Rumor: Commanders Hire Ben Johnson; Falcons Move Too Slowly?
After the Los Angeles Chargers acquired Jim Harbaugh, the Atlanta Falcons may lose out on Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, who is rumored to be the Washington Commanders’ next coach.
On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Chargers announced Jim Harbaugh of Michigan as their successor for Brandon Staley, reducing the number of open coaching positions to four. At the same time, a potential scoop from Boomer Esiason indicates that another domino may fall shortly.
According to a recent radio interview, Esiason has heard… or believe… The Washington Commanders are poised to hire Ben Johnson, the current Detroit Lions offensive coordinator.
“He’s going to be the head coach of the Commanders, I told you that,” Esiason stated on his New York WFAN radio broadcast on Wednesday.
If true, the Atlanta Falcons would miss out on another prospective replacement for Arthur Smith. Johnson, 37, is one of the most popular coaching candidates this offseason, as proven by six interviews with various teams.
One of those clubs was the Falcons, who practically interviewed him on Sunday after the Lions’ Divisional Round victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and have already requested another.
However, as the Falcons learned Wednesday from Harbaugh, just because a coach has arranged an interview with a team does not guarantee that they will wait for it before making a choice.
Despite initial indications that the Falcons intended to take a “big swing” at hiring now-former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, Atlanta has cast a broad net in their search.
So far, the Falcons have interviewed 14 prospects and have already called many back for more meetings.
The original motivation for the Falcon’s pursuit of Belichick appears to have cooled as whispers of a potential conflict within Flowery Branch spread.
Meanwhile, rumors have said that Atlanta was “very impressed” with other options, including the combination of Detroit Lions coordinators Aaron Glenn and Johnson, as well as the Houston Texans’ Bobby Slowik.
The Falcons’ commitment to turn over every stone to ensure a thorough search is great, but it is also expected.
However, with a big name like Harbaugh off the board and the possibility of losing another, Johnson, it appears the Falcons need to move faster.
