Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has withdrawn his name from consideration for the head coach vacancies of the Washington Commanders and Seattle Seahawks. Instead, Johnson will remain with the Lions.
Johnson’s decision occurred while officials of the Commanders were en route to Detroit to meet with Johnson, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The abrupt pivot is “surprising,” yet Schefter maintains that Johnson was not a lock for the Commanders’ job.
It’s unclear what factored into Johnson’s audible, but according to Schefter, teams may have been “spooked” by the Lions offensive coordinator’s asking price.
Despite the buzz that Johnson was the favorite in Washington’s search, the team has had several strong candidates. In fact, the team still plans to meet with Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn in Detroit despite Johnson’s cancellation.
According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the Commanders met with Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn Tuesday morning in the Washington area. Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, Ravens defensive line coach Anthony Weaver, and Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik are also in the mix.
Losing out on Ben Johnson won’t shake the Commanders’ focus. By all accounts, Washington’s search is large-scale. There is an indication that Johnson wasn’t as strong of a candidate as outsiders presumed.
The Commanders are still a coveted job with the second overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, nearly $80 million of salary cap space for free agency, new ownership, and Adam Peters, one of the more respected young general managers, on board.
