NFL rumors: Raiders GM candidate sparks more Ben Johnson buzz

With the Detroit Lions now out of the playoffs, coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn are now free to do in-person interviews for head coaching vacancies. Johnson has seemed to be a hot commodity around the league, and he was recently linked to the Las Vegas Raiders because of who they're interviewing for their general manager position.

“Raiders are interviewing former Lions executive and current Commanders assistant GM Lance Newmark today for their general manager job, per sources. Newmark spent 26 seasons in Detroit before joining Washington last year, and is said to have a strong relationship with both Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn,” ESPN's Adam Schefter wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Apparently, many people around the league have been looking at the pairing of Johnson and Newmark, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

“This is one to watch. A potential Ben Johnson-Lance Newmark pairing in Vegas is one that some around the league have been quietly monitoring for the last week,” Fowler wrote.

Though that may be a good pairing, Johnson has been linked to other teams such as the Chicago Bears and the Jacksonville Jaguars, two places where he may have much more success. Nonetheless, the Raiders have a top pick in the NFL Draft, and that may intrigue Johnson.

The Raiders offense definitely needs some work, and depending on what they do in the draft will be big for their future. For the Bears, they already have a solid offense in place with Caleb Williams at the forefront, and having a coach like Johnson could take his game to the next level. The Jaguars also have a nice offense and need a coach like Johnson to take them to the next level.

It'll be interesting to see what the coaching landscape looks like in the coming days, and where Johnson will land in the end.