2015 January - Pro Football Rumors

AFC East Notes: Spiller, Jets, Hughes, Revis

January 16th, 2015 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

As we look forward to seeing whether the AFC East champs will represent the conference in this year’s Super Bowl, here are a few notes from around the division, on the Patriots and their rivals:

Recent reports have indicated that Chan Gailey is a top contender for the Jets‘ offensive coordinator position under new head coach Todd Bowles, and if Gailey does land in New York, the possibility of heading to a divisional rival may be of interest to Bills running back C.J. Spiller, as he tells Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. “There is that familiarity between me and him in that offense,” Spiller said. “So that would be a perfect match. Who knows what can happen, but I’d be foolish not to have those guys on my list. I had my best years in the league with Chan. So it’d be dumb not to give it serious thought.”
Jerry Hughes‘ value to the Bills may not be quite as high in Rex Ryan‘s system as it would have been in Jim Schwartz‘s, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com explains. Still, Hughes has proven his worth with consecutive seasons of double-digit sacks, and general manager Doug Whaley hopes to get something done with the edge defender. “I know [primary contract negotiator Jim Overdorf] has been in contact with his representatives and started the process,” Whaley told WGR 550 on Thursday. “We’re excited and we want him back. He’s a great addition to our defense and hopefully we can get this thing done sooner than later.”
Cornerback Darrelle Revis hates being saddled with the “mercenary” label, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, who says that two other AFC teams tried to sign Revis a year ago and were willing to offer more money than the Patriots did. With Revis expected to sign a new contract this offseason, Volin wonders if the veteran cornerback will once again accept less money to stick with the Pats.

NFL $100K Play-Action Contest At DraftKings

January 15th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Luke Adams

With the Packers, Seahawks, Patriots, and Colts vying this weekend for a spot in the Super Bowl, take your shot at a $100K prize pool in the latest NFL Play-Action Contest at DraftKings! The first-place finisher will win $10K, and the top 11,500 entrants will get paid. The entry fee is $2 – or free if you make your first deposit – and first-time depositors at DraftKings will also receive a 100% bonus up to $600.

The one-week contest for the NFL’s championship weekend gets underway this Sunday, January 18 at 3:05pm eastern time. It’s a salary cap style contest, so you’ll have a budget of $50K with which to fill nine lineup spots — one QB, two RBs, three WRs, one TE, one Flex, and one Team Defense. Here’s a look at my current roster, for example:

Sign up for the $100K DraftKings NFL Play-Action contest today for your chance at the $10K first-place prize!

This is a sponsored post from DraftKings.

Coach Notes: Broncos, Gase, Tarver, 49ers

January 15th, 2015 at 10:59pm CST by Luke Adams

While not all teams are overly transparent during the process of searching for a new head coach, the Broncos were willing to announce their first formal interview before it was even finished today, tweeting that offensive coordinator Adam Gase was interviewing for the position. Word of Gase’s afternoon meeting with the Broncos was first reported by Mike Klis of the Denver Post, who adds that the club will talk to Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin on Friday and still hopes to hear back from Ravens offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak.

Here’s the rest of our latest round-up of coaching-related updates:

The Broncos will interview Bengals secondary coach Vance Joseph for their head coach opening, according to Mike Klis of The Denver Post. While most head coaching candidates make the step from the coordinator position, it is not unprecedented for position coaches to be hired as head coaches, as Klis notes. Mike Tomlin, John Harbaugh, Andy Reid, and, most recently, Jim Tomsula, all got their first head coaching gigs directly from position coach.
There’s still a very good probability that Vic Fangio and Ed Donatell end up with Washington, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
Former Raiders defensive coordinator Jason Tarver, whose contract expired this week, is expected to join Jim Tomsula‘s staff, though his role with the 49ers hasn’t been determined and nothing’s official yet, tweets Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
After losing Bill Callahan to Washington, the Cowboys named Frank Pollack their new offensive line coach, per Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com (Twitter link).
Meanwhile, the offensive line coach Callahan replaced in Washington, Chris Foerster, is headed to the 49ers, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).

