Romeo Crennel Should Make Emmitt Thomas DC of Kansas City Chiefs

Now that Romeo Crennel has been elevated to head coach on a full-time basis, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN), the next move the Kansas City Chiefs have to make is to promote Emmitt Thomas to defensive coordinator.

Crennel juggled coordinator duties and head coach responsibility towards the end of the season. But many coaches have buckled under the burden of managing dual roles in recent seasons.

That might be too much of a risk for Crennel to take, as he attempts to improve on his first head coaching stint with the Cleveland Browns.

Assigning a defensive coordinator is the next logical step and 69-year-old secondary guru Thomas is the perfect choice.

Promoting Thomas ensures continuity for the strongest unit on the Chiefs team and ensures the integrity of the schemes Crennel has put in place.

A veteran of the coaching ranks and a highly respected schemer, Thomas has done a terrific job moulding a young and opportunistic Chiefs secondary.

A Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive back, Thomas has plenty of experience as a coordinator. He crafted some excellent defenses for the Philadelphia in the mid- to late '90s.

Thomas might even add a more aggressive, attacking element to the Chiefs defense. Kansas City have largely relied on read-and-react style, traditional 2-gap 3-4 front, for the past two seasons.

But the defense has been very effective when given the license to attack. They shut down Aaron Rodgers and the Packers with a sophisticated package of blitzes, laced with tight man coverage.

Thomas designed some excellent blitz schemes while with the Eagles. In Week 2 of the 1997 season, the Eagles traveled to Lambeau Field and upset the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers.

Thomas attacked Brett Favre with a myriad of blitzes out of multiple fronts and held the high-powered Packers to just nine points.

The Chiefs players know and respect Thomas and his coverage system has keyed the defensive turnaround that began last season.

If the Chiefs can encourage Thomas to again take on a coordinator's workload, they can expect their defense to be even better in 2012.