The NFL's coaching carousel continues to spin, and a new name has been circulating in rumors over the weekend -- Montreal Alouettes head coach Marc Trestman.
After failing to lure Oregon Ducks head coach Chip Kelly away from college football, the Cleveland Browns scheduled an interview with Trestman on Monday. Trestman will also interview with the Chicago Bears on Monday, as the Bears continue to look for Lovie Smith's replacement.
While most NFL fans are familiar with many of the rumored names involved in this year's coaching carousel, not much is commonly known about Trestman, which begs the question: who is Marc Trestman?
Trestman currently serves as head coach for the Montreal Alouettes in the Canadian Football League. Trestman has held that position since the 2008 season, and has led Montreal to a 64-34 record, four Grey Cup appearances and two Grey Cup titles in that time. Trestman was named the CFL's 2009 Coach of the Year.
Prior to serving as Montreal's head coach, Trestman bounced around the NFL and college football as an assistant coach. Trestman's first coaching opportunity was in 1981, when he served as quarterbacks coach for the Miami Hurricanes. While at Miami, Trestman helped develop Bernie Kosar, as Kosar led the Hurricanes to a national title.
After stints with the Minnesota Vikings and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Trestman went to Cleveland, where he served as the Browns quarterbacks coach in 1988 and offensive coordinator in 1989 -- where he was reunited with Kosar.
Trestman is known for his work with quarterbacks. In addition to Kosar, Trestman coached Steve Young when he served as San Francisco's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 1995-96, crafting the NFL's top offense in 1995. Trestman served as the Oakland Raiders' quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator in 2002, when Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon won the MVP award.
An offensive-minded coach who has had success with quarterbacks, Trestman's appeal to both the Browns and Bears is obvious. Cleveland and Chicago's offenses ranked in the bottom half of the league in passing yards per game -- and both offenses also ranked in the bottom half of the league in scoring.