The Curse of Bobby Lane has finally…not lifted. In 2008, which otherwise should have marked the end of the 50-year-spell, the curse manifested itself into its most twisted form—They exited Lambeau Field on the back of a 0-16 season. An embarrassing feat on their bitter rivals’ home turf…Seventeen years later, it feels as if it was too good to be true, entering the playoffs with a 15-2 record. But the ‘313 grit’ mentality forced what was plenty of doom and gloom into its ultimate heartbreak — a 45-31 playoff elimination against the Washington Commanders on January 18, intensified by Lions’ coaches who were reportedly more interested in securing their own future, over their teams’, as alleged by the Mane Gang…

But before we get to the meat of the story, let’s get one fact clear: Multitasking is the way of life, especially when it comes to the NFL. But, how far can one multitask before it becomes a controversy? Well, just ask the Detroit Lions’ fandom and Rob Gronkowski, and they’ll tell you exactly how. Notably, less than 48 hours after the Lions were rendered out of playoff contention, Ben Johnson left his offensive coordinator role for a head-coaching job with the Chicago Bears. What’s more?

The team’s defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn also followed suit, with a probable HC position with the New York Jets, as per USA Today, deepening the cloud of detest among fans, although no rules were broken per se.

As per the league’s official rulebook, assistants on playoff teams can participate in virtual interviews—but only for three hours at most per team, at a time (including meals and any other process). And, clearly, the Lions’ coaching staff put that to excellent use. During the team’s bye week, Johnson virtually interviewed for head coach vacancies with the Bears, the Las Vegas Raiders, the New England Patriots, and the Jacksonville Jaguars. “It went great and that’s the end of it,” the former OC told media without divulging much details.

Glenn, on the other hand, sat for multiple virtual interviews with the Bears, Jaguars, Raiders, the New Orleans Saints, and the Jets. The result? Disgruntled fans started calling them out after the loss, alleging that they were more focused on interviews than their game plans. Johnson and Glenn’s comments about the interviews further fueled the allegations. “This go-around, I’ve been a lot more prepared for the types of questions that they’ve been asking,” Johnson said about his third hiring cycle. But not everyone is convinced, including retired Patriots tight end…

On January 28, the 4x Super Bowl champion sat down with USA Today Sports’ Mackenzie Salmon, when the latter asked, “Do you think that there were any distractions or there may have been distractions on and off the field [amidst the] Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn…head coach interview chaos? Also, do you think the NFL should implement a rule where coaches, even OCs and DCs, shouldn’t be able to interview during the season, or do you feel like that it’s okay?”

To this, Gronk responded, “I think there should be a rule that’s implemented for sure. Because it can be a distraction. The media can try to make it a distraction.” The 35-year-old also gave a personal account of having gone through the same situation. “But I’ve been a part of those situations before and it depends on how they handle it. I’ve been a part of it here in New England where Bill O’Brien became the head coach of Penn State while we were in the playoffs…But he didn’t let it be a distraction. He did it on his little time off, when we had the bye, or the day that we had off.”

“If you make it a distraction—you’re talking about it and you’re making comments in the media about it, then…it can become a distraction. It’s all about the way that you handle it…I feel like all these coaches, they’re professionals out there. And if they handle it the wrong way as an offensive coordinator or a defensive coordinator, then I don’t think [them] being a head…coach would really be the right route to go because they couldn’t even handle it while they were a defensive or offensive coordinator.”

“So, it kind of should be a rule to implement it because it just can…I feel like it’s only really a distraction on the outside with the media. But inside, these guys are professionals. They know how to handle their jobs. They know how to handle their situations to where they do get a job,” the retired veteran concluded.

Top Comment by Max patrick

Bad calls bad game who wouldn’t be distracted they all looked flat distracted new coaches will do fine trust Dan...more

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Having said that, it seems Johnson and Glenn weren’t the only coordinators busy interviewing for head coaching jobs before a playoff game…

Eagles OC Kellen Moore (Cowboys, Jaguars, Saints), Bills OC Joe Brady (Bears, Jaguars, Saints), Chiefs OC Matt Nagy (Jets), and Chiefs DC Steve Spagnuolo (Jets, Jaguars, Raiders) have reportedly also appeared for interviews. Commanders’ offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, on the contrary, is still waiting until the season is over to appear for meetings, so he can focus on the playoffs.

As for Johnson, his offense scored only 31 points in their divisional game. While the Commanders ran riot on the Lions’ defense that allowed 38 points, seeing how things ended with Johnson moving to Windy City, Lions star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown sent a stark warning to Johnson before the 2025 season.

Amon-Ra St. Brown wants Ben Johnson to stay beware of the Lions

When it certainly looked like Johnson was probably heading to Las Vegas under Tom Brady’s ownership, he surprised everyone by accepting the Bears’ job, who had just finished last in the NFC North. Well, that led to St. Brown sending a warning to Johnson about what could happen the next time they faced off against each other.

On his St. Brown Podcast, the Lions receiver said, “I told him. Two times a year, Ben, we’re going to f— you up.” His message was clear on what Johnson needs to prepare for in his new home in Chicago. But Johnson isn’t someone who would bow down and accept the challenge. He also replied, “I am going to f— you up,” as per St. Brown.

Well, that back-and-forth friendly chatter didn’t stop there as Brown further added on what could give him an edge over his former coordinator: “I told him I know all the plays he likes to run. I know all his tendencies, and we were going back and forth messing around.” It seems Johnson needs to think of some fresh ideas with Caleb Williams as the face of his Bears offense. Otherwise, it could be St. Brown who will have the last laugh in their friends to foe challenge.