It was clear from the begining that Taylor wanted to hire Golden for the position. Bengals NFL awards Joe Burrow Joe Burrow named one of five finalists for NFL MVP awardStart the day smarter.

The Cincinnati Bengals made it official with new defensive coordinator Al Golden on Thursday.

Cincinnati is finalizing a deal to hire Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden to run its defense. Golden helped lead the Fighting Irish to Monday night’s College Football Playoff national championship game where they lost to Ohio State. He is expected to officially sign with the team on Thursday.

Two days after the Fighting Irish lost in the national championship game to Ohio State, they lost Al Golden, who will become Bengals defensive coordinator.

Al Golden agreed to return to Cincinnati on Wednesday after three seasons as Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been announced.

Following the now-concluded regime of former Bengals coordinator Lou Anarumo, Golden returns to Cincinnati a rejuvenated coach following a highly successful period as defensive coordinator of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Here are five things to know about Golden, his past influences and his latest work in the game.

Sources: Minnesota is hiring veteran defensive coordinator Kevin Kane in an on-field coaching role. Kane has been the defensive coordinator NIU, SMU and Purdue. He'll bring more experience to the Minnesota defensive staff.

Al Golden’s return to the Cincinnati Bengals was made official Thursday, with the franchise announcing he was hired as defensive coordinator.

It would be a role reversal from 2009 through 2011, when Schottenheimer served as offensive coordinator with the Jets under Ryan. The pairing worked. They ended up in back-to-back AFC Championships with Schottenheimer running the offense and Ryan running the show.