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For many fans of the Seattle Seahawks the NFL playoffs have taken a back seat to the search for an offensive coordinator following the team and Brian Schottenheimer parting ways. It’s barely been a week since the team announced that they and Schotty had broken up, but they have already been linked to several high profile candidates, including Doug Pederson, Mike Kafka, Adam Gase and Anthony Lynn. That said, the team can reportedly now cross half of those names off their list, as it has been reported that Kafka is expected to stay in Kansas City and Pederson is expected to take this season off.
Didn't get the OC talk when Pederson's Eagles extension ran through 2022 and I assume it's guaranteed. May as well take the year off and position himself for HC jobs next offseason https://t.co/RORdSI55AT
— Kevin Cole (@KevinColePFF) January 20, 2021
That said, the Seahawks were linked to a new name Wednesday morning, this one an assistant coach for the Las Vegas Raiders.
The #Seahawks are expected to interview #Raiders RBs coach Kirby Wilson for their vacant OC job, source said. One of the most respected position coaches, Wilson last interviewed for an OC job in 2014. Now Seattle takes a look.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 20, 2021
Kirby Wilson and Pete Carroll have a history together, as Wilson was the running backs coach for Carroll during his time with the New England Patriots in the late 1990s, and then was the wide receivers coach during Carroll’s first season at USC. Prior to joining Carroll with the Patriots, Wilson was the running backs coach for the Iowa State Cyclones in 1995 and 1996 where he coached Troy Davis, who finished fifth in the 1995 Heisman voting and second in 1996 after rushing for 4,195 yards and 36 touchdowns over those two years. In the time since Wilson has been the running backs coach for multiple Super Bowl winners, including the 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008.
Most recently Wilson spent the past two years coaching running backs who run behind offensive line of the Las Vegas Raiders coached by former Seattle assistant Tom Cable. Prior to that Wilson was the running backs coach for one of the worst offenses in NFL history in the form of the 2018 Arizona Cardinals who hired him after he had spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons as the running backs coach for Hue Jackson’s 1-31 Cleveland Browns.
The Seahawks search for a a new offensive coordinator will certainly continue in the coming days, and Field Gulls will be here to keep fans informed as the search continues.