Have you ever hired anyone for an executive level job? Have you ever been interviewed for a C-level job? I was successful at both of those, so I know how that part of the real world works.
It is more nuanced and subtle than that.
Part of the interview process is getting to know the candidates’ motivations, their priorities, what makes them tick. You find out what they’re looking for, what they want, their working style and how they’re going to fit in. Very importantly, you want to know what’s going to make them happy and what is going to make them feel successful and give them job satisfaction.
There are two reasons someone leaves their job: unhappiness with it, and attractiveness of a new offer. There will always be both factors involved. If you do a good job of selection by making sure there’s a good fit and a good job of managing and rewarding them so they’re happy working for you there’s much less chance they’ll find something else more attractive. We know from the Raiders continued payout that financial rewards are not a significant short term factor.
If I were in Vrabel’s shoes interviewing Josh one part of the interview would be particularly intense, or possibly a bit brutal. That would be exploring what happened with Indianapolis. I’d certainly want to know what factors would make you renege on accepting a job offer, because I don’t want to have that happen to me. That conversation is going to tell me a lot about your values and what’s important to you, and those are going to be some of the same factors that will determine if you are happy and stay or leave a job once you have it.
Note that none of those are placing any restrictions on mobility. They don’t need to written into the contract. They’re part of getting to know the candidates and evaluating that their values are aligned with the organizational culture you’re trying to build. The point is to make a good selection, so you don’t have to handcuff them with contractual restrictions on their career growth.
OTOH the candidates know the dance too, and they can sit there and tell you what they know you want to hear while being ready to pivot in an instant as Josh did with Indianapolis. But they also know the importance of loyalty, and Josh knows that not only is Indianapolis a blot in his copybook, he has two strikes on him from failed HC gigs in the past. He’d be rolling the dice big time to take the gamble of leaving his premier Patriots gig for another crack at HC in the NFL. If he didn’t succeed at his next try in that role he’s pretty much put himself into career hell. I think he’s too smart to fall into that trap now, even if he still has any appetite for the HC role. Maybe in a few years, if he has any such inclination, but not until the Raider money dries up.
