BOULDER – On Wednesday, February 7, Colorado football's long-awaited search for a defensive coordinator came to an end. And while a more high-profile hire may have been expected by some fans and pundits, a relative unknown in Boulder circles was selected to coach a unit that was a massive weak spot during the 2023 season.
Robert Livingston, previously the secondary and safeties coach for the Cincinnati Bengals from 2016-23, was hired onto Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders's staff as CU's next defensive coordinator. The 35-year-old was also a scout from 2012-14 and member of the defensive quality control and special teams staff in 2015 within the Bengals organization. At the college level, however, Livingston has just two years of experience. The North Carolina native was a quality control coach with Furman in 2010 and Vanderbilt in 2011.
Livingston has evaluated, guided, and developed Cincinnati's back end under four different coordinators, notably Lou Anarumo from 2019-23 and Mike Zimmer from 2012-13. With CU tasked to replace Charles Kelly, last year's DC, who departed in December for a similar position at Auburn University, many speculated that Zimmer would be a top candidate for the job. Instead, the Buffs have hired one of his former scouts.
So what is there to make of it? How can the hire of someone with no coordinating or play-calling experience for the defensive coordinator job at Colorado, in a critical year for the team's success, be evaluated? Here are two reasons to be excited, and one to possibly be worried, about the hire of Robert Livingston.
PEDIGREE IN THE PROS
Livingston's last five seasons in Cincinnati under Lou Anarumo have helped his name gain considerable steam in professional spheres. Anarumo, particularly, has established himself as one of the best and most creative defensive coordinators in the NFL over the last several seasons. His units in Cincy were a massive driving force behind back-to-back AFC Championship appearances in 2021 and 2022, notably handing Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs their last playoff loss to date in 2021's title game.
Between the 2021 and '22 seasons, the Bengals surrendered just 21.2 points per game and an 87.0 passer rating, good for fifth and sixth-best in the NFL, respectively. In '22, they allowed the third-least amount of touchdown passes.
Despite an injury-riddled, free agency-depleted 2023 that saw bottom-half finishes in many defensive categories, Cincy's secondary continued to make plays. They finished eighth in the league in interceptions with 17, now tying for the most INTs per game (1.14) and having the second-most total picks (57) since '21. Anarumo's reputation has gone as far as earning him a finalist position for the head coaching job with the Arizona Cardinals before the 2023 season.
What makes Anarumo's defenses so special is that they are extremely fluid, with Livingston having coached a unit that operates heavily on a game-by-game basis. While the Bengals heavily operate in nickel (four defensive lineman, two linebacker, and five defensive back) alignments, Anarumo often mixes in unique coverages, blitzes, and disguises to throw opposing quarterbacks off-balance. If Livingston can bring this trait to CU after half a decade learning under one of the top defensive minds in the pros, it can translate extremely well to the pass-happy Big 12 conference.
"Lou Anarumo is as good as it comes, not just X's and O's and play-calling, but teaching," said NFL insider Ian Rapoport to DNVR's Ryan Koenigsberg the day of Livingston's hiring. "You talk about lineage, résumé, I like where Livingston has come from."
Another reason for Buffs fans to be excited about Livingston's potential defense is that Cincinnati was one of the best teams in the NFL at defending crossing routes. Defending the middle of the field, particular on short and intermediate passes, was one of Colorado's most apparent gripes on defense last season. Livingston's secondaries excelled at communicating and remaining disciplined on commonly-used concepts that attack those aforementioned areas, such as mesh. Since taking the reins as secondary coach in 2016, the Bengals have allowed the ninth-lowest completion percentage (63.3%) in the NFL, with a physical, selfless style instilled by Livingston that limits the chunk plays from underneath routes that CU countlessly gave up in 2023.
WATCH: A coverage Livingston's Bengals use to stop crossing routes is broken down. (Video by BuffedInPrime/YouTube)
One last aspect of Livingston's reputation that bodes well in professional circles is, oddly, where he went to college. He attended and played football at the College of William & Mary from 2007-09, starting at free safety on one of the top defensive teams in the FCS and graduating with a degree in kinesiology. The school also has been known for being a football coach factory, with Livingston in great company alongside current NFL HCs and alumni Mike Tomlin (Steelers), Brian Daboll (Giants), Sean McDermott (Bills), and Dan Quinn (Commanders)
Livingston should bring a pro-style approach to Colorado's defense, a unit that seemed to let opposing offenses produce at will despite top-end talent in the secondary. Learning under one of the best defensive coordinators in the NFL, along with his prowess in prior years, should help Livingston bring an increasingly-professional scheme and culture to CU.
ELITE TALENT DEVELOPMENT
The cornerback and safety positions are two of the hardest in the sport of football to get right. Each year, many teams draft and try to develop top collegiate corners into seasoned professionals, and many fail. The abundance of talent around the NFL at quarterback and wide receiver, along with the inconsistent and streaky nature that comes with playing corner or safety, leads to many DBs falling into obscurity. These positions require elite coaching to provide the elite talent somewhat rarely seen today. Robert Livingston is one of those elite coaches. At the safety position, specifically, he is a specialist.
Livingston has provided insight for countless defensive backs over his years in Cincinnati, with Jessie Bates III being the most notable of them all. Drafted 54th overall in 2018, the free safety was a force from his rookie year on, racking up nine interceptions and 320 tackles in his first three seasons. In 2020, he was selected to the All-Pro second team and ranked first among all safeties with a 90.1 Pro Football Focus grade. After picking off seven more passes in 2021 and '22 (regular and post-season), Bates was given a four-year, $64 million contract by the Atlanta Falcons.
