HEADLINES

Month: December 2024

Raiders Hire Mike Mayock As GM

December 31st, 2018 at 8:15am CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We heard yesterday he was getting an interview, and now the Raiders are making the hire official. Oakland is making Mike Mayock their new GM, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. 

Mayock will be replacing Reggie McKenzie, who was fired earlier this month. While Mayock will get the title of general manager, coach Jon Gruden will still have final say over all personnel decisions, meaning Mayock will be working under Gruden. Gruden’s second stint with the Raiders has already been sullied by frequent reports of internal discord, and it will be interesting to see how the new power structure gets along.

Mayock has worked with the NFL Network since 2004, and he’s currently serving as a draft analyst. The former safety has spent time as a commentator, analyst, and reporter for the NFL, CFL, and college football. The Redskins considered Mayock for their GM opening last offseason, but this will be Mayock’s first time working in a front office. While it’s an outside the box hire, it’s not unheard of. Two offseasons ago the 49ers hired John Lynch from the broadcast booth to be their new GM.

The Raiders are in the middle of a rebuild, and facing an extremely important offseason. Thanks to their 4-12 record they own the fourth overall pick, and they also have first round picks from the Cowboys and Bears thanks to the Amari Cooper and Khalil Mack trades. While Gruden will have final say, Mayock will play a large role in a draft that the Raiders must hit on.

 

Browns Have Reached Out To Mike McCarthy

December 30th, 2018 at 9:34pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

One of the league’s most high profile coaching candidates has already been contacted by the Browns. Cleveland has reached out to former Packers coach Mike McCarthy about their vacancy, a source told John Kryk of the Toronto Sun. 

With a franchise quarterback in place and a roster full of young talent, the Browns have one of the most attractive head coaching openings of the past few years. Plenty of candidates will be interested, and the Browns are reportedly planning on conducting an exhaustive search. Current interim coach Gregg Williams is expected to get an interview, but isn’t viewed by most to be a realistic option for the full time job.

As soon as Green Bay canned McCarthy, he became the hottest candidate around. He’s been linked to virtually every opening, although one report earlier today said McCarthy is likely to sit out the 2019 season. There were other reports that he was interested in the job in Arizona, and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network said recently that McCarthy “has been connected most to” the opening in Tampa Bay. While this is just a preliminary action, it seems like there’s a decent chance McCarthy could be pairing up with Baker Mayfield. While he was the subject of a lot of criticism the past few years, he’s still one of the most successful coaches to hit the open market in recent memory.

The Browns finished the 2018 season on quite a roll, going 5-3 after firing Hue Jackson, and became relevant nationally for the first time in many years. They’ll be one of the most buzzed about teams this offseason, and will have high expectations in 2019. They’ve also been linked to Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Iowa State coach Matt Campbell, and Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus recently.

Extra Points: Murray, NFL Draft, Brown, Giants, Butler, Raiders

December 30th, 2018 at 8:43pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Kyler Murray’s Oklahoma Sooners were eliminated from the College Football Playoff last night, and the watch is officially on to see whether or not he’ll enter the NFL Draft. Murray is a two-sport athlete who was drafted ninth overall by the A’s to play baseball. The A’s gave him a nearly $5MM signing bonus to play baseball, but his Heisman winning season has left open the possibility that he’ll decide to play football instead.

Speaking before the game against Alabama, Murray didn’t shut the door on an NFL career even though his baseball agent has insisted he’ll be playing pro baseball, saying “it’s never bad to have options” according to Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com.. It’s unclear where Murray might go in the draft if he declares, and reports have him going anywhere from early in the first round to late on Day 2. With spring training for MLB teams set to begin in just a couple of months, we should know more about his intentions very soon.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Speaking of the draft, today’s Week 17 slate gave us some much anticipated clarity about the 2019 NFL draft order. The top 18 is officially set, per ESPN, with the Cardinals picking first overall. The 49ers, Jets, Raiders, and Buccaneers will round out the top five. The Cardinals will likely have a new coach and possibly new front office making the decision, and plenty of the top teams could be looking to trade down with teams more in need of a quarterback.
  • Guard Jamon Brown has played well for the Giants since being claimed off waivers from the Rams earlier this year, but New York hasn’t tried to negotiate a new contract with him yet, a source told Matt Lombardo of NJ.com. Brown is set to be a free agent this offseason, and could land a decent sized payday. He’s been a solid starter in his career, but was waived by the Rams shortly after returning from a two game suspension.
  • Raiders tight end Paul Butler has been inactive for both games he’s been on the 53-man roster, but the team apparently thinks highly of him. Oakland promoted him from the practice squad because the Lions were trying to sign him away, a source told Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal (Twitter link). Butler is a rookie UDFA from tiny school California University of Pennsylvania.

