Normally, when a team makes a head coaching change during the season, it's allows them an opportunity to get a head start on reaching out to their short list of possible replacements.
That doesn't sound like the thought process in Detroit, where Lions owner Sheila Ford Hamp finds herself in the midst of her first head coach and GM search after firing Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn back on November 28th.
The Detroit Free Press shared a memo sent out by Ford Hamp that states that, while they have interviewed several in-house candidates for the GM job, their head coaching search could stretch over the next six weeks.
"This staffing change brings lots of work with it, (which) Rod and I and our advisors take very seriously. We are already deeply into researching top candidates for head coach and GM, and, as the recent internal memo stated, have already interviewed several in-house candidates for the GM job. This process will play out over the next six weeks or so, with the result being a well vetted and proven head coach/GM team that can finally take the Lions where we all so earnestly wish to go — to the top!"
Six weeks? So much for getting a head start on the process and making a quick decision.
NFL rules dictate that the Lions can't interview candidates currently under contract with other teams until after the season. Perhaps the meaning of the memo is they have their eyes on a candidate who will be coaching deep into the playoffs. The Super Bowl is set to take place February 7th, 2021.
It's worth noting that last week, the NFL announced that no head coach or general manager interviews could take place in-person until both the team and candidate's are done with their seasons, as a result of new COVID protocols. All interviews must be virtual up until that point.
Read more from the Detroit Free Press piece here.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest coaching change information.