Commanders reportedly offered Mike Macdonald HC job before he took Seahawks gig

The Washington Commanders officially introduced Dan Quinn as their next head coach on Monday, but it didn’t come without some drama and roadblocks along the way. 

Washington made serious overtures in attempting to hire Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and then-Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald before hiring Quinn away from the Dallas Cowboys, The Athletic detailed in a report on the Commanders’ head coaching search. 

The Commanders made Macdonald an offer to be their next head coach and they believed he was going to accept before the Seattle Seahawks came in and outbid them to hire Macdonald, The Athletic reported.

Johnson, who had been viewed as the favorite to land the Commanders’ job for much of the search, pulled out of the running for the position ahead of his second interview with the team on Jan. 30, making that decision while the Commanders were flying to Michigan to meet with him. He informed the Commanders though by sending the team’s brass a text message that he was no longer pursuing the job and was remaining with the Lions, according to The Athletic. 

Macdonald became the Seahawks’ head coach a day after Johnson pulled out of the running to be the Commanders’ head coach. The Commanders interviewed Macdonald on Jan. 29 while the Seahawks interviewed him on Jan. 30, reportedly extending him a six-year offer to become their head coach.

The Commanders “briefly” thought about interviewing Bill Belichick after they were shot down by both Johnson and Macdonald, but new owner Josh Harris wasn’t on board with hiring the head coach, according to The Athletic. 

While this marks the second straight offseason that Johnson has pulled out of the running for head coaching vacancies, there were many questions as to why he opted to remain in Detroit for a second straight season. There have been reports in recent days that tried to explain his thinking, with ESPN reporting Saturday that Johnson was “turned off” by the Commanders…

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Publish date : 2024-02-05 23:14:51

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