Report: Browns to Hire Fred Pagac to Coach Linebackers
The Cleveland Browns haven't officially hired Joe Woods as their defensive coordinator yet, though that's expected to be done this week. However, Woods and head coach Kevin Stefanski are working toward hiring the defensive staff. The Browns are set to hire Jeff Howard to coach defensive backs and now they are reportedly going to hire Fred Pagac (pronounced Pug-itch) to coach linebackers.
Pagac has been retired the past two seasons after coaching with Woods when he was the defensive coordinator of the Denver Broncos. 67 years old, Pagac has coached linebackers for decades, including 13 of them for Ohio State followed by four as their defensive coordinator and one as the assistant head coach.
Pagac ran into Stefanski and Woods in Minnesota in 2006 when all of them started working under then head coach Brad Childress. He coached with the Vikings for eight years, six of them as a linebackers coach wrapped around a two-year stint as the defensive coordinator in 2010 and 2011.
The Browns have a decision to make on Joe Schobert in free agency, but beyond him, the group of linebackers is both young and relatively thin. Last year, the team drafted Sione Takitaki in the third round and Mack Wilson in the fifth round. Takitaki didn't play much, but was relatively effective while Wilson was swimming so much of last year in no small part due to the fact he only started one year at Alabama.
If this is made official, Pagac's first season with the Browns coaching linebackers will be his 30th coaching the position over the course of his career and his 23rd year coaching in the state of Ohio. Along with Bill Callahan, the offensive line coach, Pagac will be the most veteran presence on the staff.
