After their disappointing end to the season that saw them ultimately fall short of claiming their third straight berth in the NFL playoffs, the Detroit Lions decided to part ways with offensive coordinator John Morton after just one season.
It was a move that didn’t exactly surprise most, considering that head coach Dan Campbell took away Morton’s play callling duties earlier in the season and assumed the offensive play calling responsibilities himself for the rest of the season.
The Lions are now looking for a new offensive coordinator, and one of the most popular names that they’ve been linked to is former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who was let go by the team after their respective season ended, also without a playoff berth.
But don’t expect McDaniel to ultimately land with the Lions in the mind of NFL Insider Dan Graziano, who believes that he’ll take the head coaching job with the Cleveland Browns rather than become Detroit’s new offensive coordinator.
“All of the intel we have on this one says the Browns are looking for an offensive-minded head coach who won’t mind keeping Jim Schwartz as the defensive coordinator,” Graziano wrote. (“That makes me wonder why they don’t give the head coach job to Schwartz, an outcome I believe is also possible here.”)
“Cleveland’s perpetually challenging quarterback situation could make this job a tough sell, but McDaniel is quirky, creative and confident,” he continued. “And he had success in a challenging QB situation during his first two seasons in Miami. It’s not tough to imagine the Browns’ front office wanting to tap into McDaniels’ ideas about how to design and run an offense.”
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The Detroit Lions Have Confirmed Interest In Mike McDaniel For Their Open Offensive Coordinator Position
The Lions have confirmed interest in McDaniel, who has also garnered interest from multiple NFL franchises.
McDaniel, who is set to interview with the Lions for the offensive coordinator position, has already interviewed with a handful of other teams for the head coaching job, including the Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns, as well as the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens.
Landing McDaniel for their offensive coordinator position would represent a significant upgrade for the franchise from Morton, but it remains to be seen on whether Detroit can lure him to town over the offers of other teams.
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Detroit Fired John Morton After Only One Season
The termination of Morton didn’t exactly catch many by surprise, considering that the last several weeks of the season, his play calling responsibilities were fulfilled by head coach Dan Campbell.
That doesn’t mean that Campbell was satisfied with the overall performance of himself, however. In his season-ending press conference, Campbell gave himself a “freaking F” on a grading scale for the 2025 campaign.
“It’s hard to believe that this is it,” Campbell said. “It’s going to be a hard pill to swallow watching these teams in the playoffs. But I think you’ve got to watch them. You’ve got to force yourself to do it because that’s a drive to want to be there, be a part of it.”
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