Todd Bowles has interview requests from Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings
Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles has interest from three teams in the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, and Cleveland Browns. And while he hasn’t been officially contacted by the Lions for an interview, the Cardinals have received official requests from the Browns and Vikings for interviews with their defensive coordinator, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Bowles has received plenty of interest from teams with head coaching vacancies, but most people believe that Bowles is being used by teams to satisfy the “Rooney Rule”, which would make his interviews with the Browns and Vikings “token” interviews (he’s also likely to get an interview with the Lions).
That said, Bowles has done a great job of coaching the Cardinals defense this season, and he’s definitely one of the better defensive coordinators in the league. Don’t be shocked if one of these teams is legitimately interested in Bowles, though I would be shocked if either the Lions or the Browns, who are better off hiring a coach who works well with QBs and offenses, really target Bowles. I mean, the Browns are already locked in on New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, even though the Browns have had an iffy past with Bill Belichick and his disciples (helping McDaniels’s cause is the fact that current GM Michael Lombardi is a part of Belichick’s “tree”).
While nobody expects Bowles to be hired as a head coach for a team, his experience running different kinds of schemes and the success that the Cardinals defense has had work in his favor.