ASHBURN, Va. — Now that the Washington Commanders have officially welcomed General Manager Adam Peters to the team, they are moving quickly to fill the other important vacancy in the organization. The search for a new head coach is ramping up.
Commanders majority owner Josh Harris and Peters are expected to hold virtual interviews with two candidates on Thursday.
First up is Raheem Morris. Morris is currently defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams. He also has history with the Washington franchise. He was defensive backs coach for the Burgundy and Gold from 2012 to 2014.
But Morris is reportedly a popular choice for head coach. The Atlanta Falcons have also asked to chat with him about their head coaching vacancy, following the swift departure of Arthur Smith. He has also scheduled interviews with the Seattle Seahawks and the Carolina Panthers.
Rams head coach Sean McVay hopes to have Morris back for next season, while recognizing his status as one of the more desirable candidates to fill any of the seven head coaching vacancies around the NFL.
“There might be some changes if Raheem gets an opportunity that I think is well deserved and long overdue,” McVay told the Associated Press Wednesday.
Morris, 47, went 17-31 in three seasons as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009-2011 and also served as interim coach of the Atlanta Falcons in 2020. A two-time Super Bowl winner as a coordinator, he turned in one one of his most impressive coaching performances this season as the Rams overhauled their defense to rely on youngsters and low-cost free agents around superstar defensive lineman Aaron Donald.
Also on the docket to interview virtually Thursday is Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
Quinn has been Dallas' coordinator since 2021, and he had the same job with Seattle in 2013 and 2014 as the Seahawks made back-to-back Super Bowls. Quinn then took over as Atlanta's head coach in 2015 through 2020 where he went 43-42 with a Super Bowl berth after the 2016 season.
The Cowboys were stunned Sunday in a wild-card loss to Green Bay.
Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is reportedly scheduled for an interview Friday. Johnson, along with Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are in high demand around the league since their team is still in the playoffs.
“Those are worthy candidates,” head coach Dan Campbell told the Associated Press. "Both of them should be at the top of everybody’s list, but we’re in one of these unique years where there’s a ton of jobs available.
"That's also why they all want to speak to them, and they should. But that puts a stress on them, on us. They’ll do the best they can with it, make the most of it, which they should, and then they’ll be prepared for us to get ready the next game.”
No NFL team can interview coaching candidates in person until Monday after the divisional round of the playoffs.
No decision has been made yet, but Peters told WUSA9 what goes into making that decision, and evaluating candidates.
"You surround yourself with great people. You use all the information you can to make the best decision for the ballclub, not just you," Peters said. "No decision will be made just by me."