BREAKING: Jaguars Request Interview With Lions' Ben Johnson

The star of this year's coaching cycle has been requested by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson celebrates a play against Minnesota Vikings during the second half at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars' coaching search is officially off and running.

On the same day the Jaguars scheduled an interview with Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, the team has also put in a request for Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson -- who is seen as the top star in this year's coaching cycle.

The #Jaguars have requested permission to speak with #Lions OC Ben Johnson, source said. Add them to #Patriots and #Bears. He has a window from Thursday to Saturday, all virtual.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 7, 2025

Johnson has long been connected to the Jaguars job, while the Jaguars have always been expected to express interest in the Lions' play-caller.

Johnson has led the NFL's best offense in 2024 and has consistently raised the bar for the Lions' offense during his tenure as play-caller, turning Jared Goff into an MVP-caliber quarterback and overseeing an elite running game.

The Jaguars will obviously place a large emphasis on the development of the offense and Trevor Lawrence as they search for Doug Pederson's replacement. Pederson struggled to help Lawrence get over the hump after the 2022 season; could Johnson help him fulfill his potential?

"The first thing we have to do is identify who the head coach is and then bring in a staff. As Shad mentioned, there's a lot of good people in this building. From the coaches on through personnel and all the support staff so we don’t need to fix everything we just need to fix some things," Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke said on Monday.

"I think identifying that person that can come in and then sit down with the staff that we put together around him, and really take a look at the roster again. We do this every year. Take a hard look at the roster, identify who the players are that you have to put in a position to win games for you and then surround them the best you can with free agents, and or draft picks. The process isn’t' going to change, we just have to do things a little different, a little better.”

Johnson has been reported to be selective in which teams he will take interviews with, so the next step is to see if he actually takes the interview in Jacksonville. It has also been reported that he has interest in the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots jobs, creating some competition for the hottest name on the market.

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