DETROIT – The Detroit Lions have lost offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to division rival Chicago Bears and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to the New York Jets after their heartbreaking playoff elimination at the hands of the Washington Commanders in the Divisional Round.
Both men took head coaching jobs with their respective franchises, leaving the Lions with a massive void to fill this offseason.
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However, according to NBC Sports, Michigan Wolverines legend and Detroit native Larry Foote is interviewing for the vacant defensive coordinator position.
Foote has been the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' inside linebackers coach and pass game coordinator since 2019, but his contract with the team is up.
Reports indicate that Tampa Bay wants to keep him, but the potential opportunity to return home is too good to be true.
Foote grew up in Detroit before attending Michigan from 1998-2001, where he was a four-year standout.
Foote started 28 out of 48 games for the men in maize, where he recorded 212 tackles, 145 solos, and 11 sacks. He also tacked on 53 tackles for losses for 155 yards, ranking him fourth in school history for stops behind the line of scrimmage.
As a junior, he was selected to the first All-Big Ten Conference team in 2000 and was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year during his senior season in 2001.
Also, in 2001, Foote was a first-team All-American, a second-team selection, and a consensus All-Big Ten Conference first-team honoree while receiving the Roger Zatkoff Award, the Wolverines' top linebacker.
The Pittsburgh Steelers selected him in the fourth round (128th pick) of the 2002 NFL draft.
The 13-year veteran won two Super Bowls, including XL, where he and fellow Detroit native Jerome Bettis took over Ford Field.
Foote played one season for the Lions in 2009 before rejoining the Steelers in 2010.
He finished his career with the Arizona Cardinals in 2014, finishing seventh in the Comeback Player of the Year award.
The franchise released him so he could start his next chapter as the Red Birds' assistant linebackers coach in 2015.
Foote was promoted to linebackers coach in 2016. In 2019, he joined the Buccaneers, where he won his third title alongside Wolverines legend Tom Brady in Super Bowl LV.
In 2024, Foote, fellow former Wolverines football players Braylon Edwards, Jake Long, and national champion coach Jim Harbaugh were selected to the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.
If he is hired as the Lions’ new defensive line coach, he will join fellow Buccaneers defensive line coach and run game coordinator Kacy Rodgers as their defensive line coach.
