This feels like the year the Cincinnati Bengals could actually lose offensive coordinator Brian Callahan to a head coaching gig with another team.
As of this writing, Callahan had contact with four different teams about head coaching vacancies just after becoming the NFL’s longest-tenured offensive coordinator.
Interestingly, this possible Callahan departure (and likely Dan Pitcher promotion) comes at a time when the Bengals also have some key offensive players heading to free agency.
That could lead to a situation where one of the following names actually joins Callahan on one of the interested teams (Chargers, Titans, Panthers and Falcons), too.
WR Tee Higgins (or Tyler Boyd)
The Bengals figure to apply the franchise tag to Tee Higgins. But if that for some reason doesn’t happen, a team like the Panthers will have a ton of cap space to dish out a major contract and a big interest in giving No. 1 pick Bryce Young big targets to help his development.
And if it’s not Higgins, maybe Callahan just wants a reliable veteran like Tyler Boyd in the slot somewhere. Some of these teams will be able to easily overpay for him, too.
OT Jonah Williams
A team like the Panthers could use offensive tackle help and has droves of cap space to overpay Williams. He looked very good at right tackle, but it’s not unreasonable to think his next team might want to move him back to left tackle.
TE Drew Sample
While he didn’t live up to second-round status in terms of numbers production, Sample is a key cog in all facets who helps make a variety of formations tick. That will be especially valuable to Callahan if he leaves and wants to install a similar offense elsewhere.
