[ad_1]
Eagles general manager Howie Roseman and Jets general manager Joe Douglas are old buddies.
Now they could be competing for a head coach candidate.
As news emerged on Tuesday that the Jets are bringing in 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh for a second interview, it also emerged:
Roseman, of course, is looking for a new head coach after Doug Pederson was fired. Douglas, who worked for Roseman before the Jets hired him in 2019, is conducting his first coaching search. So how is Douglas going to handle this situation, when Roseman is also targeting Saleh?
Saleh is a wanted candidate. He is a finalist with the Jets – their first finalist. Roseman wants to talk to him. And Saleh has interviewed the Chargers, Jaguars, Lions and Falcons before. Of the seven teams in need of coaches, only the Texans have not targeted Saleh.
Douglas must take all of this into account, as he prepares to greet Saleh for an in-person interview. How soon will Douglas have to make a decision on Saleh, with a potential job offer?
Fairly quickly, that sounds sure, especially since Saleh isn’t in the playoffs and can be hired immediately. (And immediate availability, for assistant coaches not making the playoffs, is always a factor in coach searches.)
Once the Eagles fired Pederson, the obvious question for the Jets and Douglas was whether they would interview Pederson to replace Adam Gase. But there was also always the possibility that Douglas and Roseman would end up pursuing the same candidates. And now they are.
Eagles also want to interview Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who interviewed the Jets. All seven teams in need of coaching have targeted Smith.
Ideally, Douglas would bring in other finalists for in-person interviews, having conducted nine video chat interviews in the first phase of this research. And Douglas could stick to that plan. But in coaching research, things rarely turn out ideally for a CEO.
Saleh will be Douglas’s first in-person interview from the research. Should he be the last, if Douglas really wants to?
Thank you for relying on us to provide journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.
Darryl Slater can be reached at [email protected]. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
[ad_2]
Source link