The future of Joe Brady

[Mr. Scot]

So for those who are worried about losing Panthers OC Joe Brady to a potential head coaching opportunity, I’d pose the question of who might be likely to try and poach him.

The possibilities fall under a couple of categories:

First off, there are the NFL teams who have already fired their head coaches or are expected to. The Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans have fired both their head coaches and their GMs. The Jets are expected to fire Adam Gase (maybe even before the season ends) but GM Joe Douglas isn’t likely to follow. Other teams that have been speculated as dumping their head coaches include the Lions (who could also drop GM Bob Quinn) Vikings (unlikely, but possible) Eagles (ditto) and Bengals (you never know).

Of the teams that are considered possible or likely to dump their head coach but not their GM, no one that I’ve found has crossed paths with Brady in the past. Frankly, Brady’s resumé to date is so short it’s not that difficult to research. Granted, a prior connection to Brady isn’t required, but it helps.

And with that said, while no current GM has much history with Brady, the number of GM openings that are set to become available next season do open up the serious possibility that a new GM who does have familiarity with Brady could take one of those jobs.

Current Saints Assistant GM for College Scouting Jeff Ireland and Assistant GM for Pro Personnel Terry Fontenot could both easily be hot GM candidates next season, and it’s not at all hard to imagine either one could take an interest in Joe Brady if he shows up on the hot coaching candidate radar by season’s end. Mind you, Assistant Head Coach Dan Campbell has the deeper resumé by far, but having the deepest resumé is often not as desirable as being the hottest name. Thus, if either of the two does secure a GM position, Brady could very easily be on their list of HC candidates…perhaps at the top.

Now, if you want a nightmare scenario, ponder this...

Falcons owner Arthur Blank is someone who would be very familiar with the work Ireland and Fontenot have put in with the division rival Saints. He’s also familiar with Brady by now, so an Ireland/Fontenot + Brady connection with the hated Falcons could quite easily become reality.

Again though, Brady’s resumé is a single page, if that. And other coaches like Eric Bieniemy might be more in line for shots at next season’s available jobs.

Still, it should be remembered that the NFL is not necessarily Brady’s only option.

College coaches get fired too, and the NCAA well remembers the role Brady played in LSU’s championship run. It’s not tough to picture a university that's looking to rebuild and excite their fanbase reaching out to Brady with a lucrative head coaching offer. Fans will of course point out that Panthers owner David Tepper can likely match any such deal, but whether or not it’s about the money is unknown. For that matter, does Brady really want to be a college coach? I have a sense that he’s expressed a preference in a pro career, but I don’t have any specific notes or quotes to that effect (if anyone else does, feel free to post them).

Bottom Line: There are a load of factors to consider here, most of which would be currently unknown. Does Brady want to be a head coach right now? Does he feel as though he's ready for such a job? Does it matter to him if it’s at the college or pro level? Is it primarily about competing at the highest level or is it who offers the most dollar signs? Nobody really knows. For me, while the college thing is a possibility, my biggest worry would be the Ireland/Fontenot scenario, with Ireland probably being the more likely GM choice.

As far as informed opinions on the topic, at least one expert has an idea about Brady's upcoming coaching prospects, and you're not gonna like it.

NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah has stated his belief that Brady will indeed be offered an NFL head coaching job next season, and he'll take it. Jeremiah said in an interview with WFNZ that he believed Brady was on the “fast track” to being an NFL head coach. He further added, “I think it's more likely that Joe Brady gets a head coaching job next season than he doesn't.”

Oy…

If Jeremiah is right, I could live with it if it were somewhere like Houston or Detroit. That wouldn’t be so bad.

Atlanta though? That would suck.

But yeah, it could happen.

[Jon Snow]

Simply put, I don't think any nfl team will hire him as a head coach until he gets this team in a SB.  Now college on the other hand is a distinct possibility if he can put a few winning seasons and possibly a playoff appearance together.  But nah, it's way too soon to worry about that. 

I'm more concerned that Snow may up and retire before he gets this defense built.

[LinvilleGorge]

8 minutes ago, Jon Snow said:

Simply put, I don't think any nfl team will hire him as a head coach until he gets this team in a SB.  Now college on the other hand is a distinct possibility if he can put a few winning seasons and possibly a playoff appearance together.  But nah, it's way too soon to worry about that. 

I'm more concerned that Snow may up and retire before he gets this defense built.

After seeing Kliff Kingsbury getting a HC job after getting fired with a losing overall record at Texas Tech (even having an overall losing record during Mahomes' time there)... man, that changed things for me. That was a real head scratcher.