Extra Points: Quinn, Austin, Falcons, Vikings

January 15th, 2015 at 10:05pm CST by Zachary Links

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has a lot of great things he can point to on his resumé, but he readily admits that he missed on Packers linebacker Clay Matthews when he was hit coach at USC. “Maybe because of the way he came up, it took him a long time to develop,” Carroll said, according to Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, “and didn’t recognize the great heart that he had, and unbelievable competitiveness and the great savvy that he demonstrates now. It’s really one of my big misses. I should have figured that out a lot sooner than I did. He made the rest of it history and been an extraordinary player ever since.” Matthews was a walk-on at USC and didn’t start at linebacker until his senior year. More from around the NFL..

The Falcons haven’t scheduled a second interview with Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn just yet, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter). An interview could happen Monday after Seattle’s game, however.
It’s a similar situation for the Falcons and Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (on Twitter). Austin, as our Head Coaching Tracker shows, has been a popular guy in recent weeks.
The Vikings have big fifth-year decisions to make on left tackle Matt Kalil and safety Harrison Smith, as Master Tesfatsion of the Star Tribune writes. Smith would be a no-brainer to exercise and possibly even incorporate the option into a long-term extension during the offseason. He’s a top five player at his position and will be one of the key pieces for this Vikings defense under head coach Mike Zimmer. Kalil, on the other hand, represents a tougher choice.
Bob Sturm of The Dallas Morning News doesn’t believe that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is really the team’s General Manager. Jones has final say over football matters, of course, but he doesn’t handle the day-to-day responsibilities that a GM would.
In a telephone interview with Lorenzo Reyes of USA TODAY Sports, ESPN NFL draft analyst Todd McShay gave his thoughts on Ohio State quarterback Cardale Jones. “There’s no question he has the physical ability to play in the league. He’s big, prototypical size. He’s bigger than what you look for. He has an NFL arm and can make all the throws and can do it with ease,” McShay said. “He’s deceptively mobile and strong as a runner. To me he’s an extremely raw version of a Ben Roethlisberger.” Jones likely agrees that he’s a little too green for the NFL, as he announced today that he’s staying in school.

East Notes: Cowboys, Rodgers, Bills

January 15th, 2015 at 10:02pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys will retain coordinators Rod Marinelli and Scott Linehan and that’s huge for them in the opinion of former quarterback Troy Aikman. “To maintain the continuity with those two coordinators, two outstanding coordinators, is very, very important for this team moving forward,” Aikman told KTCK-AM (via The Dallas Morning News) “Rod Marinelli, if he had left, I thought that would be a really big blow to that defense. Scott Linehan … he was outstanding all season long. To be able to maintain the running game at difficult points in games throughout the season. To still remain committed to it. We’ve seen, for a number of years, this team get away from the run game. This year’s edition never did. I think it’s a real credit to Scott Linehan.” More from both East divisions..

