Zac Robinson is in his first season as an NFL offensive coordinator, quickly moving to the Falcons once Raheem Morris landed the team’s HC job. Other clubs showed interest in Robinson for OC posts as well. Before Robinson entered the coaching ranks, however, he played quarterback at Oklahoma State. Robinson started three seasons with the Cowboys, playing under longtime coach Mike Gundy. Had the latter not agreed to a recent contract restructure, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport notes Robinson was the school’s top replacement choice. Robinson, 41, started for the Big 12 program from 2007-09. Gundy, himself a former Oklahoma State QB, has been in charge in Stillwater since 2005. Robinson could land interviews on next year’s NFL HC carousel, and no other rumors have connected the first-year OC to the college game.
Here is the latest from the coaching ranks:
- The Bears have been connected to at least one college coach (Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman) about their now-vacant HC post, and others could be on the radar. An anonymous GM told the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora he expects the Bears to interview multiple college coaches during their upcoming search. Serving as team president since early 2023, Kevin Warren has a background in the college game stemming from his time as Big Ten commissioner. Although GM Ryan Poles is running Chicago’s search, Warren will have a major role to play in whom the team hires to replace Matt Eberflus.
- Woody Johnson is again staffing out his HC search, bringing in ex-Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum and former Vikings GM Rick Spielman to tab the team’s next coach and GM. The latter shed some light into the process recently, indicating during the NFL on CBS podcast (via ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini) he has already interviewed “a lot of the guys” who will be on his Jets recommendation list. Spielman having worked as an advisor during the Commanders’ recent searches points to familiar names being part of this upcoming Jets research effort. It will still be Johnson making the final call, but this is not the first time he has farmed out his hiring process. He did so in 2015 as well, using former GMs Charley Casserley and Ron Wolf ahead of the Mike Maccagnan and Todd Bowles hires.
- Todd Grantham has been back in the NFL for the past two seasons, serving as a Saints assistant. While Robinson is not heading to Stillwater, Grantham will indeed be going to reprise his role as a college defensive coordinator. Oklahoma State is hiring Grantham as its DC, NewOrleans.football’s Mike Triplett notes. A former Browns DC under Romeo Crennel in the 2000s, Grantham had been the Saints’ D-line coach for the past two seasons. New Orleans firing Dennis Allen will lead to a staff overhaul, and Grantham — formerly the DC at Georgia, Louisville, Mississippi State and Florida — will jump ship early.
- Rams assistant special teams coach Scott Frost is returning to Central Florida. The former Knights HC will take on that job once again, The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman reports. Frost coached the Knights from 2016-17, using the mid-major program as a springboard to Nebraska. Matt Rhule’s Cornhuskers predecessor had caught on with the Rams this year.
- Former Jets tight end Anthony Becht coached the United Football League’s St. Louis BattleHawks last season and recently interviewed for the West Virginia HC job. Becht has also drawn interest from the NFL, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The two-year St. Louis HC, the first season coming in XFL 3.0 in 2023, has never coached in the NFL and would presumably not be too close to the HC radar were he to explore a job in the league soon.