In this young offseason, two teams have requested interviews for Jets position coaches in regard to vacant coordinator jobs. The Raiders wanted to speak with secondary coach Dennis Thurman for their defensive coordinator opening. The Titans wanted to speak with offensive line coach Bill Callahan for their offensive coordinator opening. Both were denied.
The Jets did not have to allow either to interview since both are under contract. League rules view all assistant coach jobs as equal. A coordinator job is by league rules lateral to a position coach spot. Teams do not need permission to interview assistants for head coaching jobs because that is viewed as a step up. The reason this is the case is the NFL wants to prevent cheating the system. A team might hypothetically give Callahan an offensive coordinator title but have him just handle the offensive line like he does in New York while then head coach or somebody else runs the offense.
I do feel a bit bad for Callahan and Thurman for not being allowed to move up. They knew this was part of the deal when they signed multiyear contracts for job security, though. That is part of the price they have to pay. If they really are good enough, they can look for other openings when their contracts expire.
I am interested to hear your opinion on this, though. The Jets were justified to deny these guys a chance within the rules. That does not necessarily mean the team was right, however. It is a difficult spot. You do not want to lose good coaches. If they have their eye on another job and would rather be elsewhere, though, the team really would not be doing them any favors by holding them in place.
What are your thoughts on this?