The Detroit Lions and head coach Dan Campbell are rightly casting a wide net in their search for a new offensive coordinator. But they also have a lot of competition, as other teams try to find a similar reset for their own offensive shortcomings this season.
Former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel is highly sought after for offensive coordinator openings under existing head coaches, including an interview for the Lions' job, and he has also had head coaching interviews with the Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns.
To a large extent it'll be up to McDaniel to choose the job he wants, and the Lions' offensive coordinator opening, with a solid quarterback and a bevy of weapons, might stand above the rest.
If nothing else, as he should in his situation, McDaniel is going to go through a full process to vet his options. On Wednesday, Greg Auman of Fox Sports reported McDaniel would interview for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offensive coordinator job on Friday.
Former Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel will interview for the Bucs’ OC job Friday. He would consider a great OC opportunity better than a not-great head coaching vacancy.
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) January 14, 2026
Latest coaching buzz would be a buzzkill for Lions fans who want Mike McDaniel
On "SportsCenter" Thursday afternoon, ESPN's Jeff Darlington talked about the notable offensive coordinator openings around the league. He dove into some of the differences between the jobs in Philadelphia, Detroit, Tampa Bay and Los Angeles (Chargers).
"It's interesting when you look at each team", Darlington said. "A lot of those teams have head coaches who are offensive-minded. The one that doesn't is the Tampa Bay Bucs, and Todd Bowles. Full autonomy of the offense, ability to maybe bring some staff."
Tampa Bay is looking for its fourth offensive coordinator in as many years. But before Josh Grizzard was fired after one year on the job, the vacancy was created by Dave Canales and Liam Coen getting head coaching jobs. That fact is probably not lost on someone like McDaniel, who should not take a bad head coaching job in this cycle (i.e., the Browns) just to take one.
The idea of having full control over the offense is also not necessarily something that can be found elsewhere.
Update: After his interview with the Buccaneers, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, McDaniel will also interview for the Las Vegas Raiders' head coaching job and with the Chargers for their offensive coordinator post early next week.
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As it pertains to the Lions' offensive coordinator job, in reference to avoiding a situation like when Ben Johnson left to become the Chicago Bears' head coach, Campbell publicly did not close the door on keeping play-calling duties.
His desire for the offense to look how he'd like it to look also points to lording over a new coordinator a little too much, and that probably wouldn't fly with someone like McDaniel.
Campbell shouldn't be afraid to surrender the offense and the play-calling to McDaniel, even if it means there's a chance he's one-and-done on his way to a head coaching job in 2027.
But at the same time, Tampa Bay and Bowles can practically make McDaniel their "head coach/offense" in a way no one else with a coordinator opening can. And that's bad for what Lions' fans want to see as the slam-dunk idea McDaniel should come to Detroit.