Report: Broncos seeking interview with Lions DC Teryl Austin

Douglas Lee Jan 13, 2015 7:01 PM

Per Adam Schefter, the Broncos have requested an interview with Detroit defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, who has been one of the hotter head coaching candidates this month.

Austin is scheduled to have a second interview with Atlanta this week and was set to meet with Chicago on Tuesday.

In his first year as a coordinator, Austin led a unit that improved from 16th in 2013 to 4th best in 2014 as measured by AFA's efficiency metrics. An interview with Austin, who is African-American, would satisfy Denver's requirement to meet with a minority candidate under the Rooney Rule.

Austin was previously a defensive backs coach in Seattle, Arizona, and Baltimore; Jim Caldwell, who coordinated the Ravens' offense in 2012 and 2013, took Austin with him to Detroit in 2014. The 49-year-old Pennsylvania native was also the Gators' defensive coordinator during Urban Meyer's last season in Gainesville.

Doug is IAOFM’s resident newsman and spelling czar. Follow him on Twitter @IAOFM

Rosterbation • News

The problem isn't our society, say, 50 and younger. The problem is/was the billion dollar owners at the top of the franchises.

Rooney knew this, he knew the NFL had institutionalized racism because of the owners. And typically its hard for an underling of a billionaire to suggest a black head coach, especially if that owner and that owners family are racists. (Jerry Jones has said some incredibly racist things in bars when he's drunk but I'm not pointing fingers) Rooney Rule is against **those** guys. Seriously. It's not political. It's to get billion dollar team owners to do the right thing and actually look at the man and not his color.

Posted by Greg Bays on 2015-01-15 11:17:21

Everyone says this, but I suspect If someone came into interview for head coach, with purple and yellow pokka dots, you be like "Whats up with all the dots? That guy should see a doctor for that."

Also, why no women interviews? Would that qualify as a Rooney minority? I mean, if there is no reason for interviewing a minority coach, except to pass the Rooney rule, and you see this move as "token only", then the first interview is the waitress at hooters, then go find a coach.

Posted by Greg Bays on 2015-01-15 11:06:55

The system is flawed, and the easy fix would be a hiring moratorium during the playoffs, but I really can't see the owners agreeing.

Posted by iamafreeman on 2015-01-14 09:59:52

Id be interested to hear of Fat Man has any non white readers and their thoughts on the Rule

Posted by Mike Birtwistle on 2015-01-14 02:45:54

Disregarding the rule entirely, I dug down into some things about him, and I'm starting to grow found on him. I still prefer Kubes, but I like his resume.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-14 01:14:39

That's pretty much my point...

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2015-01-13 21:37:50

If non-playoff free agents could immediately start signing contracts with new teams when their season was over then I would support allowing playoff free agents to talk to other teams before their season is over.

Posted by MattR on 2015-01-13 21:04:55

The interviewed in 2012, we lost in the Divisional Round. The didn't interview in 2013, we got crushed at the Super Bowl. They interviewed in 2014, crushed in the Divisional Round.

Getting interviews or not is not what will change anything. And the players understand the rules of the game. Sometimes the coach won't interview, then loses the next game, and another one is hired instead of him. They want to win, but they also want to go further in their careers.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 20:53:15

When is the last time a team "gambled" on a black coach with no previous NFL head coaching experience who was not already part of their staff? I counted 26 first time white NFL head coaches brought in from outside the organization since Pittsburgh gave Minnesota DC Mike Tomlin a shot in 2007 (6 of the 26 were head coaches in college or the CFL while the other 20 were coordinators or position coaches in the NFL).

Posted by MattR on 2015-01-13 20:50:49

Then why have there been so few black coaches historically? Is it because black people can't coach? That must be it apparently....

Posted by Rhett Rothberg on 2015-01-13 20:42:53

Oh yes...rest time. Everyone take a break. No need to use your time wisely. Your last year comment is full of thought and quite deep because everything is always the same except for time. Genius.

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2015-01-13 20:36:27

I see your point. It's like the quota system we have in Brazil's pubic universities, where 20% of the students must be afro descendants. O understand where the ruling comes, but at least here, the effect was that they now face the opposite prejudice, of people saying they are only in (there's a very difficult entrance examination) just because they are a minority, not because they deserve to be there.

