Jan. 30, 2026, 7:04 a.m. ET<\/p>\n
This departure follows other coaching changes on the defensive side for the Fighting Irish this offseason.<\/p>\n
It has not been a good offseason for Notre Dame football with its defensive coaches, as Mike Mickens left the NFL<\/a>, and others have opted to leave South Bend<\/a> for new coaching challenges.<\/p>\n On Thursday evening, another one of the Irish\u2019s position coaches, Al Washington, who was just promoted from the defensive line to the linebackers<\/a>, decided to make his way to the NFL as he will leave for the Miami Dolphins according to multiple sources<\/a>. This clearly wasn\u2019t what head coach Marcus Freeman envisioned when Washington switches position groups, as he\u2019ll now have to replace him.<\/p>\n Washington, who is a Boston College<\/a> alum, will join former Eagles head coach Jeff Hafley in South Beach. He\u2019s expected to take over the linebackers with the Dolphins, but his role has yet to be confirmed.<\/p>\n Notre Dame\u2019s defense will be going through a major renovation, but with the players that return, it should be one of the top groups in the country, even with all the turnover.<\/p>\n Contact\/Follow us\u00a0@IrishWireND<\/a>\u00a0on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.<\/p>\n Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.<\/a><\/p>\n Follow Mike on X:@MikeFChen<\/a><\/p>\n