The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Spagnuolo is among the targets for the Falcons' coordinator job, and the Vikings are expected to replace incumbent coordinator Fred Pagac. It could be, as has been widely speculated, that Minnesota head coach Leslie Frazier would take Juan Castillo off the hands of the Eagles in this year's version of Sean McDermott's being placed with Carolina, but Frazier worked with Spagnuolo, too, and might prefer the known to the unknown.
There are some other moving pieces in play as well. Jeff Fisher is reportedly about to replace Spagnuolo as head coach in St. Louis, and there is the predictable speculation that the former Tennessee Titans coach would like to put his coaching band back together, including defensive line coach Jim Washburn.
We know that it took a good while for Washburn's infatuation with the wide-nine alignment to coexist with whatever scheme Castillo was trying to construct, and whether the crusty line coach has had a bellyful here is one of those organizational secrets that only becomes apparent in retrospect.
We also know that Spagnuolo's defensive mind-set is taken directly from the book of former Eagles coordinator Jim Johnson. He has a deep affection for blitzes from the cornerbacks and safeties and a substantial mix of zone blitz responsibility, with the defensive ends dropping into coverage. Washburn hates that stuff wicked.
During Johnson's 11 seasons as coordinator, the defensive backs averaged 5.5 sacks per season. That number is an indication of how often pressure came from the backfield.
Last season, the defensive backfield had one lonely sack, and it was a freak. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was credited with a sack against Arizona when quarterback John Skelton scrambled out of bounds short of the line of scrimmage and Rodgers-Cromartie happened to be in the same area code.
