Ben Johnson recently took a head-coaching interview with the Raiders, largely at Tom Brady's behest. A minority owner of the Raiders, Brady is said to be one of the leading voices in the franchise's search for a new general manager and head coach.
Brady "personally vouched for Johnson," according to the NFL Network, and "essentially recruited Johnson to interview." And now the Raiders are said to be "enamored" with the Lions' offensive coordinator, who's been one of the hottest head coaching candidates in the NFL for the last two offseasons.
Brady, in his role as the top color commentator for the NFL on FOX, met Johnson this season before the Lions' win over the Packers at Lambeau. He will also be on the call for Detroit's playoff game Saturday night against Washington, the team whose head coaching job Johnson spurned last offseason.
That presents a potential conflict of interest for Brady as he simultaneously tries to lure Johnson to the Raiders.
"I know nothing of that nature," Johnson said Wednesday. "I met him the Packers game on the field, I saw him for a second pregame, that’s the first time I’ve ever met him, and that’s it."
Asked if he's allowed to converse with Brady as coach-to-commentator given the circumstances, Johnson said, "That's above my pay grade."
Johnson, 38, has also interviewed with the Bears, Patriots and Jaguars for their head coaching vacancies after coordinating a top-five offense for the third season in a row. He said he's "been a lot more prepared for the types of questions that they’ve been asking" this year than in hiring cycles past.
"I’ve also changed my frame of mind a little bit and instead of worrying solely about the offense and what we’re doing right here, I’ve been able to have offseasons and summers to think about big-picture view what a program would look like where I’m running it," Johnson said. "So I think that way, I’m a lot more prepared for the questions that come my way and much more comfortable answering them."
That was about as much as Johnson would say Wednesday about his head-coaching future. He said he kept it similarly brief Monday with Dan Campbell.
"I told the head coach when we came in, he asked me how it went this weekend, it went great and that’s the end of it," Johnson said. "The focus right here and now for the players, the coaching staff, for everybody in this building, is this game."
Johnson did vouch for the head-coaching candidacy of Lions' defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who had interviews last week with the Saints, Jets, Bears and Jaguars.
"He is beyond qualified right now," Johnson said. "You hear all of our players singing his praises right now, and I would second that. He is more prepared to be a head coach than maybe anybody I’ve ever met. He wants that and I think he’s going to do a phenomenal job in charge."