DeMeco Ryans Emerges as Texans Favorite; Cardinals Likely Out?

The Arizona Cardinals attempted and failed to interview DeMeco Ryans, who is now the favorite to land the job with the Houston Texans.

San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans is a busy man. 

On top of leading the San Francisco defense to a NFC championship appearance, Ryans has also balanced the search for his first opportunity as a head coach in the National Football League. 

Ryans was a popular name this cycle - and for good reason. His youth, ability to lead and results with the 49ers speak volumes. 

Last weekend, Ryans had four interviews scheduled: Denver/Houston on Saturday and Arizona/Indianapolis on Sunday. 

Ryans went through with the Saturday interviews before canceling meetings with the Cardinals and Colts on the day of his game vs. Dallas. Now, speaking purely from a speculation standpoint, perhaps Ryans got the feeling he had a strong chance with either Denver/Houston and decided to blow off the other opportunities. 

That might not be speculation for long. According to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, Ryans has emerged as the top candidate to take over in Houston.

From NFL Now: The #Texans have their eyes on #49ers DC DeMeco Ryans, with mutual interest in him potentially becoming their head coach. Expect a second interview next week. pic.twitter.com/KEdnuXWI0H

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 27, 2023

Ryans to the Texans makes sense for a variety of reasons given his history as a player with the organization and the direction Houston ultimately wants to go. 

That's unfortunate for the Cardinals, who very obviously wanted to at minimum get him in for one interview. There was some hope that Arizona could salvage something at the buzzer, but the two timelines aren't quite on schedule to make that happen. 

Owner Michael Bidwill may have already moved on, however. Yesterday he spent the bulk of the day meeting with candidate Sean Payton for the first time, and Rapoport also reported today that coaches such as Aaron Glenn, Ejiro Evero and Brian Flores could see second interviews. 

Follow All Cardinals on Facebook

Subscribe to All Cardinals on YouTube

Arizona Cardinals Top Stories

Three Potential Coaches to Receive Second Interviews

Larry Fitzgerald Endorses Sean Payton

Sean Payton Visits Cardinals, Responds to Criticisms With Denver/Carolina

Plucking One Free Agent From Each Division