Discussions about Raiders hiring Ben Johnson intensify

Will Ben Johnson leave his position as Detroit Lions offensive coordinator for one of the various job openings he’s interviewed for? As the Lions prepare to host the Commanders in the divisional round of the playoffs, the future has taken a backseat to the present for Johnson.

That hasn’t stopped talk of his future from currently rippling through the NFL grapevine.

Starting last Thursday, discussions began to intensify between Johnson and the Raiders. Coincidentally or not, it was the same day the Raiders fired general manager Tom Telesco, paving the way for the “alignment” Johnson prioritized with the front office.

Not that Johnson would call for Telesco or anyone else to be fired. However, if a team really wants Johnson, they need to hear the clues and act accordingly. If the Raiders, as it appears, want Johnson, they have acted accordingly.

Johnson, we’ve heard, came away from his interview with the Raiders with positive feelings toward the team and minority owner Tom Brady — who has played a major role in the ongoing search for a new coach.

Most recently, we caught wind of a rumor that the Raiders made Johnson a “massive” contract offer. Although it is premature for any offers to be officially made, given that they have not yet conducted a face-to-face interview with Johnson, it appears that many of them are unofficially available .

It remains to be seen whether this is credible or not. Owner Mark Davis isn’t exactly in the upper echelon of cash-rich owners in the NFL. With the recent buyouts of Jon Gruden, Josh McDaniels, Dave Ziegler, Antonio Pierce and Telesco, it may take opening the piggy banks to bust Johnson’s entry-level curve.

A “massive” deal would also anger other owners, some of whom are obsessed with avoiding a bidding war for coaches, where there is no salary cap or franchise tag and the market could easily go haywire.

But it’s more than money for Johnson. If he works for the Raiders, he has access to Brady. Regardless of the intricacies of the rules, they are also said to have spent a lot of time talking on the phone.

They are allowed to converse as part of Brady’s job at Fox. Although he can’t attend production meetings, Brady is allowed to talk to coaches and players about the games he will be working on. And he will work the Lions game this weekend.

Johnson cannot be hired until after the Lions’ season. And the season could peak when Brady calls Johnson’s final game with the Lions, just one day before Brady invites Johnson for a one-way ride on his private plane to Las Vegas.

There is currently no other matching destination. Johnson has interviewed with the Raiders, Bears, Jaguars and Patriots. The roster he wants doesn’t exist in Jacksonville and likely isn’t in play with the Bears. Unless the Cowboys (who missed their window to interview Johnson anytime before the Lions’ season ended because they didn’t interview him via Zoom last week) make a late run, these are the Raiders or the status quo for Johnson.

More and more people in league circles think it will be the Raiders.