When can Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn interview for head coaching jobs?

Sunday night’s game between the Detroit Lions and the Minnesota Vikings amounts to a playoff game. The winner wins the NFC North, and earns a first-round bye in the playoffs. The loser becomes the No. 5 seed, with a road game in the Wild Card Round. The difference in terms of the best chance to get to the Super Bowl is drastic, as expected.

The Lions’ coordinators, Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, will be in high-demand for head coaching interviews as more jobs come open within the next 24 hours or so. The question is whether one or both will leave the Lions after the season is over, not if they’ll have the opportunity. For all that’s out there about what Johnson wants if he takes a head coaching job, Glenn should be similarly discerning as opportunities come his way.

Of course assistant coaches on playoff teams have to navigate preparing for big games along with any interest they have from teams who are looking for a new head coach. There’s a strong case for changing the timing of the entire hiring cycle until after the Super Bowl, but it doesn’t seem likely to ever happen.

The stakes for the two teams on Sunday night are high, but the result of the game will also impact when their assistant coaches can interview for head coaching jobs.

When can Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn interview for head coaching jobs?

ESPN’s Adam Schefter took a look at how the outcome of Sunday night’s game will impact the timing of head coaching interviews for Johnson, Glenn and Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who are seen as three of the top candidates in the upcoming hiring cycle.

As Schefter noted, assistant coaches on the winning team Sunday night can do virtual interviews between Wednesday and the conclusion of the Wild Card games. Assistant coaches on Sunday night’s losing team can begin doing virtual interviews three days after their current team’s Wild Card game, and conclude them before the end of the Divisional Round games.

Only virtual interviews are allowed before the conclusion of the Divisional Round. In-person interviews can start afterward. Second interviews are not allowed until Jan. 27 for Super Bowl coaches, and they must be concluded by Feb. 2.

Writing more specifically about Johnson and Glenn as far as when they’d be able to interview for head coaching jobs, Dianna Russini of The Athletic added more dates for the process.

“If the Lions get the NFC’s No. 1 seed, Johnson and Glenn can interview virtually anytime between Wednesday and Jan. 13. If Lions lose on Sunday night and are playing on Wild-Card weekend, they can interview virtually three days after Detroit’s Wild-Card game, up until Jan. 19. In-person interviews can’t start until the Lions’ season ends, and no earlier than Jan. 20.”

These timelines for assistant coaches on playoff teams to be able to do head coaching interviews are not new, but they can be confusing to keep a complete grasp on year-to-year. The bottom line is Johnson and Glenn are sure to have full interview calendars, to the extent they want them, just like they’ve had previously.