With two postseason games taking place on Saturday already and two more set to take place on Sunday, the Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coaching search could be concluding in the coming days. That means the team might be ready to conduct some additional second interviews as Indianapolis defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus is the only known candidate to receive such an opportunity from them.
Among those who the Jags could contact again is former Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts coach Jim Caldwell, who ESPN previously reported had declined interviews with the Las Vegas Raiders and Minnesota Vikings after accepting interviews from the Jags and Chicago Bears. However, according to Caldwell that isn’t the case.
I would like to correct an erroneous report that I turned down opportunities to interview for the head coaching job with Minnesota and Las Vegas. Those reports are not true (Full statement below). pic.twitter.com/lX6RNZLehz
— Jim Caldwell (@JimCaldwell_NFL) January 22, 2022
Caldwell’s name has been a popular one so far when it comes to coaching rumors as the league has a quarter of its jobs vacant. That’s especially been the case for fans of the Jags, who view the veteran head coach as the polar opposite of former Jags coach Urban Meyer, who was fired in December.
When looking at Caldwell’s résumé, he offers the leadership and guidance needed to get the Jags’ organization going in the right direction based on his stints with Indy and Detroit alone. He was able to garner a record of 62–50 (.554) during those stints and also participated in six postseason games (2-4) as a head coach. Add in the fact that he has a quarterbacks coach background with his leadership qualities, and it’s easy to see why he was a part of the wide net the Jags cast.
As for interviewing with the Vikings and Raiders, Caldwell didn’t specify if he received or would take interviews with either or both organizations, so time will tell where his future goes with them. The same applies when it comes to a second interview for the Jags, who are now over three weeks removed from their first interview (with Doug Pederson) of this whole process.