In that 2020 season, the Bengals added a young, up-and-coming strong safety to be the yang to Bates's yin in the form of Vonn Bell. The Ohio State product immediately became a hard-hitting leader in Cincy's secondary, forcing eight fumbles and breaking up 21 passes in three seasons. Bell also formed one of the very best safety tandems in the NFL with Bates that was critical in aiding Cincinnati's playoff runs in '21 and '22. In 2023, he also cashed in on his time with Livingston, signing a three-year, $22.5 million contract with the Carolina Panthers.
Livingston's success in developing both an individual safety and one of the top safety duos in the pros from 2020-22 bodes extremely well for top Buff safeties Shilo Sanders, Trevor Woods, and Myles Slusher. Sanders could play the downhill, "Vonn Bell" type of role, while Woods could look to expand his role in defending the pass. Livingston's ethos is extremely focused on how the safety position can better an entire defense.
"Your safeties give you more multiplicity," Livingston noted in an interview with Dave Lapham In the Trenches last August. "You want the position-less style...the more things a player can do, the harder it is for offenses to identify what they're doing."
A big position to watch in Livingston's upcoming defenses is the slot cornerback. With the Bengals, the vet presence of Mike Hilton was crucial during the '21 and '22 campaigns in high-leverage situations. Hilton was still one of the best slot corners in the business in 2023, not allowing a touchdown in 878 snaps and 69 targets. CU's Cam'ron Silmon-Craig made several plays in the slot early in the season, but a name to watch to possibly start at nickel corner is former Liberty safety Preston Hodge, who transferred to the Buffs in December.
Livingston has done excellent work in developing other defensive backs in Cincy such as CU alum Chidobie Awuzie, who was the No. 1 corner on 2021's AFC-title winning team. Cam Taylor-Britt was a bright spot in the down year that was 2023, picking off four passes and allowing the ninth-best passer rating (67.6) among all cornerbacks. Jordan Battle was another flash of '23 promise, with the 10th-best PFF grade (82.5) among all safeties.
One of Coach Prime's biggest reasons for coaching at the collegiate level is to ultimately turn his student-athletes into NFL-ready talents. Livingston, being a former pro scout, will be instrumental to be doing so. Along with offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, also a longtime coach in the pros, Livingston's top-end development skills will be a massive factor in preparing the Buffs for the next level, ultimately making for a better football team.
WORRYING: SCHEME SIMILARITIES
While Livingston breathes new life into the black and gold's cornerbacks and safeties, concern could arise over Colorado's putrid run defense from last season not truly being addressed by the hire. After all, Charles Kelly was a coordinator that also specialized at the safety position, and his year at CU did anything but shake out the way many thought it would.
The Buffs gave up a dismal 34.8 points and 453.3 yards of offense per game last season, with a whopping 176.4 of those yards coming on the ground. The front seven provided little resistance on both opposing quarterbacks and running games, racking up just 28 sacks and giving up 4.7 yards per rush.
The good news is that the trenches were heavily addressed this offseason, especially along the defensive line. Notable additions through the transfer portal include BJ Green II, Samuel Okunlola, Chidozie Nwankwo, and Quency Wiggins, along with Brandon Davis-Swain and Eric Brantley out of high school.
The bad news, however, is that personnel is still not up to par in the linebacker core. LaVonta Bentley was a bright spot, ranking first in sacks (5.0) and tackles for loss (11.0) among returning players and second in total tackles (68) last season, but linebacker can easily be considered Colorado's weakest position group of note. Florida State star DJ Lundy appeared to being on his way to dawning the black and gold in December, but his quick change of heart to re-commit to the Seminoles still has CU's second linebacker spot very much in flux at this point in the offseason.
In addition to a scheme that could heavily orient around defending the pass, this lack of consistent production up front could very well lead to rush defense issues continuing. The Buffs' opponents for 2024 (wildly) averaged the exact same 176.4 rushing yards per game that Colorado gave up in '23, posing a tough challenge for Livingston. He has essentially no recent experience working with defensive linemen or linebackers, and it could ultimately boil down to if position coaches Andre' Hart (LBs), Vincent Dancy (DE/OLBs), and Sal Sunseri (DTs) can improve on last year's many issues up front.
While it is uncertain if an Anarumo-esque scheme will be brought to Colorado with the hire, CU's current defensive personnel is very much skewed towards the position groups Livingston specializes in. The nickel and three-man pass rush packages Livingston's Bengals would often use could extremify stress on Buff linebackers to make high-impact plays in six or even five-man fronts. If issues defending the run or getting to the quarterback persist, some could therefore find the hire redundant or lacking in awareness on where the core issues of Coach Prime's current defensive unit lie.
While CU's defense saw signs of life down the stretch of last year's regular season, keeping them in games against Oregon State, UCLA, Utah, and Arizona, changes were needed regardless. Robert Livingston brings with him a worthy résumé, possibly not for addressing the run but most certainly for defending the pass. He's only in his 30's yet still has over a decade of success in the high-octane world of pro football. His youth, experience, and poise should provide for another intriguing, exciting year to watch Colorado football in 2024.
"If you're not on the train in the beginning, you know there ain't gonna be no room in the end," said Livingston in his opening message to fans on Thursday. "I just can't wait to put a product out there and be a part of something bigger than myself that all of Buff Nation can be proud of."
Cover photo courtesy of the Cincinnati Bengals/BuffZone
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