[jbland]

1 hour ago, Mr. Scot said:

 

 

For those who have visions of Brady leaving after this season,  just need to think back a few years when we had another OC who was young, promising and not yet ready to be a head coach. Chud was in the same situation Brady is now, and left before he was ready. We all know how that worked out. Hopefully, Brady will sit a few years, learn the ropes and then take the position of his choosing, not the low hanging fruit. 

[MechaZain]

33 minutes ago, jbland said:

For those who have visions of Brady leaving after this season,  just need to think back a few years when we had another OC who was young, promising and not yet ready to be a head coach. Chud was in the same situation Brady is now, and left before he was ready. We all know how that worked out. Hopefully, Brady will sit a few years, learn the ropes and then take the position of his choosing, not the low hanging fruit. 

Chud's situation was a little different because he had history in Cleveland. I don't think any other team would have given him the gig that early. Closest comparison for Brady would be New Orleans but his time there was half as long and in a smaller role.

A national college championship and deep playoff run though, especially if we get to the SB, is a resume worthy of consideration.

[jbland]

12 minutes ago, MechaZain said:

Chud's situation was a little different because he had history in Cleveland. I don't think any other team would have given him the gig that early. Closest comparison for Brady would be New Orleans but his time there was half as long and in a smaller role.

A national college championship and deep playoff run though, especially if we get to the SB, is a resume worthy of consideration.

I agree if we go to the SB that would be a game changer, but let's face it. We aren't going to the SB this year. 

[Bartin]

The HC market is no longer rational because of Sean McVay. Everyone wants the next offensive boy genius. We’ve had Taylor, LaFleur, Kingsbury all hired with less than stellar resumés in the last couple years but they fit the McVay archetype. That is Brady right now and Brady has enough resumé for someone to make an offer. Readiness be damned.
 

I don’t know if he is actually ready to be a HC, but I am extremely confident that someone will at the very least interview him this season and think an offer is more probable than not. Also for those saying Brady will be smart and wait a couple years until he is ready, well he wasn’t exactly “ready“ for an NFL OC job either. He spent two years as a basic offensive assistant in NO then 1 year at LSU where he wasn’t even the full OC and he took the Panthers job.

[CanadianCat]

Good points. I still think that we have like 3 more seasons lift with Brady at least. Obviously if the season goes south that becomes more of a sure thing.

I think if we expect Rhule to be a good coach and continue to build the team we can expect to lose coaches. Just like we did with RR and all our defensive coaches (I think we lost or DC like 3 years in a row or something like that). 

If Rhule builds a good team, dont get attached to the staff.

[raz]

who cares.  he's not that good yet at his current job.   

[Varking]

54 minutes ago, raz said:

who cares.  he's not that good yet at his current job.   

Truth. There’s a lot of work to be done right now. And I lauded the hire and was the first to post a thread about it when the news broke. 

[Edward Jones]

I mean what if Rhule is pretty much the shadow GM already? Or would be made GM too eventually?

[Agent Blue]

OP,

A prior connections means near nothing in regards to a GM hiring a HC. Prior connections are much more relevant when it comes to coordinating hires via the HC. 

A GM is gonna go out and try to get the best HC possible, regardless of any connections. Obviously, it helps to have connections, but that wont stop a GM from pursing a potential HC. 

As for your questions, I can answer them for you.

Does Brady want to be a head coach right now? Absolutely. Any young hot shot coordinator wants to be a HC right, no YESTERDAY. They are all ambitious, confident and eager to achieve greatness. 

Does he feel as though he's ready for such a job? Absolutely. Why wouldn't he. He has experienced nothing but success. He has seen numerous HC's operate (some really good ones). I am sure he thinks he can do it even better than all thoses guys. 

Does it matter to him if it’s at the college or pro level? Absolutely. The NFL is the best of the best. It's also less work. More money. No one would choose to be a college HC over a NFL head coach all things considered equal. Usually, if a NFL guy goes down to college it's because he failed as a HC in the NFL or had a college offer to be a HC and didn't have any NFL offer to be a head coach. 

Is it primarily about competing at the highest level or is it who offers the most dollar signs? It's about both. Which the NFL can provide. 

Jeremiah is right, unless Brady and Teddy start stinking it up every week, Brady is likely gone after this season. Him and the KC OC will be two of the top HC candidates. With plenty of teams that will be looking for a HC. 

[TrevorLaurenceTime22]

8 hours ago, raz said:

who cares.  he's not that good yet at his current job.   

 

7 hours ago, Varking said:

Truth. There’s a lot of work to be done right now. And I lauded the hire and was the first to post a thread about it when the news broke. 

I'd say his scheming has been solid but his situational play calling thus far is definitely sub par.

[GoobyPls]

Brady fits the trend of young offensive minded coaches. I think his resume is better than Zac Taylor, even Kingsbury