2019 January - Pro Football Rumors

Browns Hire Ex-Cardinals DC Al Holcomb

January 16th, 2019 at 6:21pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Browns have hired former Cardinals defensive coordinator Al Holcomb as run game coordinator/linebackers coach, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Cleveland hired ex-Arizona head coach Steve Wilks as its new defensive coordinator earlier this week, so it’s no surprise to see Holcomb follow him to the Browns’ staff. Wilks and Holcomb’s history together dates back to 2013, when Wilks served as the Panthers’ assistant head coach/defensive back while Holcomb was Carolina’s linebackers coach. Holcomb continued to work under Wilks when he was promoted to the Panthers’ DC role in 2017, and followed him to the desert last season.

In Cleveland, Holcomb will helm a linebacker group that’s high on talent but lacked results last season, at least in the run game. While the Browns ranked 11th in Football Outsiders‘ adjusted line yards (meaning their defensive line was productive), the club finished next-to-last in second level yards, an indication that opposing running backs weren’t being tackled by Cleveland’s ‘backers. Joe Schobert, notably, tied for third among all defenders in missed tackles in 2018, but ranked second among linebackers in Pro Football Focus‘ pass coverage grades.

The Browns will also add Alabama defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi to their staff as defensive line coach, tweets Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports. Lupoi — who’d been with the Crimson Tide since 2014 — led a number of future NFLers at Alabama, but this will mark his first coaching gig in the pro ranks.

Broncos Hire Rich Scangarello

January 16th, 2019 at 5:55pm CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos have officially hired Rich Scangarello as their new offensive coordinator, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) first reported Scangarello was expected to land in Denver barring any snags in negotiations.

Scangarello had a strong first interview with Vic Fangio & Co. earlier this week and he’ll be back in the building for Round 2 on Wednesday. Scangarello has just four years of NFL assistant coaching experience, but he wowed Denver brass nonetheless, and the 49ers’ initial reluctance to let him interview with the Broncos shows how much he is valued.

In 2018, the Broncos finished 19th in total offense with 350.1 yards per game. Scangarello, or whoever the hire is, will be expected to draw them closer to the Top 10.

As shown in PFR’s Offensive Coordinator Tracker, Scangarello is the only known candidate at this time. Mike Munchak was thought to be in the mix after Gary Kubiak bailed, but he has since signed on to be the Broncos’ new offensive line coach.

Bears To Exercise Leonard Floyd’s Option

January 16th, 2019 at 5:47pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bears intend to exercise edge rusher Leonard Floyd‘s 2020 fifth-year option, general manager Ryan Pace recently told reporters, including Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link).

While the official figures for 2020 fifth-year options have yet to be revealed, Floyd’s salary should be roughly $13MM. That total will guaranteed for injury only, so if Floyd can’t pass a physical heading into the 2020 campaign, the Bears will be able to release him with no adverse salary cap consequences. NFL clubs have until May 2 to announce their option decisions for their respective 2016 first-round selections.

Floyd, the ninth overall pick in 2016, last year played in all 16 games for the first time in his career. While he managed a career-low four sacks, Floyd ranked 31st among pass rushers with 30.5 quarterback pressures, according to Sports Info Solutions’ charting data. He also put up nine tackles for loss, 11 quarterback hits, and graded as the NFL’s No. 45 edge defender among 105 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus.

Now that he’s completed his third NFL season, Floyd is eligible for a contract extension. But given that they have him under team control through 2020, the Bears figure to be deliberative with any negotiations.

Latest On Steelers WR Antonio Brown

January 16th, 2019 at 5:19pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Steelers owner Art Rooney II made news last week when he admitted it’s “hard to envision” wide receiver Antonio Brown being with the team in training camp following his late-season meltdown, and today Rooney elaborated on Brown and his status with Pittsburgh.

The Steelers have yet to engage in any trade discussions for Brown, Rooney said (Twitter link via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette). So far, both the Broncos and 49ers have been mentioned as possible contenders to acquire Brown, but no negotiations have taken place. Trade talks — if they do occur — are more likely to go down near the start of the new league year in March.

Brown isn’t necessarily a goner from the Steelers’ roster, as Rooney says he’s keeping all doors open, per Bouchette. However, there are “not that many signs out there that” Brown is going to offer any sort of apology. Rooney admitted he’s not exactly sure what caused Brown to sit out the Steelers’ final game of the season. “I’m very disappointed in where we are and what happened and don’t have a lot of good explanations for it,” said Rooney, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

If Brown is cut or traded before June 1, the Steelers will incur more than $21MM in dead money on their salary cap and gain just over $1MM in new space. If he’s designated as a post-June 1 cut or traded after that date, Pittsburgh will take on roughly $7MM in dead money in 2019 and ~$14MM in 2020.

Lions Hire Darrell Bevell As OC

January 16th, 2019 at 3:04pm CST by Zachary Links

The Lions have hired Darrell Bevell as their new offensive coordinator, the team announced on Wednesday. Bevell guided the Seahawks’ offense for seven seasons and oversaw the Vikings’ attack from 2006-10.

