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Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich looked positioned to take the Jacksonville Jaguars head coaching job this week.
A delay by the Jaguars in making a hire due to ongoing deliberation per ESPN’s Adam Schefter opened the door for another team to pursue Leftwich. Bucs rival New Orleans threw its hat in the ring for Leftwich on Thursday, January 27, according to a source via Schefter. ESPN Bucs writer Jenna Laine’s reaction said it all for Bucs fans.
“Oh boy. This should go over well,” she wrote.
Sean Payton stepped down from the Saints head coaching job on Tuesday after 15 years with the team. He won a Super Bowl in 2010 and tallied seven NFC South titles. His squad had a stranglehold of the Bucs rivalry in recent years except for the Bucs Divisional Round win in 2021.
Leftwich became well-acquainted with the rival since joining the Bucs as the offensive coordinator in 2019. Since taking the role, the Bucs offense soared with record numbers in three seasons. That includes two different quarterbacks throwing for more than 5,000 yards in two of those three seasons — Jameis Winston and Tom Brady.
Interest in Leftwich arose during last season’s Super Bowl run but never led to an interview. Leftwich came up again as a prime head coaching candidate during the 2021 season.
Leftwich Interview Boosts the Saints
If Leftwich went to New Orleans, it would give Winston, now a Saints quarterback, a familiar face to work with.
Winston had good moments for the Saints in 2021 before a season-ending ACL tear against the Bucs on Oct. 31. He had 1,170 yards passing, 14 touchdowns versus three interceptions in seven games.
Leftwich also has familiarity with the Saints defense since planned against that unit at least twice a year since 2019. On the flip side, the Saints could gain intel on the Bucs offense.
However, the Saints will at least gain some knowledge on the Bucs offense just from the interview according to Stroud.
Jags’ Holdup on Leftwich
New Orleans might be late to the party on trying to hire Leftwich despite the interview request.
He had two interviews with the Jaguars according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. The Jaguars “are close to hiring” Leftwich as the coach and Adrian Wilson as the general manager according to Mike Jurecki of ArizonaCardinals.com.
Leftwich wanted a new general manager for the Jaguars instead of Trent Baalke according to a source via to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. Other coaching candidates for Jacksonville wanted the same move, Florio added.
“A league source tells PFT that Leftwich basically gave the Jaguars an ultimatum: It’s me or Trent,” Florio wrote.
Bucs Play Calling Plans Without Leftwich
Amid the potential avalanche of change with the Bucs this offseason, head coach Bruce Arians has at least one plan for continuity.
Arians told the media on Monday that he could take over play calling duties if Leftwich leaves.
“There would be a really good chance,” Arians told the media.
That move could help Brady on the team amid the uncertainty of his future.
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