On Tuesday, news broke that the Jacksonville Jaguars had interviewed former Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman for a high-level front-office position. Now, the rumors that the team wants to add Spielman seem to be picking up steam.
On Good Morning Football on Thursday, NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo said that the Jaguars are continuing to work to bring him in.
“My understanding… is that there’s progress being made, there’s deals being worked on. Nothing official,” Garofolo said. “We’ve seen this Jaguars’ search for a head coach take a couple turns here and there, so I’m not going to say it’s happening until it officially happens, but Rick Spielman potentially joining the Jacksonville front office.
“This is a guy that is highly respected around the league. I know there’s concerns about Trent Baalke amongst head coaching candidates, so this would be a plus in the minds of many candidates.”
From @gmfb: The #Jaguars continue to work toward adding former #Vikings GM Rick Spielman to their front office. Sources tell us at @nflnetwork progress has been made, though nothing is done yet. Doug Pederson remains in the mix for the HC job. pic.twitter.com/g43SCSLzTZ
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 3, 2022
Although he was fired by the Vikings, Spielman is still well thought of around the NFL and is credited with several strong draft selections. If the Jags choose to bring him in, possibly in some sort of executive vice president role, Garofolo thinks it could signal the direction the team is heading as far as head coach goes.
“By the way, if Spielman had remained in Minnesota, the expectation was Doug Pederson was going to be high on the Vikings’ list,” Garofolo said. “Pederson interviewed a second time with the Jaguars this week. You see where I’m going with this? Potentially, the pieces coming together in Jacksonville.”
Garofolo isn’t the only one with the scoop on Spielman, either. CBS Sports NFL reporter Jonathan Jones also reported that Spielman to the Jags is picking up steam, and per Jones, Spielman would be in a role above Baalke, who many fans want to be shown the door.
Momentum is gaining in Jacksonville for former Vikings GM Rick Spielman to ultimately get a football position that reports directly to owner Shad Khan and is above GM Trent Baalke.
— Jonathan Jones (@jjones9) February 3, 2022
This has been a disastrous coaching search and a rough start to a crucial offseason for the Jaguars. While many wouldn’t be happy with Baalke retained in any capacity, we may at least be nearing a conclusion to the drama in the coming days if things materialize with Spielman and Pederson, who won a Super Bowl as the coach of the Philadelphia Eagles following the 2017 season.
