Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich has been linked with multiple teams over the past months in regard to a head coaching gig.
For one, the Jacksonville Jaguars have already opened up their search for a new head coach. The team has requested to interview multiple potential candidates, including Leftwich. While he has no previous coaching ties with the Jaguars organization, he did feature with the team over his opening four seasons in the league two decades ago, which included recording a notable 51 passing touchdowns in 44 games played.
For quarterback Tom Brady, he believes Leftwich well has what it takes to succeed as a head coach in the league, which he touched on during a press conference ahead of the Buccaneers’ upcoming Week 17 matchup against the New York Jets.
“Oh, absolutely,” Brady said. “I've been around a lot of great coaches over the years and it's just a matter of time for different guys when different opportunities come up.
“Byron has been amazing for me to work with, and I know he will have a lot of opportunities. He will do a great job.”
As expected, Leftwich currently has no interest at all in engaging in talk about possibly soon becoming a head coach in the NFL, as he instead has his focus centered on his offensive coordinator duties with the Buccaneers.
“I really think it's disrespectful to the Jets and whoever you're playing that week when you're talking about things that really has nothing to do with Sunday's game,” Leftwich said on Thursday. “I'm completely focused on this football game on Sunday. Obviously, as a coach anytime your name is thrown around, I guess it is what it is, but it really means nothing at this point. It really means nothing at this point and I kind of think it's disrespectful to the guys that you really work with every day. That's really how I view that.
“If I'm ever fortunate enough to be in that situation that's when I'll handle it, but as of right now, I'm really focusing on the opponent we're about to play and getting us ready to try and play our best football.”
Even amid the multitude of injuries over the past few months, Leftwich still has anchored one of the more potent offenses in the league, as the Buccaneers rank at second in points per game this season with a 29.5 average.
The Buccaneers will finish regular season play with matchups against the Jets and Carolina Panthers.
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