The San Francisco 49ers search for a head coach does not appear to be all that close to ending, with word that Hue Jackson might have a new option to consider. ESPN's Josina Anderson is reporting that on Sunday, the New York Giants formally requested permission to interview Hue Jackson for their head coaching vacancy.
This report comes a day after Mike Silver and Jason Cole both suggested an interview would potentially happen. The difference is that Silver said the Giants were expected to request permission, and Jason Cole said they were expected to interview Jackson. There is no word on whether Jackson has agreed to an interview, but the process is developing.
I'm told the Giants are expected to request permission to talk to Hue Jackson tomorrow. But Browns, Niners may decide on 1st choice by then.
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) January 11, 2016
Insider Buzz: #Giants Expected to Interview Hue Jackson, 49ers Hire on Hold https://t.co/vPbFu89UhI via @bleacherreport
— Jason Cole (@JasonColeBR) January 11, 2016
If a formal request is in place, this goes beyond just using the Giants to create leverage. Mike Silver has repeatedly said no formal offers have been provided to Jackson. My guess is contract parameters were discussed, but things were relatively informal in that regard. This led to Matt Maiocco tweeting out an interesting analogy:
Making an offer to a head coach is like finding a spouse. You’re only going to officially propose when you already know the answer.
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoCSN) January 11, 2016
Maybe we'll see Jed and Trent fly a banner over Levi's Stadium formally asking Hue Jackson. In the meantime, the Giants job does have to be intriguing to Jackson. They have some cap space, Eli Manning remains a strong quarterback option, and it is New York.
One curious aspect to all this is the fact that the Giants waited so long to ask permission. If they were really interested in Jackson, wouldn't they have wanted to get an interview in earlier? Obviously it doesn't really matter now that the Bengals are out of the playoffs, but had they won on Saturday, the Giants would have lost their chance to interview him prior to their elimination. It's kind of odd that they would play it out like this.