Who will replace Jeremy Bates?

Published on January 18, 2011 by Seahawks.Com News (Feed)     

While the firing of offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates was a surprising move made by Pete Carroll this morning, head coaches usually don’t let someone go unless they have someone in mind to replace them.

So I would expect an announcement of a new offensive coordinator by Carroll to come quickly.

Here are a few candidates to keep an eye on.

Darrell Bevell – He served as the Vikings offensive coordinator since 2006, and reportedly interviewed for the vacant quarterbacks coach position with Seattle this week. Maybe Carroll liked him so well he would hire him as the offensive coordinator instead? Bevell also worked as a coach for five years in Green Bay from 2000 to 2005, so general manager John Schneider knows him well.

Jim Zorn – If the Seahawks decide to keep Matt Hasselbeck around, this move makes the most sense. He served as Hasselbeck’s quarterback coach for several years and knows what he does best. He already has a good relationship with running backs coach Sherman Smith from their playing days together, and also from their time in Washington. And he knows the West Coast offense well. Zorn currently serves as the quarterbacks coach for Baltimore, but is rumored to be a candidate for the offensive coordinator position in Cleveland because of his close ties to Mike Holmgren.

Brad Childress – He’s part of the Mike Holmgren coaching tree, having served as offensive coordinator in Philadelphia under Andy Reid before taking the head job at Minnesota. Childress currently is being courted by Miami for the offensive coordinator position there.

Josh McDaniels – He struggled with the weighty duties as a head coach in Denver, but still is considered one of the better offensive minds in the game. McDaniels interviewed for the offensive coordinator position in St. Louis vacated by Pat Shurmur, who is now the head coach in Cleveland. But negotiations reportedly hit a snag there. McDaniels has been rumored to be in talks with Seattle since Monday. But he runs a totally different system than the West Coast offense, so there could be a steep learning curve there.

Sherman Smith – He served as offensive coordinator for Jim Zorn at Washington, has an intimate knowledge of the West Coast offense and will know the team’s personnel well after serving for a year as the running backs coach for Seattle this season.

via Who will replace Jeremy Bates? | Seahawks Insider.

Tags: andy reid, Brad Childress, Close Ties, Coordinator Position, Darrell Bevell, Good Relationship, head coach, Head Coaches, Head Job, Jeremy Bates, John Schneider, Matt Hasselbeck, Mike Holmgren, offensive coordinator, Offensive Minds, Pat Shurmur, Pete Carroll, Quarterback Coach, Quarterbacks Coach, West Coast Offense