The Dolphins will not block Kacy Rodgers from taking the Jets‘ defensive coordinator job, according to Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald (on Twitter). However, as of tonight, the deal has not been finalized.
A lot of people are skeptical about the Bills‘ quarterback situation with EJ Manuel currently at the helm, but new coach Rex Ryan told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that he’s not concerned. “This is not just about one man or about one position,” Ryan said. “It’s about your team and more importantly the direction of your team, I think from ownership, to president [Russ Brandon], to Doug [Whaley], our General Manager. To me, it seems like everybody wants the same thing and they all feel like there is a certain way to get there. That’s where we are tied in and we are behind each other 100 percent. I think that’s something really important to me and obviously, I think, with the players we have as well, it is a great mesh.”
With the Cowboys in need of salary cap space, cornerback Brandon Carr could be released or forced to take a pay cut. Owner Jerry Jones sounds intent on trimming his income, which is set to count against the cap for $12.7MM in 2015. “Carr played well this year and I’m not as critical of Carr as others,” Jones said. “But that’s a lot of money. One thing that we just got to do is we’ve got to make sure that every way we can, we get the value for the money,” Jones said, according to Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News.
Eagles outside linebacker Connor Barwin hit his full escalator worth $900K, so his base salary for 2015 will rise from $5.5MM to $6.4MM, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan (via Twitter).
The Dolphins have 16 free agents this offseason and a dozen of them are unrestricted. James Walker of ESPN.com looked at one of those UFAs earlier today when he examined defensive tackle Jared Odrick. Odrick will probably get the most interest from teams with 3-4 schemes and Miami isn’t expected to make much of a push for him. The Dolphins need the cap space and Odrick’s spat with coach Joe Philbin doesn’t help his cause.

West Notes: Broncos, Kaepernick, Rams

January 15th, 2015 at 9:18pm CST by Zachary Links

Despite this year’s disappointing exit, Broncos CEO Joe Ellis still believes that Denver is a top contender and choice destination for prospective coaches. “We’ve got a lot of work to do but we have a good roster, we have depth and talent,” team president and chief executive officer Joe Ellis told The Associated Press. “And we get some of the injured guys back, Danny Trevathan, Brandon Marshall, who wasn’t 100 percent healthy last Sunday, so we should be optimistic. “And I think our fans should be optimistic about where we go next year.” More from the West divisions..

Colin Kaepernick is the last vestige of the Harbaugh Era in San Francisco and Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com wonders if his time with the 49ers could be in jeopardy. While the seven-year, $126MM deal makes him the face of the franchise on the surface, there is only about $13MM guaranteed in actuality.
Kaepernick is excited to see Jim Tomsula get the nod as 49ers head coach, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes.
Cardale Jones going back to school leaves one less quarterback option for the Rams in this year’s draft, writes ESPN.com’s Nick Wagoner. St. Louis is looking for a QB and the likes of Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston figure to be out of their reach.
Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn is considered one of the top candidates for a head-coaching job but he is unavailable for first interviews until Seattle’s season ends. In the interim, he insists that he’s focused on the task at hand, as NFL.com’s Dan Wesseling writes.
Raiders wide receiver James Jones told Fallon Smith of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter) that he’d be elated to have Marc Trestman as offensive coordinator.

49ers Notes: Tomsula, Smith, Harbaugh

January 15th, 2015 at 7:59pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers have a new head coach in Jim Tomsula, but he’d rather not be compared to his predecessor, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes.

“For whatever reasons, the job was open and I interviewed and that’s where it is. I get that. In terms of the fan base, I don’t believe I do anybody any good trying to justify anything. I’m not going to do that. I don’t have a bad word to say about anything that’s happened in the last four years. You can’t. We won a lot of games. We didn’t do what we were accustomed of doing (this year). I got it.”

“I’m not Jim Harbaugh. And Jim Harbaugh is not Jim Tomsula. I’m not trying to be that guy, and that’s no disrespect to him. I am comfortable with who I am. I’m very comfortable and I’m convicted in what I believe. I’m excited about it,” Tomsula said.

More from today’s presser in San Francisco..

49ers defensive end Justin Smith is reportedly set to retire after completing his fourteenth NFL season. GM Trent Baalke would ostensibly like to have him back in the fold, but he won’t start a full court press right away. The GM said that he plans to give him several weeks after the season ends before calling him to see if he wants to play, according to Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter).
It sounds like Baalke will have a big hand in the hiring of assistants, referring to it as “our staff,” as Maiocco tweets.
“[The] job was offered to one person and one person only, and that was Jim Tomsula,” Baalke said, according to Maiocco (link).
Team CEO Jed York said Tomsula is the head coach not just for one specific reason, but for his body of work and all he brings to the table, Maiocco tweets.
When asked if he has spoken with Harbaugh, Tomsula said “No, I haven’t. I have not,” according to Branch (on Twitter).
When he heard speculation in 2014 that he could be the next head coach of the team, Tomsula said it was “terribly uncomfortable” for him, according to Maiocco (link).

