Report: Mike Mularkey offered contract extension

Ian Rapoport is reporting that Mike Mularkey has been offered a contract extension and will be staying on board for the 2018 season.

This is going to be extremely unpopular with the fan base despite the relatively successful outcome to the 2017 season. Put simply, the offense and, more importantly, franchise quarterback Marcus Mariota’s development took major steps in the wrong direction this year. I went through the case for and against keeping Mularkey here, eventually coming to the conclusion that I thought it would be best to move on. And that was before I watched him bumble his way through one of the most tone deaf press conferences I have ever seen.

That being said, we can only hope that Jon Robinson and Amy Adams-Strunk are pushing Mularkey to make staff changes. If he was going to make a change at offensive coordinator — or anywhere else for that matter, hi Jason Michaels — he had to get an extension first. Most good coaches aren’t interested in working for a lame duck head coach. We have to hope that his press conference comments were more about protecting his coaches from the media than honest evaluations about their performances. Change is needed and we all know it. Hopefully Mularkey knows it too, but if he does, he sure has a funny way of showing it.