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New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels made headlines after the 2017 NFL season for going back on his agreement to become the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. Needless to say, McDaniels had received significant backlash from former coaches for not following through on his word.
However, his decision may have sparked a new initiative within the NFL. According to Judy Battista of NFL.com, the league is expected to change the rule barring coaches from signing with other teams while they are still in the playoffs:
Another thing: league is expected to change the rule to allow teams to hire coaches, even while their teams are still active in the playoffs. That proposal has come up before and has failed, but is expected to have greater support after the Josh McDaniels situation with Colts.
With each season, there are always a few teams that decide to make a significant coaching change. That said, assistants who prematurely agree to their next job while their perspective teams are still in the postseason has become a common occurrence. As a result, the decision on whether or not to allow them to officially sign has become a topic of discussion for the league in recent years.
It seems McDaniels' actions are just what supporters of the new rule needed in order to push it through. Fortunately, his decision did not leave too much of an impact on the Colts' organization after they hired a head coach who they now feel was the right man for the job all along in Frank Reich. However, the NFL will likely be looking to take preemptive action to ensure that this does not happen to any other team in the near future.
