The Patriots’ head-coaching search ramped up Tuesday with a pair of unexpected interviews.

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Longtime NFL assistant and former XFL head coach Pep Hamilton interviewed for the job Tuesday, when the team also planned to meet with former Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, according to reports. Neither coach is currently employed by an NFL team.

It is unclear if Leftwich and Hamilton, both minorities, interviewed in-person or virtually. If they met the Patriots in person, the team will have satisfied the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which mandates franchises must conduct at least two in-person interviews with minority and/or female candidates for head-coaching jobs.

Hamilton, 50, last worked as the Texans’ offensive coordinator in 2022 and their passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2021. His prior stops include serving as an offensive coordinator for the Colts (2013-15) and at Stanford Uniersity. After getting fired in Indianapolis, Hamilton spent one season as an assistant head coach for the Browns and later the University of Michigan, before joining the XFL and briefly coaching quarterbacks for the Chargers all in 2020.

Leftwich last worked in the NFL in 2022, his final season as the offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay. He worked under former Bucs coach Bruce Arians from 2019-2022, a stretch that included a Super Bowl campaign in 2020 with former Patriots coach Tom Brady. All of Leftwich’s previous coaching experience came under Arians in Arizona, where he rose from coaching intern in 2016 to interim offensive coordinator in 2018.

The Patriots requested an interview with Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson this week, according to a source. As the Lions enjoy a first-round postseason bye, Johnson can interview virtually as soon as Wednesday, per league rules. He and former Titans coach Mike Vrabel are the only other known candidates for the Patriots’ job.

Vrabel is expected to interview with the Patriots this week, according to MassLive, and is widely considered to be the leading candidate. Vrabel will interview for the Bears’ head-coaching job Wednesday, per the Herald’s Doug Kyed, and can interview in-person any time given he is currently not employed by an NFL team.

According to league rules, in-person interviews with NFL coaches whose teams are not in the postseason cannot begin until Jan. 20. Most coaches in the playoffs cannot interview until three days after their season is over. However, the Patriots can conduct in-person interviews with coaches who are either unemployed or in the college ranks any time.

Otherwise, they are limited to virtual interviews this week with all coaches who are currently employed by other NFL teams.

The Athletic first reported Leftwich’s scheduled interview Tuesday, short before the NFL Network reported Hamilton met with the Patriots.