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ALLEN PARK — It didn’t take long for NFL teams without head coaches to call the Detroit Lions and their coordinators.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Indianapolis Colts have submitted requests to interview offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn for their head coaching vacancy. Glenn has had his fair share of suitors over the past two seasons, interviewing with the New Orleans Saints, Denver Broncos and New York Jets. Johnson, a first-year offensive coordinator, has also drawn interest from the Houston Texans and their job. It’s worth noting that the Colts hosted the Lions for joint practices and a preseason tilt before the 2022 season, so they got a taste of both coordinators on the field.
The Texas, Colts, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals are all looking for new head coaches.
“He would be worthy of that,” head coach Dan Campbell said when asked about Johnson. “I think a lot Ben. I’ve said it before, I just think he’s extremely intelligent. He is creative. He is organized. He is a great communicator. I mean, he’s got it, and I’d do anything I could to help him. This is the most important.”
Connected: Lions OC Ben Johnson received his first interview request from the Texans
Connected: Lions’ Aaron Glenn loved time with Jets, but wants to ‘beat the hell out of them’
Seeing these names on other people’s radars shouldn’t surprise anyone. Johnson’s work with Detroit offensive lineman and quarterback Jared Goff should make him one of the new commodities on the coaching market. Goff showed significant improvement when Johnson took over in 2021, then reached a new level in Year 2. The Lions quarterback heads into the offseason with a league-high, franchise record, personal best and fifth-longest streak in league history by throwing an interception over his last 324 passes.
Goff praised Johnson throughout the previous offseason until Monday after the team’s Week 18 win at Green Bay. The veteran quarterback previously talked about how important it was for Johnson to come to him in the offseason in an effort to create a new look for the offense. The couple’s communication “is as good as I’ve ever been a part of,” Goff said. And it appeared. Detroit’s offense ranked fifth in net passing yards per attempt (7.0) and in the top half in rushing yards per attempt, going 22 times on the ground, the third-highest total this season.
And as for Glenn? While the Lions got off to a rough start, it’s certainly hard to ignore the improvement down the stretch, not to mention the breakout of some of the rookie defensive backs. Glenn’s rookie quarterbacks set a new league record for sacks in a single season by a set of freshmen. Aidan Hutchinson finished with 9.5 sacks, while James Houston finished with eight sacks in just seven games.
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