Jets Fire Todd Bowles

December 30th, 2018 at 7:44pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

It’s been something of a formality for a while now but the Jets made it official moments ago, informing Todd Bowles he’d been fired, the team announced in a tweet.

In a statement seen in the tweet, Jets CEO Christopher Johnson said “I would like to thank Coach Bowles for his dedication to the New York Jets for the last four years,” Johnson said. “After carefully evaluating the situation, I have concluded that this is the right direction for the organization to take. I would like to wish Todd, Taneka and their family only the best.”

Another move that had been tentatively expected has now been confirmed, as the team will be keeping GM Mike Maccagnan for next season. The team announced Maccagnan “will work closely with owner Chris Johnson on the search for a new” coach, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Bowles did a good job hanging on as long as he did, as many assumed he would be a goner last year. Instead, he led the Jets to a surprisingly strong 5-11 record with Josh McCown and Bryce Petty, and was brought back for another year. Things got off to a great start with a huge win on Monday Night Football in Week 1 of this year, but as the losses eventually piled up it became increasingly clear Johnson wanted a different coach to pair with Sam Darnold for the future. Offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates is all but certain to be replaced, and it’s likely the team will want an offensive minded coach for Darnold. Bowles was highly regarded as the Cardinals’ defensive coordinator before he took over the Jets job, and will reportedly be a candidate in other teams’ searches this cycle.

As for his replacement, the team has been linked to Mike McCarthy in recent weeks. We heard yesterday that former Lions coach Jim Caldwell was also expected to be interviewed by New York. In addition to McCarthy and Caldwell, Jim Harbaugh has also been repeatedly linked to the team, although Jets CEO Christopher Johnson recently denied they were interested.

Coaching Rumors: Rex Ryan, Gase, Dolphins, Harbaugh, Broncos

December 30th, 2018 at 7:32pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

There will be a ton of coaching rumors in the coming days, and we’ve already seen our first post-season firing. We’ve got a whole new round of notes ready, including an interesting tidbit about a very high profile name. Former Jets and Bills coach Rex Ryan is reportedly telling potential assistant coach candidates that he expects to land an interview with the Dolphins, sources told Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.

Ryan is an out of left field name who hasn’t been talked about much recently, but he’s apparently eager to get back into coaching. One important caveat here is that there’s no guarantee Adam Gase gets fired by the Dolphins, but Ryan is apparently expecting him to. Salguero notes that Ryan is also a candidate for the University of Miami’s open job, and that Ryan is telling associates he has a “solid chance” to land one of the two jobs, but that he’d prefer the Dolphins one. If Ryan somehow ends up coaching the Dolphins next year, it’ll be the third AFC East team he’s led.

Here’s more on the coaching carousel:

  • Speaking of Gase, there have been conflicting reports about his job security recently. For his part Gase denied thinking about it much after his team’s blowout loss to the Bills, saying “I mean I’m not even thinking about that right now because we just got drummed on the road”, according to Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Wolfe also notes that Gase said he didn’t speak much with owner Stephen Ross, who was in the locker room after the game.
  • We heard earlier today that multiple teams were considering trying to trade for Ravens coach John Harbaugh, and now we have a better idea of which teams. The Dolphins and Broncos are two teams that have expressed interest in trading for Harbaugh, according to Roy Cummings of Florida Football Insiders (Twitter link). While he notes the Buccaneers haven’t yet been linked, he thinks they “could get into the mix” eventually. The Ravens won the AFC North today, but Harbaugh could still be available, especially if Baltimore goes one and done in the playoffs.
  • It’d already been reported that Ron Rivera was likely safe in Carolina, and now it’s official. New owner David Tepper has informed Rivera personally that he’ll be back coaching the team in 2019, a source told Albert Breer of SI.com (Twitter link). It was a disappointing season for the Panthers after they completely collapsed after jumping out to a 6-2 record, but the explanation of injuries and Rivera’s track record with the team saved his job for at least another year.

Buccaneers Fire Dirk Koetter

December 30th, 2018 at 6:21pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

And so it begins. The first postseason firing has been made official as the Buccaneers are relieving Dirk Koetter of his duties, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link).

