The Jaguars should’ve made the easy decision to hire Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich days ago.
How Byron Leftwich hasn’t already signed on a house in Jacksonville should be the biggest story in the NFL world right now. One look at his history with the Buccaneers should tell a team everything they need to know, but this is the Jags, after all.
Jacksonville has struggled with the smallest obvious decisions in the past, and a large part of that is why they are still scrapping at the bottom of the NFL barrel.
A hire like Leftwich wouldn’t completely shift decades of struggling overnight, but it is the obvious decision to set the ship on the right course. However, Jacksonville is clearly worried about something other than locking down one of the youngest and brightest of the offensive options available.
What initially looked like a sure thing has hit a snag, and while the Jags should end up making the right decision sooner than later based on the process of elimination, cold feet aren’t a great way to start a relationship.
While this is purely a Jaguars decision, it will have significant impacts on the Buccaneers as they need to determine how to move forward with their offensive coordinator role. Should it be Bruce Arians? Someone else? Could Leftwich return?
Realistically there aren’t any bad options for the Bucs. Arians or Leftwich have every bit of coaching wherewithal to keep this as one of the best offenses in the NFL, but knowing is key.
The Jaguars would make the mistake of the offseason by letting Leftwich go, but the Buccaneers wouldn’t complain if they get a coach back that the players love and the staff respects.
Leftwich has earned this opportunity, but if this is how they will handle an obvious decision like this, perhaps he doesn’t want this job in the end.
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