Minor Moves: Carter, Brown, Green

January 15th, 2015 at 6:39pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor moves..

The Vikings announced (on Twitter) that they have signed cornerback Jalil Carter to a reserve/future free agent contract. Carter played for the Toronto Argonauts from 2012-2014 and drew considerable NFL interest this offseason. Carter auditioned for the Chiefs, Giants, Broncos, and other clubs over the last couple of months.
The Panthers announced (on Twitter) that they have signed former Jaguars wide receiver Mike Brown to a futures deal. Brown had seven catches for 88 yards for the Jags in 2014 prior to being dropped from the 53-man roster and subsequently re-signed to the taxi squad.
The Bills announced that they have signed defensive back Jonte Green and guard Darryl Johnson to futures deals. Green, a sixth round pick of the Lions in 2012, played 24 games with seven starts over the 2012 and 2013 seasons with the Lions and totaled 38 tackles, one sack, seven passes defensed and one interception. Johnson originally came into the NFL as a UDFA with the Chargers after last year’s draft.
The Steelers signed Mitchell Van Dyk to a future contract for 2015, according to Howard Balzer of USA Today Sports (on Twitter). Van Dyk, a tackle, was a 2014 draft pick of the Rams.

Draft Notes: Thursday

January 15th, 2015 at 5:21pm CST by Zachary Links

The early entry deadline for the 2015 draft is tonight. Here’s a look at the latest underclassman who will be going pro..

Kentucky running back Braylon Heard announced his decision to declare for the draft, as Jonathan Lintner of the Courier Journal writes. Heard, 23, originally transferred in from Nebraska and started 10 games for UK, finishing with 366 yards rushing and four touchdowns. Heard rushed 77 times for 452 yards during the 2011 and 2012 seasons at Nebraska before joining the Wildcats.
UMass announced that junior tight end Jean Sifrin is going pro, as Daniel Malone of MLive.com writes. “As a program, we are very happy for Jean to have this chance to pursue his goals at the NFL level,” coach Mark Whipple said in a team release. “When we spoke, we told him that we supported his decision because of how it can benefit him and his family.” Sifrin doesn’t project as a top choice, but he could go higher than he would in most years thanks to a soft crop of tight ends.
Check out our updated list of early entrants here.

Giants Hire Steve Spagnuolo As DC

January 15th, 2015 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

4:05pm: The Giants have officially announced the hiring of Spagnuolo as their new defensive coordinator, along with Tim Walton as their secondary coach, tweets Dan Graziano of ESPN.com.

3:34pm: Six years after leaving the Giants to become head coach of the Rams, Steve Spagnuolo will be returning to New York to reclaim the defensive coordinator job he previously held with the team, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News, who reports (via Twitter) that Spagnuolo is the Giants’ DC pick.

Spagnuolo, who has worked for the Rams, Saints, and Ravens in various roles since he was last employed by the Giants, acted as Baltimore’s secondary coach in 2014. Given all the injuries sustained by members of the Ravens’ secondary, particularly at cornerback, Spagnuolo did an admirable job holding the unit together. Per Football Outsiders, the Ravens finished 15th in DVOA against the pass.

Pepper Johnson, Raheem Morris, and Dennis Allen had also been under consideration for the Giants’ defensive coordinator position, though Johnson was ruled out earlier today. The decision appeared to come down to Allen and Spagnuolo, with the latter having been considered the frontrunner to replace Perry Fewell throughout the process. For Allen, a defensive coordinator job may still be a possibility if and when John Fox lands the Bears’ head coaching position.