The New York Jets interviewed Washington Commanders defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. on Sunday for their open head coach position.
Whitt is in his first season as the Commanders’ defensive leader, and his defense helped the team secure five turnovers in their surprising 45-31 victory over the Detroit Lions on Saturday night, which earned Washington a spot in the NFC championship for the first time in 33 years.
Whitt is the 16th candidate to interview for the Jets’ head coaching role, with 15 others also interviewed for their general manager position.
At 46 years old, Whitt joins a long list of candidates for the job, including Brian Flores, Aaron Glenn, Jeff Hafley, Vance Joseph, Mike Locksley, Josh McCown, Matt Nagy, Ron Rivera, Darren Rizzi, Rex Ryan, Bobby Slowik, Arthur Smith, Steve Spagnuolo, Jeff Ulbrich, and Mike Vrabel.
Vrabel has already been hired by New England as head coach, and Ulbrich, who served as the Jets’ interim head coach for 12 games after Robert Saleh was fired, has been hired by Atlanta as its defensive coordinator.
Whitt has a history of working with Commanders coach Dan Quinn. In 2020, Whitt worked with Quinn in Atlanta as the Falcons’ pass game coordinator and secondary coach. Later, Whitt joined Quinn again in Dallas, where Quinn was the defensive coordinator. When Quinn took the head coach position in Washington, he hired Whitt as the defensive coordinator.
Before moving into coaching in the NFL, Whitt, a former wide receiver at Auburn, began his coaching career at the college level, with stops at Auburn, The Citadel, and Louisville. He got his first NFL coaching job in 2007 as the assistant defensive backs coach for Atlanta under Bobby Petrino. After that, he worked with Green Bay and Cleveland before returning to Atlanta.
