Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is expected to remove his name from consideration to be the next head coach in Jacksonville, the Tampa Bay Times reported Thursday.
Leftwich reportedly was one of three finalists to replace Urban Meyer, who was fired after posting a 2-11 record and committing a series of off-field missteps.
However, two of those finalists — Matt Eberflus and Nathaniel Hackett — accepted other offers last week. That left Leftwich as the leading candidate.
However, Leftwich reportedly had misgivings about working with current Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke, with Pro Football Talk reporting that Leftwich gave the organization an ultimatum – him or Baalke.
Now the leading candidates for the Jacksonville job are former Las Vegas Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia and former Philadelphia coach Doug Pederson, who won a Super Bowl with the Eagles, per the Times report.
The Jaguars also reportedly met with longtime Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman in person Monday about a “high-level front-office position.” Spielman, 59, was fired at the end of the 2021 season.
–Field Level Media