Report: New York Jets to interview Vikings QB coach Josh McCown for coaching job

The New York Jets are interviewing Minnesota Vikings quarterbacks coach Josh McCown for their head coaching job on Friday, per Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports.

McCown, 45, is one of many head coaching candidates going through the lengthy interview process around the league. The Jets are looking to replace head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas, both fired mid-season. McCown notably spent two of his 16 seasons in the NFL with the Jets (2017, 2018).

McCown has quickly risen through the coaching ranks since retiring from the NFL following the 2020 season. While still a player for the Texans, McCown interviewed for the team’s head coaching job in January 2021. He interviewed again in January 2022.

McCown didn’t get those jobs but landed the quarterbacks coach job with the Carolina Panthers under head coach Frank Reich in February 2023. McCown’s job was simple: Help mentor and develop 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young. The Panthers and Young struggled. Reich, McCown and assistant head coach Duce Staley were fired after a 1-10 start to the season.

Josh McCown a head coaching candidate after successful spell with Vikings

McCown landed on his feet four months later, as Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell brought him on staff to work with a new crop of quarterbacks in Minnesota. The Vikings signed journeyman Sam Darnold to a one-year deal in free agency and then selected JJ McCarthy with the No. 10 overall pick in the Draft.

Darnold had a career year under McCown’s guidance. He threw for 4,319 yards, 35 touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 66.2% passing, earning his first Pro Bowl nod. The Vikings went 14-3, eliminated from the playoffs in the NFC Wild Card Round by the Los Angeles Rams.

“He’s been great,” Darnold told ESPN last month of McCown, “just the way that — even when I first got here in OTAs — we’ve been able to learn the system together. And talk about the system and grow in it at the same time. It’s been a great journey so far. He’s been a great coach to be able to lean on where situations aren’t necessarily going my way, and he’s also there when things are getting good, just to remind me of my fundamentals and what I’ve got to do to continue good quarterback play.”

The Jets will also interview Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores and Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley on Friday.