Black Monday is just a few days away, which means the coaching carousel will begin to kick up furiously over the next couple of days. Albert Breer and Conor Orr are here to offer the latest insights on what may take place around the league…
• The early days of the New York Jets’ head coaching search have connected the team with former head coaches Rex Ryan and Ron Rivera. Before you assume this means the franchise is looking for someone with previous head coaching experience, consider reading the tea leaves differently. It’s possible the Jets will simply want a veteran defensive coordinator if they fill their head coaching role with a young offensive coach, much like the Rams did when they paired Wade Phillips with Sean McVay. Head coaching interviews take on many forms and, sometimes, are not expressly about filling a head coaching vacancy. While current Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn still has to be considered a very early favorite given his connection with the franchise (he played eight seasons for the team that drafted him in 1994) and owner Woody Johnson’s absolute need to win this press conference, I wouldn’t discount a name such as Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik. Slowik is consistently praised by the Shanahan family, which, as my colleague Albert Breer reported upon the firing of Robert Saleh, was one of the main reasons Johnson also took a liking to eventual interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich. Another name to watch if the tea leaves do indeed tell us that the Jets are hoping for a veteran defensive presence and a younger offensive head coach is Kliff Kingsbury (even though Kingsbury has held the job before he’s still just 45). Kingsbury, the former Arizona Cardinals and Texas Tech head coach, wowed the Johnson family during his interview process when he ultimately decided to take the job in Arizona. Kingsbury, though, relied heavily on stalwarts such as Vance Joseph and Jeff Rodgers to help him create a pro-ready operation. Tampa Bay Buccaneers OC Liam Cohen and Buffalo Bills OC Joe Brady are also worth placing in that category. —Conor Orr
