanding how people react to different things differently. But his attention to detail and the preparation of game planning is meticulous.  He goes over basically every scenario you can be put in in a game and he prepares us for that. You’re rarely ever surprised going into a ballgame by a formation or a play that they’re going to run.

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Nicknamed the Legion of Boom for their crushing hits, the Seahawks defensive backs are known perhaps most for their physical brand of play. But Richard has been the leader behind the scenes, proving vital in each player's technical development. 

It's only a matter of time before the 35-year-old lands a job as a defensive coordinator somewhere, and the 'Hawks would be remiss to lose the rising star, so this would make plenty of sense. 

HawkBlogger.com's Brian Nemhauser gave his thoughts on the situation:

Ultimately, whoever gets the job won't find a better situation.

Sherman, Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor and Bobby Wagner are all among the best in the league at their respective positions, with the former three signed long term. Throw in guys like Cliff Avril, Michael Bennett and K.J. Wright, who are also each on contract for several years, and Seattle has an embarrassment of riches on that side of the ball. 

Following in the footsteps of Gus Bradley and Quinn won't be easy, but there aren't many defensive minds in the NFL who wouldn't want a chance to game-plan with this team.