After the Tennessee Titans hired Ken Whisenhunt on Monday, Jim Caldwell and Mike Munchak have emerged as the top candidates for the Detroit Lions' head coaching job. The Minnesota Vikings, meanwhile, appear close to signing Mike Zimmer.
Tennessee swept in and signed Whisenhunt, the San Diego Chargers' offensive coordinator in 2013, on Monday to an undisclosed deal. Whisenhunt was reported to be the Lions' preferred choice to replace former coach Jim Schwartz. With Whisenhunt now off the market, the Lions are moving on and have two new coaches at the top of their list: Caldwell and Munchak.
"Now, as the Lions are turning their focus to two candidates who emerged as strong backup plans during interviews over the last week and a half, Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell and former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak," Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press wrote late Monday.
ESPN's Adam Schefter confirmed the Lions' interest in Caldwell.
"Lions have spent day in talks with Ravens (OC) Jim Caldwell and Detroit has been focusing on him," Schefter tweeted on Monday.
Caldwell, who coached the Indianapolis Colts from 2009 to 2011, drew interest at the end of the regular season from several teams, including the Washington Redskins.
Tennessee relieved Munchak of his coaching duties after he reportedly refused to make changes to his coaching staff. Munchak is widely viewed as a strong leader whose players play hard for him, and ESPN's Chris Mortensen said the coach "surprised" the Lions last week with a strong interview.
In Minnesota, the signs strongly point to Zimmer as the frontrunner for the head coaching job. Zimmer compiled an impressive resume in his six seasons as the Cincinnati Bengals' defensive coordinator and is scheduled for his second interview with Minnesota on Tuesday, according to NFL.com's Ian Rapoport.
Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles and Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell are also reportedly drawing interest from Minnesota, although no interviews have been scheduled yet.
