Lions eyeing former Detroit QB for OC job

The Detroit Lions are considering a familiar face for their newly opened coaching vacancy.

The Lions on Tuesday reportedly fired offensive coordinator John Morton after his lone season with the team. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the first name Detroit has looked into is the team’s former Lions quarterback, David Blough.

Blough is just a couple of years removed from being a reserve QB on the Lions’ practice squad in 2023. He never made it onto an NFL field that season and soon transitioned to his next career in coaching.

The Washington Commanders hired Blough as an assistant quarterbacks coach the following year. He served under quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, who was Blough’s head coach during his one-year stint with the Arizona Cardinals in 2022.

Blough became the Commanders’ interim quarterbacks coach after Stanford hired Pritchard last month to be their next head coach.

Blough went undrafted in 2019 before signing with the Cleveland Browns, who later traded him to the Lions. Injuries thrust Blough to start five games during his rookie campaign. Blough threw for 984 yards with 4 touchdowns and 6 interceptions, with Detroit going 0-5 in his starts.

The Lions took a step back offensively last season under Morton, who failed to replicate the success the team had under former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. Blough now has a shot to fill that void.