Jim Caldwell has been hired by the Detroit Lions to be their next head coach, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Caldwell spent the last two seasons as offensive coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens. He took over as head coach in Indianapolis when Tony Dungy stepped down in 2009, leading the Colts to a Super Bowl appearance in his first season. The Colts went 2-14 the following year when Peyton Manning missed the entire season, and Caldwell was fired.
For a while it seemed like Ken Whisenhunt would be a good fit for the Lions, but he agreed to become the head coach of the Tennessee Titans on Monday. The Lions announced that Caldwell was their man less than 24 hours after that move.
Detroit fans may view replacing Jim Schwartz with Caldwell as somewhat of a lateral move. Given the talent the Lions have on offense, it makes sense that the team would bring in an offensive-minded coach to take over. Time will tell if Caldwell is a significant upgrade or not.
