Jerod Mayo reportedly expected to emerge as a ‘leading candidate’ for Texans’ open head coaching job

New England Patriots inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo is a busy and popular man these days. Not only is he trying to help prepare his team for the upcoming wild card playoff game against the Buffalo Bills, he also has received an interview request from the Denver Broncos for their open head coaching position.

The Houston Texans have not yet joined the Broncos in pursuing Mayo, but it would not be a surprise if that eventually happens. In fact, Mayo is expected to become a “leading candidate” for the job according to reports by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Sports Talk 790’s Aaron Wilson.

The Houston job opened up on Thursday, when the organization parted ways with David Culley. The Texans went 4-13 in Culley’s lone season at the helm, prompting the club to start looking for another head coach.

That search will be led by general manager Nick Caserio, who has close ties to the Patriots. Before joining the Texans last offseason, Caserio spent 20 seasons in New England — including 13 as the team’s director of player personnel, a position he held when the club selected Jerod Mayo in the first round of the 2008 draft.

Mayo went on to appear in a combined 111 regular season and playoff games for the organization between the 2008 and 2015 seasons, before injuries forced him into an early retirement. However, he rejoined the Patriots in 2019 as an assistant coach. Despite his lack of coaching experience, the 35-year-old has quickly emerged as one of the hottest young names on the coaching market.

After already interviewing with the Philadelphia Eagles last offseason, he is expected to talk to the Broncos as well at one point. The Texans will likely request to speak to him as well.

Mayo is not the only coach with a Patriots background worth keeping a close eye on, though. Former linebackers coach Brian Flores, who was fired from the Miami Dolphins’ head coaching job on Monday, is expected to also be near the top of the list of preferred candidates for the Houston gig.

Then, there is New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. While reportedly not planning to do any interviews as long as the Patriots are still in postseason contention, McDaniels’ relationship with Caserio is well known: the two played college football together at John Carroll and arrived in New England the same year.