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Mike Pettine hired as Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator, per report

Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone has added a defensive coordinator to his coaching staff: Mike Pettine, the former defensive coordinator of the New York Jets.

Rich Barnes-US PRESSWIRE

Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone is not screwing around, folks.

Mere hours after word leaked that Marrone will hire 33-year-old Nate Hackett as his offensive coordinator, ESPN's Chris Mortensen is reporting that the team has hired former New York Jets defensive coordinator Mike Pettine for the same role. That means that less than 48 hours after he was introduced as head coach, Marrone's coordinators are in place.

Pettine, 46, has been an NFL coach for 11 seasons, working alongside Rex Ryan in each them. He got his pro start with the Baltimore Ravens in 2002, moving up from a generic assistant role to coach the defensive line and outside linebackers before following Ryan to the Jets in 2009. There, he has been Ryan's defensive coordinator for four years, calling the game on Sundays for the last two.

The Jets have finished in the Top 8 defensively in each of the last four seasons, and Ryan's system is known as one of the more aggressive and exotic in the business. It's unclear how much different Pettine's style is, given that he's worked so closely with Ryan throughout his career. It's therefore also unclear precisely what type of scheme he'll bring to Buffalo. The Jets have operated out of a base 3-4 under Ryan and Pettine, but the Bills are currently better suited to using a base 4-3.

Time will tell what Pettine plans to do schematically in his new job. The one thing we can count on from a Ryan disciple, however, is that the Bills are likely going to have a much more aggressive defense than they've had in recent seasons under Perry Fewell and especially Dave Wannstedt. What do you think of the hire, Bills fans?