Jaguars to Interview Former Texans Coach Bill O'Brien Next Week

The former Texans coach could be returning to the AFC South.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are adding another name to their coaching search list.

According to multiple reports -- the first from Gene Frenette of The Florida Times-Union, the Jaguars are set to interview former Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien.

The #Jaguars plan to interview former #Texans coach Bill O’Brien for their vacant HC job next week after #Bama team plays in the National Championship on Monday, source said. @JohnReid64 had the timing first.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 7, 2022

O'Brien has spent the 2021 season serving as the Alabama Crimson Tide's offensive coordinator and is currently preparing the team for the National Championship against the Georgia Bulldogs Monday.

O'Brien returned to college following a seven-year stint as head coach of the Houston Texans. During his tenure with the Texans, O'Brien went 52-48 and won four division titles before being fired four games into the 2020 season.

Before being part of the Texans, O'Brien succeeded Joe Paterno as the head coach at Penn State and also spent four seasons with the New England Patriots as an offensive assistant.

While O'Brien's resume is successful, he has been the subject of a massive amount of criticism while coaching the Texans. He was seen as the primary instigator into why DeAndre Hopkins wanted to leave the team and the one who pushed and approved the infamous blockbuster trade to the Arizona Cardinals in March 2020.

While he was an NFL head coach O'Brien went 10-2 against the Jaguars, with the only two losses coming during the 2017 season where the Jaguars won the AFC South.

O'Brien joins a long list of candidates that includes Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, former Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions head coach Jim Caldwell, Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, former Super Bowl-winning head coach Doug Pederson, and Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.