Dec. 18, 2011; Glendale, AZ, USA; Cleveland Browns special teams coordinator Chris Tabor (left) yells as defensive back Eric Hagg looks on against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the Browns 20-17 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Tabor just completed his second year as the Browns special teams coordinator after spending the previous three with the Chicago Bears as their assistant special teams coach. While his NFL experience is running special teams units, the Lions likely had other plans since Danny Crossman has been retained on the coaching staff.

Prior to joining the Bears’ staff, Tabor coached at the collegiate level with Missouri, Western Michigan and Utah State where got experience coaching running backs and wide receivers – two position coaching jobs the Lions need to fill.

The Browns denying permission for Tabor to interview with other clubs is an interesting development considering new owner Jimmy Haslam previously indicated a willingness to work with the existing coaching staff to find new opportunities should they present themselves. The Browns hired Rob Chudzinski in the meantime and it seems likely that he has already made plans for Tabor to be part of the new staff in Cleveland.

While this is a door that appears completely shut, we can expect to hear of more candidates for the vacant positions on the Lions staff in the near future. The Lions staff will head to Mobile, AL at the end of the month to coach in the Senior Bowl and it would stand to reason the they would want to have their full staff in place to take full advantage of that opportunity.