Seahawks to interview Dan Quinn, four others for coaching job, reports say

SEATTLE – Five days after the stunning news that Pete Carroll was out as the Seahawks’ coach, there finally was news on who might become his successor.

And to no surprise, among those reportedly on the list of NFL assistant coaches Seattle plans to interview is Dan Quinn, the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator. Quinn is considered a favorite for the job due to his Seahawks ties – he was their defensive coordinator in 2013 and 2014 when Seattle played in the Super Bowl and was defensive line coach in 2009-10.

According to reports from ESPN, the NFL Network and SI.com, the Seahawks also submitted requests to interview five other NFL assistants — Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham and Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith.

Teams can conduct virtual interviews this week and in-person interviews beginning Monday with coaches who are employed by NFL teams. Teams can interview college coaches or those not employed in person at any time.

Here’s a breakdown of each candidate:

Dan Quinn

Quinn, 53, is widely expected to land one of seven current NFL head-coaching openings after deciding last year to stay with the Cowboys.

Though Dallas had a surprisingly tough ending to its season with a stunning 48-32 loss to the Packers on Sunday, Quinn is highly regarded for his long history of success as a defensive coordinator as well as a stint as the Atlanta Falcons’ coach in 2015-20 in which he led them to the Super Bowl following the 2016 season. He went 43-42 overall before being fired early in the 2020 season with the team at 0-5.

Quinn was immensely popular in the Seahawks locker room during his time as the defensive coordinator. They finished first in fewest points and yards allowed each season.

“A defensive mastermind,” former Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright once said of Quinn.

Quinn is close with Seahawks general manager John Schneider – who is heading the search – as well as many longtime members of the organization.

Seattle, however, will have competition for Quinn. The Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders and Los Angeles Chargers reportedly have also asked to interview him this week.

SI.com reported that Quinn’s interview with Seattle will be Thursday.

Raheem Morris

Morris, 47, has been the Rams’ defensive coordinator for three seasons but is best known for his head-coaching stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2009-11, when he went 17-31.

Morris also took over as interim coach of the Falcons when Quinn – with whom he has close ties going back almost three decades – was fired in 2020 and went 4-7.

Most of Morris’ coaching experience is on the defensive side. He also served as assistant head coach, receivers coach and passing game coordinator under Quinn with Atlanta in 2017-19.

Morris was an assistant for all of Quinn’s Atlanta tenure in 2015-20. Quinn took over as Atlanta’s coach following his two-year defensive-coordinator stint with Seattle.

Morris, a native of Irvington, N.J., played safety at Hofstra in 1994-97, overlapping during a time when Quinn was on the staff there as defensive line coach in 1996-2000.

Ejiro Evero

Evero, 43, just completed his first season as Panthers defensive coordinator after being the Denver Broncos’ defensive coordinator in 2022. He also was interviewed by the Falcons for their head-coaching position, the team announced Sunday.

Evero was a Los Angeles Rams assistant in 2017-21, serving as defensive passing game coordinator and secondary coach when L.A. won the Super Bowl following the 2021 season. He was a San Francisco 49ers assistant on Jim Harbaugh’s staff in 2011-14 and stayed on under Jim Tomsula in 2015 in several different roles.

The Broncos ranked seventh in fewest yards allowed in 2022, and the Panthers were fourth in 2023 despite finishing 2-15. During his year in Carolina, the team’s general manager was Scott Fitterer, a longtime Seahawks personnel exec who was fired after the season but has a close relationship with Schneider.

Evero was born in Colchester, England, but grew up in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., where he attended Alta Loma High School. He played college football at UC Davis, starting at safety for three seasons and was named a Division II All-American twice. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Raiders in 2004 before moving into coaching.

Frank Smith

Smith, 42, has primarily an offensive background. He has worked as the offensive coordinator the past two season for the Dolphins under coach Mike McDaniel.

He also has been the assistant offensive line coach of the Saints in 2010-14, tight ends coach for the Bears in 2015-17, tight ends coach of the Raiders in 2018-20 and run game coordinator and offensive line coach for the Chargers in 2021.

Smith was a three-year starter on the offensive line for the University of Miami (Ohio) in 2001-03 when the team’s quarterback was Ben Roethlisberger.

The Dolphins led the NFL in yards gained this season and were second in points scored before losing a wild-card game Saturday to the Chiefs, 26-7.

Mike Kafka

Kafka, 36, has been the Giants’ offensive coordinator the past two years. He played quarterback at Northwestern and was on and off NFL rosters in 2010-15. He played in four games for the Eagles in 2011.

He made his name as a coach with the Chiefs in 2017-21, beginning as offensive quality control coach, working his way up to quarterbacks coach and adding the title of passing game coordinator in 2020- 21.

The Giants struggled offensively in 2023, finishing 29th and 30th overall in yards and points. But Kafka earned praise for his work with quarterback Daniel Jones in 2022 when New York reached the divisional round of the playoffs after finishing 18th in yards, 15th in points, fourth in rushing offense and fifth in average yards per rush.

The NFL’s Rooney Rule requires teams to interview at least two external minority candidates for head-coaching vacancies. Interviews with Morris and Evero would appear to fulfill that requirement.

Patrick Graham

Graham, 44, has been the defensive coordinator of the Raiders the last two years but has been a DC for each of the last five years, including the 2019 season with the Dolphins and 2020 and 2021 with the Giants.

In 2020, he coordinated the defense that memorably held the Seahawks to a season-low 12 points in a 17-12 Giants win at Lumen Field.

Graham was a defensive lineman at Yale before embarking on his coaching career, and was with the Patriots in several different defensive coaching roles from 2009-15 before joining the Giants. His tenure with the Patriots included serving as linebacker coach in 2014 when New England beat Seattle in the Super Bowl.

Graham led a Raiders defense that this year allowed the ninth-fewest points in the NFL, which included holding the Chiefs to 14 points in a 20-14 win in Kansas City on Christmas Day. Las Vegas won three of its final four games under interim coach Antonio Pierce.

The NFL’s Rooney Rule requires teams to interview at least two external minority candidates for head-coaching vacancies. Interviews with Morris, Graham and Evero would appear to fulfill that requirement.