I know the system is currently biased towards white guys (an irony, since most of the greats are not white) but I dream on a day that black, Asiatic or Latin people would be brought into the table because they're good enough to be the cream of the crop, not because they're part of a minority.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 20:35:50

No stonewall needed. They should have told teams that they should wait until their season is over. Should free agent to be players talk to teams before season over? Should be relatively same playing field. See dan quinn.

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2015-01-13 20:32:12

I'm not worried about 2015, but 2016. We need someone to help Brock's development.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 20:27:25

The playing field is already equal. If your a good coach, and are the best fit, you'll get hired. If were supposed to be color blind, but yet have to interview someone based solely on their pigmentation, isn't that counterproductive?

PS

Posted by Poop Stain on 2015-01-13 20:05:55

By shouting out the color of the person interviewing?

Posted by pubkeeper on 2015-01-13 20:05:52

The Lions had one of the best defenses in the league this season?

Posted by clebrilla@gmail.com on 2015-01-13 20:04:01

Yeah Elway should just stonewall any assistant coach interviews. That would make coming to the Broncos WAY more attractive.

Posted by pubkeeper on 2015-01-13 20:02:38

I agree. Its a stupid rule and trust me, you could be purple with yellow polka dots, if you can coach, you'll get interviewed and hired.

PS

Posted by Poop Stain on 2015-01-13 19:56:55

Agreed. Neither the Rooney Rule nor affirmative action are perfect solutions, but they are an improvement over the status quo and are necessary intermediate steps to help society advance to being truly color blind (which will make these programs obsolete)

Posted by MattR on 2015-01-13 19:49:55

Considering we may just be running the same "Manning offense" next year, I'd say it's possible that Austin would have MORE of an impact on our team next season than someone like Kubiak. I don't know if he'll be a great coach, but he's a creative defensive coordinator who got that Lions defense to play MUCH better.

Posted by Kwash on 2015-01-13 19:31:49

Austin is not random, or else he wouldn't have a second interview with Atlanta.

As for the Rooney Rule, it ensures that minority candidates are getting involved in the interview process. It not only gives them valuable experience (a failed interview now may help him perform better in one next year), but it gets their names out there.

Like with affirmative action, it's a mechanism to help correct a system that has long been biased toward whites and against minorities. On its own, it may seem clumsy, but really, there's no other way to accelerate the correction of such a wrong.

Posted by Douglas Lee on 2015-01-13 19:30:13

I mean, let me explain better. Hiring a guy like him for HC is not what we need. We need someone who can have an impact on how the team plays, to improve what we already have, and I honestly don't see it on him. I can't figure him hoisting the Lombardi as I can figure Kubes.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 19:28:05

For a HC job, he's a random dude, compared to all other names raised up

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 19:21:30

On the last point, seems a little unfair to call him a "random dude" - he's pretty highly regarded by many and is interviewing as a HC candidate at several other teams as well. Now maybe they're just interviewing him to satisfy that rule, too, but he does have a good rep and will get a shot somewhere even if not in Denver. (I'd love to have him as DC but don't think he'd leave Detroit just for lateral move.)

Posted by underdog on 2015-01-13 19:19:51

The message is that they are on their rest time, and looking for potential upgrade in career. The message is that everyone wants to get to the top.

Last year, none of our coaches took up interviews, and it didn't matter a shit at the super bowl.

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 19:12:47

I really don't like the rule. So if there's no minority good coach around, the team has to interview any random dude just because he's not Caucasian?

On the topic, I really believe he's been contacted just to fill the rule few requirement. No way this random dude will be what Elway meant on everything he said he wants in our new HC

Posted by LH Almeida on 2015-01-13 19:11:19

I will happily take Dan Quinn or Todd Bowles. We need to develop a defense with attitude to reach the promised land (imo).

BTW, tho it's been prob mentioned here by someone else, Gase and Del Rio taking interviews during the lead up to the Colts doesnt sit well w/ me. I dont care if other teams allow it, it should not have happened. What's the message to the team?

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2015-01-13 19:09:14

That is not a good enough reason.

Posted by Orange_and_Blue on 2015-01-13 19:06:58

Suh?

Posted by clebrilla@gmail.com on 2015-01-13 19:05:54

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