The move had been widely expected, but there were some 11th hour reports that Koetter could possibly survive. It was reported earlier today that the team would be retaining Jameis Winston as their starting quarterback next year, but Koetter won’t get another year.

Bucs chairman Joel Glazer released a statement on behalf of the team (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network), saying “we sincerely appreciate the hard work and commitment shown by Dirk over the past several years. Working with Dirk has been a pleasure and we wish him and his family all the best in the future.” Rapoport notes in the same tweet that GM Jason Licht will conduct the coaching search, meaning his job is safe. Licht had been rumored to be on the hot seat as well, but has apparently been spared.

Koetter was a hot head coaching candidate a few years ago after he was widely credited with doing a great job coordinating the Falcons’ offense, but things never worked out in Tampa Bay. He went 9-7 his first year but that slipped to 5-11 last year, and he was very nearly fired at the end of last season. After the Bucs were unable to get Jon Gruden they stuck with Koetter for another year, and it’s been clear for a while now they were going to go in a different direction. They’ve been connected to Mike McCarthy recently, and we should know more about Tampa’s intentions soon.

Extra Points: Jets, Johnson, Jaguars, Yeldon, Fournette, Blount, Lions

December 30th, 2018 at 5:36pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

We heard yesterday he was being fired, and the Todd Bowles era ended in very disappointing fashion today. The Jets were destroyed by the Patriots by a final score of 38-3. The defense was shredded by Tom Brady, and the unit was without one of their top players in Trumaine Johnson. Johnson was a healthy scratch, and it was because he was a no show for meetings and practice this week, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN (Twitter link).

Johnson said after the game that he overslept and was late to practice on Wednesday, and that that’s why he was benched, according to Darryl Slater of NJ.com. Johnson was signed away from the Rams this offseason with a massive contract, and has mostly been a disappointment. He’s played pretty well overall, but not at the level to deserve the five-year $72MM contract New York handed him. While GM Mike Maccagnan likely wishes he had that one back, his contract makes it impossible to move on until 2020 at the earliest, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes. Jason Fitzgerald of Overthecap.com thinks the Jets might be “trying to set the stage” for a suspension of some sorts that could void guaranteed money in his contract. Any such actions would surely draw a stiff challenge from the player’s union.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Jaguars running backs T.J. Yeldon and Leonard Fournette were caught by TV cameras sitting on the bench for nearly the entire game today instead of standing on the sideline, and head of football operations Tom Coughlin ripped their actions after the game, per Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com. “I am disappointed in the behavior today from T.J. Yeldon and Leonard Fournette. They were disrespectful, selfish and their behavior was unbecoming that of a professional football player,” Coughlin said. While Fournette is locked into Jacksonville’s future with his fully guaranteed contract, Yeldon is set to be a free agent at the end of the year and is highly unlikely to be brought back.
  • LeGarrette Blount didn’t seem to have much left in the tank this year with the Lions, but the 32 year old bruising runner wants to play in 2019. Blount only averaged 2.71 yards per carry this year and was an afterthought in the offense when Kerryon Johnson was healthy, so Blount might not be able to find a team willing to bring him in this offseason. He had a very quiet market this past spring before Detroit eventually decided to give him a one year deal.
  • In case you missed it, Matthew Stafford isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Raiders Interviewed Mike Mayock For GM Job

December 30th, 2018 at 3:55pm CST by Ben Levine

As the Raiders search for a general manager to replace Reggie McKenzie, one “strong candidate” has emerged from the pack. Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter) that analyst Mike Mayock has interview for the team’s GM position is “firmly in the mix” for the open gig.

Garafolo cautions that Mayock is “one of a few” candidates for the position, noting that the Raiders have “kept their interviews quiet.” NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets that the Raiders have interviewed “at least one candidate who is a minority,” satisfying the Rooney Rule. Therefore, they’re allowed to make a hire at any time.

College scouting director Shaun Herock has been filling in for McKenzie as GM, and it sounds like the team could give him a look for the position. Current Raiders executive Joey Clinkscales could also establish himself as a candidate, especially after being listed on the Fritz Pollard Alliance’s annual list of minority candidates for general manager vacancies. However, the organization hasn’t publicly said that they’ll be keeping McKenzie’s former right-hand man.

We previously heard that longtime Giants general manager Jerry Reese had turned down the opportunity to interview for the Raiders’ GM opening. Other potential candidates include Jets director of player personnel Brian Heimerdinger, Jaguars player personnel director Chris Polian, Lions exec Jimmy Raye III and Gruden’s former Buccaneers coworker Mark Domenik.

