Other Detroit Lions coaches who could be hired away soon after Iowa State poached Tyler Roehl
The Lions could be on the verge of losing more coaches very soon
On Tuesday, news broke that Detroit Lions tight ends coach Tyler Roehl will leave Detroit for the offensive coordinator job at Iowa State. It showed that the brain drain is not quite over in Detroit.
There are still some people on this coaching staff who will draw the attention of other teams. Let’s talk about some of the coaches you might have to worry about getting poached soon.
Offensive Line coach/Run Game Coordinator Hank Fraley
At this point, he’s probably the most likely candidate. It doesn’t matter that the Lions’ offensive line had a down year. There are clearly reasons for that. Hank Fraley got OC interviews during the last two cycles, and the Lions offered him a nice raise and promotion to stay last offseason.
He’s likely to get some calls to go interview for more OC jobs this year, and like Ben Johnson, you can only hold onto a guy for so long. The Lions’ counter move would be to make him their OC if they move on from John Morton.
Wide receiver coach/Assistant head coach Scottie Montgomery
Scottie Montgomery could get head coach interviews. He’s been rising in the NFL for years now.
He can point to his success with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery when he was the running backs coach and Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams as the receiver coach. Plus, Jonathan Taylor gives Montgomery a lot of credit for helping him with the Colts. He’s taken a similar path to Dan Campbell’s to get to a head coaching job. He’s ready for it.
Linebackers coach Shaun Dion Hamilton
It might seem too early for him, and maybe it is, but it would not be a shock to see Shaun Dion Hamilton get some DC interviews this offseason. You can’t ignore the super-fast rise of this guy. He was playing for the Lions in 2021.
Then, in just a few short years, he went from a defensive assistant to the linebackers coach. That’s something that usually takes longer for most guys. Teams will want to talk to him, even if it’s just to give him some interview experience. Either way, look at Hamilton as if there is a clock above his head, because there is, especially when this linebacker corps keeps getting better and better.
Running backs coach Tashard Choice
Like Fraley, I would bet the Lions might throw a raise and promotion this guy’s way to keep him. Tashard Choice has done a phenomenal job with the Lions’ running backs, and he not only played a big role in Gibbs’ game in college but also helped Bijan Robinson in college.
Teams will consider a guy who can get their run game going for their OC jobs. If Sheppard winds up getting a head coach job this offseason, you can pretty much bet he’s taking Choice, his best friend, with him. He’d probably take Hamilton, too.