Wade Phillips Won’t Interview for Bucs Job
Houston Texans Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips says he's staying put. He says he has changed his mind, and he will not interview for the head coaching job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Not long after he met with the local media and answered questions about his upcoming interview for the Tampa Bay head-coaching job, Wade Phillips had second thoughts.
Phillips says he contacted Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik and withdrew from consideration.
“I explained my reasons to Mark, and he understood,” Phillips said. “The timing just wasn’t right. The truth is I love it here. I love coaching for the Texans. We’ve got something magical going, and we want to keep it going.”
“I didn’t want to be a distraction, or a perceived distraction,” Phillips said. “Even though I would have been doing it (interview) on Friday night on my own time, I know some would have blamed me if we didn’t do well and I had interviewed for the job. At some point, you have to decide what you want to do, and I just decided that it’s important for me to be here right now.”
The Texans (11-6) are coming off their 31-10 wild-card playoff victory over Cincinnati. They play a divisional game at Baltimore on Sunday. If they win, they’ll advance to the AFC Championship Game.
Phillips helped the Texans improve from 30th to second in defense, including 32nd to third against the pass.
“I’ve been treated great here,” Phillips said. “Obviously, having my family close is important. Being close to my dad (Bum Phillips) had a lot to do with it.
“I feel comfortable with the decision. Houston’s the place I want to be.”
Wade Phillips and his father, legendary Houston Oilers coach Bum Phillips, are arguably the two most popular and beloved sports figures in Houston, now and ever.
Wade Phillips played football at the University of Houston in the 1960s and started his own coaching career with the Cougars under Coach Bill Yeoman. He later moved into the NFL as an assistant coach with the Oilers under his father.
Few people have ever been more warmly and lovingly embraced by their fans than these two men.
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