Who is Joe Cullen?

Many won’t know the name. Some will recognize the name “Joe Cullen” but are not sure who he is. A few will recall that he recently interviewed for the Washington Commanders‘ defensive coordinator position.

One concern is that, with so many openings this offseason, the top candidates are taking the top jobs, leaving the Commanders with someone who has not previously been a defensive coordinator.

Cullen is not currently a defensive coordinator. But he has been a defensive coordinator, and more than once. Currently, the defensive line coach for the Kansas City Chiefs (2022-2025), Cullen, a former college noseguard at the University of Massachusetts, graduated in 1990 with a Bachelor’s in Sports Management.

Getting his early coaching experiences in college football, Cullen coached defensive line at UMass, Richmond, LSU, Memphis, Indiana and Idaho State. He has college defensive coordinator experience at Richmond and Indiana. There is plenty of NFL experience too, where he coached defensive line for the Lions, Jaguars, Browns, Bucs, Ravens and Chiefs. He also has one year of NFL defensive coordinator experience, having led the Jaguars’ defense in 2021. Unfortunately for Cullen, Urban Meyer’s lone NFL season was a failure, and he never really had a chance.

Cullen has suffered some real adversity that he admittedly brought on himself, becoming an alcoholic. As a result, he passed out in a Subway in 2005 and was subsequently fired by Ole Miss, shortly after he was hired. The following year, with the Detroit Lions, Cullen was arrested for driving under the influence. A second incident saw him arrested for indecent exposure while driving. He was subsequently fined and suspended by the NFL.

This time he began attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Reports are that Cullen recovered and has successfully remained sober since 2006. Cullen was a candidate for defensive coordinator jobs with the Seahawks, Commanders and Michigan in 2024. He has built a reputation for being often quite energetic in practice.

Joe Cullen was one of the biggest off-season signings from last season. His intensity is through the roof! 😤
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— Brad Henson Productions (@BradHensonPro) August 16, 2023

With overcoming what he has in his life and picking himself up, continuing to work as he has, don’t be surprised if Cullen doesn’t get another shot at being an NFL defensive coordinator with all of these openings this offseason.

When it was reported that Cullen interviewed with the Commanders, Chiefs star defensive tackle Chris Jones made it clear he didn’t want his coach to leave.

This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders: One DC candidate is largely unknown