Details emerge on contract breakdown between Jaguars, Byron Leftwich

Byron Leftwich felt like the perfect coach to take over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but now the organization has former Eagles front man Doug Pederson at the helm, and new details have surfaced on why a deal didn’t pan out with the Buccaneers’ OC.

According to Aaron Wilson who covers the NFL, Leftwich withdrew his name from consideration because of one current front office executive, who reportedly pushed away Matt Eberflus as well. Eberflus went on to take the Chicago Bears job, while Byron Leftwich has agreed to stay on as the Tampa Bay offensive coordinator.

Here’s the insight Wilson gave about the situation:

“The Jaguars also conducted second interviews with Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, whom sources said couldn’t agree to terms after he balked at working with controversial general manager Trent Baalke and withdrew from the search, along with former Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus, who was hired by the Chicago Bears,” Wilson said.

There have been multiple reports throughout the league concerning Baalke and his reputation, but for now, he remains in his position. It is fair to note the Jaguars conducted an interview with former Minnesota Vikings’ general manager Rick Spielman for a front office role earlier this week.

As Wilson points out, both Pederson — the team’s new head coach — and Spielman are represented by the same agent.

Byron Leftwich makes final decision on Jags’ job

While Leftwich has felt like the perfect fit to go back to the city where he played and mentor former No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence and revitalize the Jacksonville Jaguars, the NFL gods had other plans.

According to a report on Thursday, that won’t be happening.

Earlier on Thursday, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported that Byron Leftwich is expected to pull his name out of consideration for the opening.

According to Pro Football Talk, Leftwich’s path to the job appeared to hit a snag because he was not interested in working with General Manager Trent Baalke. Cardinals vice president of pro personnel Adrian Wilson was Leftwich’s preferred choice for the job, but the failure to move forward suggests the Jaguars weren’t interested in making a change.

The Jags have since spoken to former Vikings G.M. Rick Spielman about a role in the front office that would reportedly have him reporting to owner Shad Khan directly. Former Eagles coach Doug Pederson and former Raiders interim head coach Rich Bisaccia have had the most recent interviews for the head coaching job. It was Pederson’s second interview with the team.

It feels a bit odd Byron Leftwich isn’t considering other head coaching jobs for 2022, especially considering Tom Brady’s retirement and the roster uncertainty in Tampa Bay, but he should have opportunities in the future regardless.