Dan Mullen, Kliff Kingsbury among Alabama OC vacancy options following Bill O’Brien’s move to Patriots

As quarterback coach for the Philadelphia Eagles and NFL MVP candidate Jalen Hurts, Brian Johnson likely has no plans to return to the collegiate ranks anytime soon, unless it’s a head coaching opportunity. In fact, there’s a chance the 35-year-old could lead a team in the NFL as early as next season. Johnson’s coaching career began in Utah as quarterbacks coach in 2010 and later served under Dan Mullen as Florida’s best assistant.

Stanford University quickly targeted Roman for a head coach search after he resigned from the Ravens’ OC spot. He is reportedly leaving to “pursue other opportunities” after serving as Baltimore’s play-caller with Lamar Jackson at quarterback since 2019. In his first two seasons with Jackson at the helm, Roman’s offenses in the AFC were almost unstoppable and led to an impressive performance. Scoring has declined over the past two seasons as the Ravens finished 19th in the NFL in points in the 2022 season. The Ravens had never before finished in the top 10 for points scored in consecutive seasons.

Oklahoma offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby could be a target for Alabama, according to Pete Thamel. During an interview with Paul Finebaum last week, Thamel revealed Lebby’s name as someone to watch in Alabama.

“I would think Nick Saban saw the Tennessee and Tennessee seizures Josh Heupel gave him this year” Thamel said: “And offensively I think they’ll probably trend a bit and maybe overcorrect a bit more in that direction as they go. Well, I’m not saying they will morph into the Baylor offensive beginning in the mid-2000s. But one name I’ve heard is (Jeff Lebby), Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator. He obviously found success in the SEC West Footprint (2020-21 at Ole Miss).

“He obviously learned from Lane Kiffin and emigrated to Oklahoma last year – to some mixed results in a year of recovery. But I think if the option, schematically, is to go faster or slower, I assume Alabama will end up going faster.

Lebby, 39, was a key hire for Oklahoma freshman coach Brent Venables and left a stint with Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss for the Big 12 last offseason. His stint with the Rebels was Lebby’s only two-year SEC experience, after the former Oklahoma player’s career began as a student assistant at Norman in the 2002 season.

When a coordinator position opens up in Alabama, you immediately start looking at high-profile names that are available, and Kingsbury is one of them. He was fired from the Arizona Cardinals earlier this month and is reportedly off the grid in Thailand after putting football on the back burner, at least temporarily. The Cardinals finished the 2022 season with a 4-13 record and Kingsbury took the blame. He signed an extension through the 2027 season just 10 months ago, ending his four-year tenure as the Cardinals with a record of 28-37-1. He previously played at Houston and Texas A&M before becoming the head coach at Texas Tech from the 2013 through 2018 season. Notable is his work with Patrick Mahomes.

Buffalo Bills quarterbacks coach Joe Brady is a household name in SEC circles after helping LSU to a 15-0 record during Joe Burrow’s Heisman campaign in 2019. He was quarterbacks coach and co-OC for the Tigers at the time and left the team after the national championship game for a brief, failed stint with the Carolina Panthers on Matt Rhule’s staff. Would Brady be ready to return to the SEC? He reportedly has an interview request with the New York Jets this week for that franchise’s open OC position. If Alabama wants him, Saban will have to act fast.

Here’s a former NFL head coach with a direct connection to Saban, having served under him as quarterbacks coach for the Dolphins during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. We all know that Saban’s NFL tenure as head coach was short-lived, leading to that record-breaking streak with the Crimson Tide. Garrett’s offensive reputation as an innovative and highly skilled quarterback developer would make him attractive here. He hasn’t won enough with the Cowboys, but would have a better roster as an assistant with the SEC compared to others.

With Ole Fraulein, Weis is coaching the same roles he previously held among Lane Kiffin’s staff at FAU as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 2018-2019. And like last season, he’ll enter spring training with a quarterback fight at Oxford, this time between three players — reigning Jaxson Dart — along with newcomers Spencer Sanders (Oklahoma State) and Walker Howard (LSU). In Alabama, Weis would choose between Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson to succeed Bryce Young as QB1 of the Crimson Tide.

Believe it or not, the failed NFL head coach who was fired by the New York Jets at the end of the 2020 season actually has a brief history in the SEC, where he served as an assistant at LSU under Saban Michigan in 2001 and 2002 State and followed the current coach from Alabama to Baton Rouge, hence the tie and why his name likely popped up as a possible option at Tuscaloosa.