After owner Shad Khan zeroed in on bringing Urban Meyer out of coaching retirement early in Jacksonville’s search last offseason, the team seems to be taking a very different strategy this time around. The team has cast a wide net and is interviewing a large list of potential candidates for the opening. Some, like former Houston Texans coach and current offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, have reportedly already been ruled out, but there are still a lot of names apparently interested in the job.
However, there’s one coach in particular that a large segment of the Jaguars fan base has had its eye on for a while now, and it’s the candidate that seems to have the most momentum for the job at the moment. CBS Sports’ Jeff Kerr agrees, predicting that the Jags will hire Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, a former first-round pick quarterback for the team.
The Jaguars need a coach who can work well with a young quarterback, and Leftwich feels like a good fit for a team that is in the midst of a rebuild. Leftwich has gotten the most out of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense with Jameis Winston and Tom Brady, as the Buccaneers are first in the NFL in points per game (29.8) and third in yards per game (396.1) since he became the offensive coordinator in 2019.
Leftwich going to Jacksonville would be a reunion, as he was the No. 3 overall pick by the Jaguars in 2003 and is fourth in franchise history in passing yards and passing touchdowns. The 42-year-old is ready for his first head coaching job and working with Trevor Lawrence is a good start for turning the franchise around. A former NFL quarterback with an innovative passing attack would bring some excitement to Jacksonville.
It’s certainly fair to question how successful Leftwich would be if he didn’t have the greatest quarterback of all time at his disposal, but he managed to get a productive (if mistake-heavy) season out of Winston in 2019. He seems to be the candidate with the most smoke surrounding them, and if he’s interested in a return to Jacksonville, where his professional career didn’t exactly go as planned, it would be an exciting hire and one that bodes well for the future development of Trevor Lawrence.