After failing to land an interview with Kevin O’Connell, the Jacksonville Jaguars coaching search is now shifting towards another candidate. Former Las. Vegas Raiders interim coach Rich Bisaccia is reportedly meeting with Jacksonville on Monday.
Bisaccia inherited a Raiders’ team that was rocked by scandal and off-field issues in the middle of the season. But the players rallied around him, going on a run to end the regular season to make the playoffs. With Las Vegas hiring Josh McDaniels, Bisaccia is now looking for new coaching opportunities.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Monday that Bisaccia is interviewing with the Jaguars. It comes after Jacksonville couldn’t land an interview with O’Connell, the Rams’ offensive coordinator, because it didn’t submit a request in time.
Jacksonville became the first NFL team to fire its head coach, parting ways with Urban Meyer in the middle of the season. Yet the organization has seen five other teams make their hires, with many of them landing candidates that the Jaguars wanted.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich was reportedly in negotiations with Jacksonville on Jan. 26. But the coveted coaching candidate wanted general manager Trent Baalke removed, with many of Leftwich’s peers around the NFL viewing Baalke as a ‘coach killer’.
With Baalke still overseeing the coaching search, a decision made by owner Shad Khan despite overwhelming anger from the fan base, Leftwich now seems unlikely to land the job.
Bisaccia received strong endorsements from inside the Raiders’ locker room, including from team captains. But outside of one interview with Las Vegas, no other NFL team has expressed interest in him as a head coach.
