With the NFL regular season coming to a close this Sunday, there will soon be even more head coaching vacancies to fill for 2021.
As a result, we’ve arrived at a time where dark horse candidates are generating buzz, and current Houston Texans emergency quarterback Josh McCown stands out from the pack.
CBSSports.com insider Jason La Canfora spoke with multiple sources around the league and compiled a list of potential out-of-the-box hires.
While there were multiple unheralded coaches from the Canadian Football League and a several other names of note, McCown definitely stands out as a unique possibility.
[McCown] has seen the game from every angle and he has been beloved everywhere he has gone as a football junkie who has a sublime ability to connect with people. […] He is a natural teacher who knows the QB position inside out…It’s only a matter of time before this happens.
McCown, 41, is a pro football journeyman who’s spent time with 12 different NFL teams and even played in the short-lived United Football League for the Hartford Colonials in 2010. What an odyssey indeed.
Why Josh McCown would be a great head coaching hire
Although he’s never been a consistent starter, McCown has a wealth of knowledge. The lack of continuity in his career that created so much upheaval in his livelihood is actually, in retrospect, what makes him so cut out to be a coach.
Having to adjust so many times to new offensive systems, different locker rooms, all kinds of personalities, and winning and losing cultures makes McCown a true one of one among coaching candidates.
The obvious caveats are McCown is still an active player and has only coached at the high school level. That said, he’s widely respected around the NFL and has helped mentor young quarterbacks throughout his career, including with flamed-out Johnny Manziel in Cleveland — who showed significant growth in Year 2 before off-field issues derailed him — and Sam Darnold for the New York Jets. Darnold and McCown built a close relationship during the 2018 campaign, the former’s rookie year.
Having a head coach who’s played the most important position on the field and has proved his ability to help signal-callers grow in their roles is invaluable for teams who have youthful talent at that spot. Search committees may see that special quality in McCown and at least give him a shot at an interview.
Realistically, McCown is bound to be a year or two away from making this leap, yet it speaks volumes about his upside and future on the sidelines that he’s being bandied about this early.
More must-reads: