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It appears that you can go ahead and cross Stanford's David Shaw and Texas A&M's Kevin Sumlin off the list of potential Detroit Lions coaching candidates. Both have been mentioned for multiple NFL jobs, but neither is planning to jump to the pros. Sumlin reportedly isn't even accepting interview requests from NFL teams, and Shaw has made it known that he also doesn't plan to take any interviews.
Penn State's Bill O'Brien, on the other hand, has been in discussions to become the Houston Texans' next head coach since last weekend. All signs have pointed to him being hired by the Texans, but negotiations seemingly have slowed down a bit in the last 24 hours. Perhaps this is why:
Am told Bill O'Brien went back to #PennState & then circled back to the #Texans in negotiations but Houston brass didn't budge.
— Bruce Feldman (@BFeldmanCBS) December 31, 2013
Might talks actually fall apart between O'Brien and the Texans? It remains to be seen, but Jason La Canfora reports that the Lions "would be ready to pounce" if negotiations do break down. The Lions reportedly reached out to O'Brien before Jim Schwartz was even fired, and given his offensive background, he would make a lot of sense for Detroit.
Speaking of offensive-minded coaches who would make sense for the Lions, Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Adam Gase has apparently decided to not interview for any job until after his team's season is over. Gase is from Ypsilanti, went to Michigan State and actually coached the Lions' quarterbacks in 2007, so he's got plenty of connections to the franchise. However, if the Lions want to speak to him about their head coaching vacancy, they will have to wait until the Broncos are out of the playoffs.
