The Jacksonville Jaguars are hiring Deshea Townsend to serve as their defensive passing game coordinator and secondary coach, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network.
Townsend had been set to join the Minnesota Vikings as a defensive backs coach before getting the opportunity for a bigger role with the Jaguars under head coach Doug Pederson.
Townsend spent the last three seasons as a secondary coach for the Bears under Matt Nagy. He now gets his first shot in a coordinator role since entering the coaching ranks in 2011.
Townsend spent 13 seasons in the NFL as a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts. Twelve of his 13 seasons came with the Steelers. After his lone season with the Colts, Townsend jumped straight into coaching with the Arizona Cardinals. He spent three years at Mississippi State from 2013-15 before returning to the NFL with the Tennessee Titans in 2016. He also spent one season coaching with the New York Giants before joining the Bears in 2018.