‘Flip the Culture:’ Radio Host Wants Lions Hiring Dynamic College Coach

P.J. Fleck

Getty P.J. Fleck during a 2020 Minnesota game.

The Detroit Lions will have plenty to consider in the coming weeks as it relates to their coaching search, but an intriguing name has been thrown into the mix by Pat McAfee.

On a recent episode of the Pat McAfee Show, McAfee talked about the potential for Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck to hop to the NFL coaching ranks given a rumor surfacing that a team wants to interview him. As a result, McAfee wondered aloud what team it could be, and explained that the Lions would make a ton of sense for a Fleck hire due to the fact that the team needs to find a way to establish a new culture and is young.

McAfee said:

“Do you think P.J. Fleck would operate well in the NFL? It would have to be a young team, it can’t be a veteran-led team. It would have to be a young team you’re looking to build and buy in and flip the culture. For me, I think that’s probably the Detroit Lions. You get (Matthew) Stafford out of there, you rebuild that thing, you got a guy who already has ties to Michigan. You bring in the g** d*** boat, put it in the middle of the locker room. And you tell ’em ‘boys, you get on the f***** boat, or you die out here in the water.'”

Rumors hold that Fleck could be investigated for NFL jobs in the future this offseason, and it’s important to remember that he has coached in the NFL before, getting his start with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a wideout coach in 2012. Fleck also had a short two year career as a wideout himself in San Francisco from 2004-2005, so the league is something he knows plenty about.

Will Fleck get an interview in Detroit or elsewhere? In the coming weeks, we’ll be likely to find out more on that front.


NFL Team Looking Into P.J. Fleck Interview

Could Fleck make the jump to the NFL? He looks very happy with Minnesota, but if a bigger payday and the chance to win at the next level excites him, there’s a shot that the league could look more appealing to the coach than it has in recent years. According to NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero, Fleck could be the target of at least one interview in the coming weeks for the league.

Could the Lions be that team? Rumors persist that they might have interest in former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, so anything is possible at this point in time and the team could cast a very wide net in their search for their next boss. Fleck does have ties to the state, coaching at Western Michigan from 2013-2016. There would be plenty of risk with the move, but Fleck has been impressive in his college career with a 56-41 record.


Lions Coaching Search Update

Detroit’s coaching search hasn’t progressed that far as of yet as their general manager search has to this point, and that makes sense given most of Detroit’s coaching candidates are in the NFL and still haven’t finished off their seasons to this point in time. So far, the Lions have met with seven candidates for their general manager job, only three of which were internal. Detroit could look to hire a coach first and then pair them with a general manager, and it would be interesting to see how that would work.

As for NFL candidates, the Lions figure to have plenty of those as well. Detroit could target Robert Saleh, Eric Bieniemy, Arthur Smith or Brian Daboll for interviews in the coming weeks in addition to others. In the future, names like Urban Meyer and Fleck could interview for the job if the Lions want them to come to town.

There’s a long way to go and Detroit’s search is just beginning, so buckle up for the rumors set to swirl over the coming weeks.

READ NEXT: Terry Bradshaw Lays Out Lions’ Plan for Matthew Stafford

Read More
,