When the Detroit Lions announced that former head coach Jim Caldwell would not be returning for the 2018 season, the question was, who would replace him?
One candidate was then Lions’ defensive coordinator, Teryl Austin.
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Austin did interview with the Lions, but as we know, the job was eventually given to current head coach, Matt Patricia.
Austin and his agent recently spoke to The Athletic about his frustrating journey to land a head coaching job and what they had to say about the interview with the Lions is interesting.
“I knew I wasn’t going to get that job,” Austin said.
“It was just a token interview. They knew he interviewed very well in other places.” Metz told The Athletic.
Whoa!
It sure sounds like Austin’s agent is calling out the Detroit Lions for only giving his client an interview to satisfy the Rooney Rule, which requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate when searching for a new head coach.
Now, before you just believe what Austin’s agent is saying, it should be pointed out that the Lions reportedly interviewed Winston Moss (Green Bay Packers assistant) during the process and they were turned down by Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator, Steve Wilks.
To me, this sounds like an agent making excuses for his client.
