Bucs OC Byron Leftwich Walks Out of Presser After Being Asked About Jaguars Job

The former Jags quarterback is a rising candidate for head coaching jobs stemming from his work with Tom Brady and Bruce Arians.

Byron Leftwich should begin to get looks for NFL head coaching jobs, as he continues to impress as offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers. Early Thursday morning, a job he's very familiar with opened up.

As controversies from his first NFL season continued to mount, the Jaguars let go of Urban Meyer. Leftwich broke into the NFL with the Jags franchise, which made him the No. 7 pick in the 2003 NFL draft after an impressive run as quarterback at Marshall. 

Leftwich began his coaching career in 2017 with the Cardinals, moving over to the Buccaneers in 2019, helping lead the Tom Brady-led offense to the Super Bowl last season. It would make plenty of sense for the Jaguars, which have a talented young quarterback in Trevor Lawrence, to take a look at Leftwich for its new opening, but he's not ready to discuss that opening.

During a Thursday press conference, Leftwich got up as a reporter asked him about the Jaguars opening, laughing as the reporter said, “Don't wanna answer that one, right?” Leftwich responded with, “I'm trying to win the division,” as he left, per ESPN's Jenna Laine.

This was just after Bucs PR said “last question...”

Byron Leftwich was asked about the opening for the Jaguars’ head coaching position. As he was walking off he said, “I’m trying to win the division.” pic.twitter.com/HMqN5NIMCd

— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) December 16, 2021

Leftwich played quarterback in the NFL from 2003–12, suiting up for the Jaguars, Falcons, Buccaneers, and the Steelers in two separate stints. He was a member of the Super Bowl XLIII champion Steelers and won Super Bowl LV as a Buccaneers coach last year.

Meyer was let go after numerous incidents throughout his brief NFL tenure in Jacksonville. The last straw appeared to come when his former kicker Josh Lambo went public about a practice incident in which Meyer allegedly kicked him. Lambo cited the NFL.com story about Meyer berating his staff and calling them “losers” as his reason for going public.

“That’s the reason I wanted to talk about this,” he told the Tampa Bay Times. “There’s been a lot of turnover, but those are still my people. Some of those dudes are my dudes, and the staff members I have grown into amazing relationships with over the last five seasons. He threatened all of them for speaking the truth. And that’s a bully, and people need to speak up against bullies.”

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• NFL May Incentivize Booster Shots to Keep 2021 Season on Track
• Report: Snyder Tried to Silence, Intimidate Witnesses to Misconduct

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