Panthers offensive coordinator Mike Shula might be willing to pass on chances to interview this week, but Sean McDermott isn’t.
The Panthers defensive coordinator said he was willing to talk to teams this week if someone wants to talk to him about a head coaching job, since the team has a bye week before their divisional round game.
“I’ve been in that conversation the last couple of years and it’s a direct result of the success we’ve had here,” McDermott said, via Jonathan Jones of the Charlotte Observer. “This year being 15-1 and playing well on defense again, it’s an honor to be in that conversation. Balancing that is not a concern of mine. If and when those opportunities arise, I’ve prepared for a number of years and those will take care of themselves. At this point I’m focused on what we need to do and the task at hand.”
Shula said he was “locked in out our next game,” even though the Panthers don’t know who that’s against.
Of course, McDermott’s probably the more employable of the two, having been in the mix for head coaching jobs before. He had an interview set up with the Jets last year before Todd Bowles was hired, and interviewed with Washington after the 2013 season.
The 41-year-old McDermott has run four straight top-10 defenses, and gets high marks for leadership and communication skills as well.
Of course, he also works for a guy who went through the process many times, as Ron Rivera was a regular on the interview list before he finally landed the Panthers job in 2011.
“I’m very confident in them taking care of their business, doing the things that they need to do. I have been through it and I want to be fair to these guys,” Rivera said. “The coaches I’ve worked for have all been fair to me and I want to be fair them and make sure they get the opportunity. If somebody comes calling, we’re most certainly going to allow it to happen.”
Now they just have to see if any of the six and counting teams are interested in setting something up this week, but at least one of them wants the world to know he’s open for business.