As our own Rory Parks previously pointed out, it currently seems that whoever serves as the Oakland GM right now would be little more than a figurehead and a yes man for head coach Jon Gruden. Gruden’s second stint with the Raiders has already been sullied by frequent reports of internal discord, and it is likely that the club will have difficulty attracting an established GM candidate.

Mayock would seem to fit that bill. The 60-year-old has worked with the NFL Network since 2004, and he’s currently serving as a draft analyst. The former safety has spent time as a commentator, analyst, and reporter for the NFL, CFL, and college football. The Redskins considered Mayock for their GM opening last offseason.

Jaguars’ Coughlin, Caldwell, Marrone To Return In 2019

December 30th, 2018 at 3:02pm CST by Ben Levine

The Jaguars apparently won’t be making any sweeping changes this offseason. Owner Shad Khan announced that Tom Coughlin, general manager Dave Caldwell and head coach Doug Marrone will all return in 2019 (via the team’s Twitter account).

“I informed Tom Coughlin this week that I want him to see through our shared goal of bringing a Super Bowl title to Jacksonville,” Khan said in a statement. “Given our overall body of work over the past two seasons, I offered to Tom that I preferred entering the 2019 season with as much stability as reasonable or possible at the top of our football operation. However, those decisions, at all times, are Tom’s decisions, and I would respect any call he made on our general manager and head coach. I am pleased that Tom sees our situation and opportunity similarly, so we will return to work this week fully confident and optimistic with Dave Caldwell as our general manager and Doug Marrone as our head coach.

I have the same trust in Tom, Dave, and Doug as I did upon their introduction two years ago, and I do believe our best path forward for the moment is the one less disruptive and dramatic. Stability should not be confused with satisfaction, however. I am far from content with the status quo and while it’s best to put 2018 behind us, I will not overlook how poorly we accounted for ourselves following a 3-1 start. There were far too many long Sundays over the last three quarters of the season, with today’s loss in Houston being the final example, and that cannot repeat itself in 2019. That’s my message to our football people and players, but also our sponsors and fans, both of whom were remarkable.”

All around, the news isn’t all that surprising. Coughlin, who is serving as the Executive Vice President of Football Operations, all but has free reign over the organization, and he signed an extension back in February that would take him through the 2021 season. Caldwell, who has been the team’s general manager since 2013, also extended his contract through 2021 back in February.

However, there were some whispers that Marrone could find himself on the hot seat. We heard back in November that Marrone was safe, and the organization doubled down on that sentiment last week. There were some rumblings that Coughlin could actually make himself head coach of the Jaguars, but the organization appears to be content rolling with their current head coach. In two-plus seasons with the team, Marrone has helped guide the Jaguars to 16-18 record, and he led the team to an AFC Championship appearance last season.

While key members of the front office and coaching staff will return in 2019, the team could still see some major changes this offseason. The team could decide to find a replacement for quarterback Blake Bortles, and there have also been rumors that they’ll search for a new offensive coordinator. Nathaniel Hackett was fired from the role back in November.

Steelers WR Antonio Brown Won’t Play Today

December 30th, 2018 at 2:30pm CST by Ben Levine

The Steelers need a lot to go right today if they have any hope of making the postseason. Unfortunately, they’ll have to play today’s key game without their star wideout. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that receiver Antonio Brown is inactive for today’s game against the Bengals.

Brown missed several practices this week, and he was listed as questionable with a knee injury. The 30-year-old also underwent tests on the knee, with the injury ultimately keeping him out of his first game of the season. Brown was having another standout season for Pittsburgh, hauling in 104 receptions for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns. Of course, the Steelers still shouldn’t have a tough time against a Bengals team that has allowed the third-most passing yards in the NFL, especially with Ben Roethlisberger and JuJu Smith-Schuster still leading the passing attack.

While Brown is out for today’s game, Schefter reports that the Steelers will have running back James Conner. The 23-year-old hasn’t played since early December as he recovered from an ankle injury. In 12 games this season, Conner’s compiled 909 rushing yards and 12 rushing scores on 201 carries. He’s also added another 52 receptions for 467 yards and one touchdown.

The Steelers need more than a win today over the Bengals if they want to make the playoffs. Rather, they’ll also need the Ravens to lose to the Browns. Pittsburgh could also make the playoffs with a tie and a Ravens’ loss.

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