Schefter: All NFL HC Openings Could Be Filled by End of Week After Lions Loss

Six NFL head coaching positions remain open, but ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on SportsCenter Sunday that "most, if not all" may be filled by the end of the week.

Schefter made that remark after the Detroit Lions, who have two top candidates in offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, lost to the Washington Commanders 45-31 in the NFC Divisional round on Saturday.

"That was one of the byproducts of that upset last night in Detroit, because the NFL coaching hiring cycle now has been ramped up dramatically," Schefter said. "And we can see most if not all of these openings filled by the end of this week."

As of Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears, New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars are still seeking head coaches. The New England Patriots previously added Mike Vrabel to handle their vacancy.

Johnson is the most popular name on the head coaching market right now. Schefter mentioned how sought after he is with teams, and that's no surprise given how well the Lions' offense has performed in Johnson's three years as OC (fifth, fifth and then first in scoring).

The Jaguars, Bears and Raiders have been most connected to Johnson. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated wrote Johnson and ex-New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh are the favorites in Jacksonville.

The Bears have "significant interest" in Johnson, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, although the team is now interviewing ex-NFL star and current Tennessee State head coach Eddie George for the role, according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports.

The Raiders, who also need a GM, could be interested in pairing Commanders executive Lance Newmark and Johnson, as relayed by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

The Raiders also interviewed ex-Commanders and Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera on Friday, per Breer.

On the Jets front, ESPN's Rich Cimini had this to say on ESPN New York Saturday (h/t Patrick McAvoy of New York Jets on SI).

"They have good guys on their list but Aaron Glenn I would still say would be an outstanding hire," Cimini said. "(Brian Flores) is a positive guy. Arthur Smith I think has a shot. I know fans would probably picket if they got Arthur Smith, but he's an experienced head coach and an offensive guy. I would say Glenn from talking to agents in the industry and hearing the buzz I would probably say is the front-runner at this point but as I said we aren't even into the second round of interviews yet."

Glenn's defense just had a tough showing against the Commanders, although the team was missing a host of players due to injury.

One bad game shouldn't hinder Glenn from finding a job either. As Schefter noted, Commanders head coach Dan Quinn was the Cowboys' defensive coordinator when Dallas lost 48-32 to the Green Bay Packers in last year's NFC Wild Card round game. Now he's leading Washington into the NFC Championship in year one in D.C.

The Saints have been doing their research, notably speaking with Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady and their own interim head coach, Darren Rizzi, per Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports. New Orleans also talked with Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

However, the leaders in the clubhouse do appear to be Glenn (a former Saints secondary coach) and ex-Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy.

Lastly, in Dallas, there's been talk connecting Deion Sanders with the Cowboys, but there hasn't been a formal interview request, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler (h/t Owen Crisafulli of Athlon Sports). A name to watch there is Moore, a former Cowboys backup quarterback and Dallas offensive coordinator who has spoken with the team.

Ultimately, all of the dominoes could be fallen quickly, especially with Johnson and Quinn becoming quickly available to speak with teams.