Who is Byron Leftwich? Buccaneers coach touted to be next Jaguars HC
Byron Leftwich, the now former offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has been tapped to be the next head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The move was anticipated by many as Leftwich has been a hot commodity ever since winning the Super Bowl last year.
Can confirm, #Jaguars expected to hire Buccaneers OC Byron Leftwich as their next head coach, per multiple sources.
@E_Dilla was on it first.
Even before Tom Brady's arrival as the quarterback in March 2020, Leftwich was running the show as the OC with former Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston at the helm.
But for those who may not know, let's take an in-depth look at the newest head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Byron Leftwich is a former first-round pick of the Jaguars
One of the reasons Byron Leftwich was able to relate so well to Tom Brady and other players on the Buccaneers roster is because, like many, he played in the NFL. But unlike most coaches, he was a top-seven pick in the NFL Draft.
In 2003, the Jaguars selected the highly touted prospect out of Marshall to be the seventh selection in that draft. In college, he was a two-time MAC MVP (2001, 2002) and a two-time MAC Offensive Player of the Year (2001, 2002).
Byron was seen as the future of the position in the NFL. He was deceptively quick inside the pocket and had a cannon for an arm, which he would put on display as the starting quarterback for the Jaguars from 2003-2006.
With the franchise in disarray, Leftwich eventually moved on for stops as a backup quarterback in Atlanta (2007), Pittsburgh (2008), Tampa (2009), and Pittsburgh (2010-2012) again.
The former Buccaneers OC also picked up a Super Bowl ring as a player with the Pittsburgh Steelers in his first stint with the team in Super Bowl XLIII.
Jacksonville will now entrust the Marshall standout with resurrecting their franchise as the ninth head coach in their history. Their most recent coach, Urban Meyer, was an utter disaster
His tenure lasted less than one full season as he was fired after just 13 games. His mishaps with the team include hiring strength coach Chris Doyle, who was accused of racist rhetoric by a number of his college players as Iowa's strength coach.
Days later, after a firestorm of controversy over the hiring, Doyle was forced to resign, leaving Meyer with the first of many black eyes in his short tenure.
In Week 4, after losing on a Thursday night to the Cincinnati Bengals, Meyer did not fly back with the team and stayed in Ohio, where he has roots from coaching at Ohio State University (and where he owns several businesses, including a bar).
Meyer was later seen at the bar in a video inappropriately touching a woman who was not his wife.
Meyer would later apologize, but the writing seemed to be on the wall at that point.
One of the final straws came when former Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo accused the coach of striking him with his foot in the preseason. Meyer did not deny the allegation but stated that the kick wasn't harmful to Lambo.
The good news for Leftwich is that the cupboard is not bare with the overall first pick in last year's draft, Trevor Lawrence, and star edge rusher/linebacker, Josh Allen, about whom the Jags tweeted the following just days ago:
"He hasn't hit his ceiling yet. Each and every year he's going to grow and who knows how far he can take it."
“He hasn't hit his ceiling yet. Each and every year he's going to grow and who knows how far he can take it."
#DUUUVAL
The Jaguars have a lot of work to do on the field as well as with the fans, but it appears as if they have likely found the right man for the job.