Detroit Lions’ Jim Caldwell on his contract situation: “I could care less”
After leading the Detroit Lions to the postseason twice in three years, head coach Jim Caldwell’s contract expires this season without an extension in sight.
For most NFL head coaches, posting a 27-21 record and two playoffs appearances during your first three seasons with the team, you’ll likely be worth keeping around. Unfortunately, that doesn’t appear to be the case for Detroit Lions‘ head coach Jim Caldwell.
The 62-year old Caldwell enters the final year of his contract in Detroit without a safety net. And it doesn’t appear an extension is on the horizon. Instead, Caldwell will apparently be asked to prove himself once again.
This likely comes as no real surprise to most as the Lions’ hired general manager Bob Quinn two years ago, with Caldwell already entrenched as head coach. It’s very possible Quinn may want to bring in his own coach following this season.
But the reality is, Caldwell’s future is firmly in his own hands. If the Lions’ can fulfill the promise the team showed last season and earn themselves another playoff berth, it could force the Detroit brass to extend their current head coach.
As for what Caldwell thinks of the whole contract situation, he simply doesn’t.
"“I don’t even worry about it,” Caldwell told ESPN.com. “I think I’ve explained pretty well to you guys that there hasn’t been a time in my life, you operate under certain things. You never know. You can have a 15-year contract; it doesn’t mean you’re not going to be fired tomorrow. So you’ve always got to perform. So I never worried about those things. I could care less, to be honest with you.”"
Obviously, Caldwell would be better served focusing on having a great season in Detroit. Regardless if the Lions’ opt to re-sign him or not, his previous and potential success will likely earn him another shot in the Motor City or elsewhere. But to say you could care less about a possible contract extension that could pay you millions of dollars is a bit hard to believe.
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Caldwell started his post-football career as a graduate student at Iowa Sate back in 1977. His first head coaching job came at Wake Forest in 1993. Caldwell become an NFL head coach in 2009, leading the Indianapolis Colts to a 26-22 record and two playoff appearances in three seasons.