Bengals Complete Succession Plan, Convince Dan Pitcher To Stay and Replace Brian Callahan

CINCINNATI — For the second offseason in a row, Dan Pitcher explored options to leave the Cincinnati Bengals. And for the second year in a row, the Bengals have enticed him to stay, this time hiring him to become the team’s offensive coordinator.

Pitcher, 37, replaces Brian Callahan, who officially was announced as the new head of the Tennessee Titans on Wednesday.

The Cincinnati quarterbacks coach the last four seasons, Pitcher was drawing even more interest this hiring cycle than he did last year when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers interviewed him, leading to the Bengals offering him a pay raise to keep alive the team’s succession plan for him to succeed Callahan.

Why Dan Pitcher Is the Perfect Pick for Cincinnati’s OC

A big reason Pitcher was in demand, interviewing with the New Orleans Saints for their offensive coordinator opening and scheduled to speak with the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders about the same position with those franchises, is the same reason Callahan drew so much more interest this year despite an overall decline in the offense — Jake Browning.

The job Callahan and Pitcher did with Browning after Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending wrist injury on Nov. 16 impressed everyone around the league. Browning went 3-1 in his first four career starts, posting historic numbers along the way.

Personnel people across the NFL already viewed Pitcher as a fast riser in the coaching ranks, and for the Bengals to not only survive the Burrow injury and continue to win games but do so with such impressive offensive production accelerated Pitcher’s prospects.

Pitcher was one of 7 assistants Zac retained from Marvin’s staff.

In addition to his position as assistant QB coach to Alex Van Pelt in 2019, Pitcher served in a de factor analytics role, diving into league-wide data and advising Taylor on game/clock management decisions.

— Jay Morrison (@ByJayMorrison) January 24, 2024

“Dan Pitcher’s a big part of that,” head coach Zac Taylor said when asked about Browning’s success the day after the season ended. “He’s the one putting in the work with the backup quarterback. Yeah, Brian and I have our meetings with the quarterbacks as a whole, and we talk big picture, but my eyes are looking at Joe Burrow the whole time as I’m communicating.

“It’s Pitch’s job as the quarterbacks coach, and he’s done an outstanding job of this to prepare those other guys for their opportunities and to tie up all the loose ends when I walk out of the room. It might be ‘Here’s what he meant to say. Here’s something that he didn’t say that we need to cover.’ That’s the role of a position coach, and Pitch does an outstanding job of that.

“I look at starting with Pitch,” Taylor continued. “Pitch put Jake in a position to be successful. Jake put Jake in a position to be successful. Brian does a great job with his two cents in that room, and then I call the plays and try to piece it all together. I think you gotta give a lot of credit to Dan Pitcher on that.”

In a statement Thursday morning, Taylor added, “I’m excited for Dan and his opportunity to increase his role on our staff. He has excelled in his job of helping develop our quarterbacks over the past five years.

“He has been a top contributor to our scheme and that role will now increase. I look forward to seeing him continue to grow in this new position.”

Said Burrow, “Our relationship is as good as it gets. I wouldn’t be the player I am today without him. He’s been preparing for this for years. He takes his job very seriously and does it with a lot of passion.”

“I couldn’t be more excited and energized by this opportunity,” said Pitcher. “I love this organization and am so grateful to Mike Brown, the Brown and Blackburn families, Duke Tobin and Zac Taylor.

“That they see me fit for this responsibility means the world to me, and I will work tirelessly to provide every ounce of value I can to this team. My wife Marissa, son Oliver and I love that we get to continue our journey in this great city. Who Dey!”

Pitcher follows in the path of both Taylor and Callahan, rising from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, and the expectation is he eventually will become a head coach, just as they have.

When Zac put Pitcher in charge of game management in 2019, that included decisions on challenging plays.
Doug Rosfeld carried and threw the flag, but Pitcher was making the calls.
And they held simulated drills in practice. From my 2019 story: pic.twitter.com/Z8Ze7y3psm

— Jay Morrison (@ByJayMorrison) January 24, 2024

The opportunities Pitcher had in New Orleans, New England, and Las Vegas would have allowed Pitcher to be a play-caller, but Taylor has been adamant that’s not something that is required before becoming a play-calling head coach. He is proof of it, and now so too is Callahan.

“That’s just people that don’t actually know,” Taylor said. “He needs to go call plays. Why? Nobody really can say that. It’s just something people parrot out there.”

Continuing to work with Burrow is more important than calling plays for Pitcher to become a head coach. If Burrow can return to full health, as expected, and have a season similar to what he produced in 2021 and 2022, Pitcher could be a one-and-done as Bengals offensive coordinator.

Younger, bright offensive minds with quarterback backgrounds are what so many teams are looking for in their next head coach, and Pitcher checks all of the boxes.

KEEP READING: State of Bengals Offense — QB | RB | WR | TE | OL

Keeping him around for a second consecutive offseason is a huge win for the franchise, for Burrow, and every other player on offense, and ultimately for Pitcher.

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