Bevell did not coach in 2018, but took part in some interviews during the last cycle, which included his Seattle ouster. It has been Bevell’s plan to coach in 2019, and he’s accomplished that by joining the Lions.

Bevell wasn’t necessarily known to be a leading candidate for the Lions’ job, but he either outshined other candidates or simply hung around long enough to watch the other ones sign elsewhere. Nathaniel Hackett and Todd Monken were both in the running for the job, but they’ve since hooked on with the Packers and Browns, respectively.

With Jim Bob Cooter at the helm in 2017, Matthew Stafford played some of his best football and the Lions finished out with the No. 7 scoring offense in the NFL. Last year, however, Stafford regressed hard. The Lions are hoping that Bevell will be the answer after the QB managed just 3,777 passing yards in 2018.

The Falcons and Jaguars also spoke with Bevell about their respective OC vacancies.

Latest On Seahawks’ Mychal Kendricks

January 16th, 2019 at 3:01pm CST by Zachary Links

Mychal Kendricks‘ sentencing date for his insider trading case has been moved from Jan. 25 to April 4, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. District court in Pennsylvania handling the case (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson). It’s a development that could impact Kendricks’ football future.

Previously, head coach Pete Carroll indicated that he would like Kendricks back in 2019, provided that a prison sentence did not interfere with his availability. Kendricks could be facing 30-to-37 months in prison, so there’s no way of knowing whether he’ll be able to play football again anytime soon. If he is imprisoned for 37 months, he’ll be 31 years old at the time of his release and three years removed from the game.

Of course, the later sentencing date further complicates matters. Kendricks will not realistically be able to sign a contract with a team or gear up for the 2019 season while his freedom hangs in the balance. In a best case scenario, Kendricks can hope for a slap on the wrist and the ability to market himself in the second wave of free agency.

Steelers’ Ryan Shazier Eyeing NFL Return

January 16th, 2019 at 1:33pm CST by Zachary Links

Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier has made tremendous strides in his rehabilitation and wants to continue forward in his recovery with an eye on playing football again, owner Art Rooney says (Twitter link via Ed Bouchette of the Post-Gazette). Shazier’s contract is up, so Rooney says the team would probably have to sign him as a player in 2019 in order for him to do that.

When Shazier was carted off of the field in December 2017, doctors feared that he might never walk again. After months of grueling rehab, Shazier is now able to walk with some assistance. All along, the linebacker has been hopeful about returning to the gridiron.

“There is no ceiling in Ryan’s recovery. He aggressively approaches it every day,” Steelers GM Kevin Colbert said in March of last year. “We support him in every way possible in that endeavor. Where that leads, only he will know and he will determine further down the road. His approach, his mental approach. I can’t tell you how impressive an inspiration he is to us.”

Last May, the Steelers converted $8.26MM of the linebacker’s 2018 base salary into a signing bonus. The move had no cap implications for the Steelers, but it allowed Shazier to collect on the bulk of his pay for the 2018 season immediately rather than waiting for it in increments throughout the year. It sounds like the Steelers are prepared to do right by him once again as he continues on his inspirational journey.

Bills Sign Jeremiah Sirles To Extension

January 16th, 2019 at 12:35pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bills signed offensive lineman Jeremiah Sirles to a one-year extension, the team announced on Wednesday. Given Sirles’ lack of playing time in 2018, the news comes as something of a surprise.

Sirles suited up in 12 games for the Bills and took most of his snaps at right guard. His 140 snaps were not enough to qualify for Pro Football Focus’ rankings, but if they were, Sirles’ score would have placed him in the bottom 25% of guards.

Before joining the Bills in September, Sirles spent the previous two years with the Vikings. Due to injuries, Sirles started ten games in 2016 and made four starts in 2017. The 6’6″ lineman also has experience at right tackle, though he has been playing primarily on the inside over the last two seasons.

Cardinals Interview Tom Clements For OC

January 16th, 2019 at 12:25pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cardinals interviewed longtime NFL assistant Tom Clements for their OC job on Tuesday, sources tell Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Cardinals have cast a fairly wide net in their search already, but Clements could conceivably get the nod over the rest of the pack.

Clements’ only experience as an offensive coordinator came in 2004-2005 with the Bills. However, he has coached a handful of Pro Bowl QBs, including Packers star Aaron Rodgers, so he could present himself as a strong choice to guide youngster Josh Rosen in Arizona. Even if Clements doesn’t get the OC gig, he’ll be in strong consideration for another job on the staff, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears.

The Cardinals also have former Lions OC Jim Bob Cooter and former Giants head coach Ben McAdoo in the mix. John DeFilippo interviewed for the job, but he has since been snatched up by the Jaguars. Kliff Kingsbury may also be eyeing Texas State head coach Jake Spavital for the position, but it’s not clear if he’ll get a formal interview or whether the Cardinals would be comfortable with an inexperienced 30-something OC.

Jets Rumors: Gase, Harbaugh, McCarthy

January 16th, 2019 at 12:10pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets’ coaching search technically started with the firing of Todd Bowles on Dec. 30, but they were mulling their options much earlier than that, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY hears. Although Bowles had a contract through the 2020 season, the Jets started doing their homework in mid-November after an embarrassing 41-10 home loss to the Bills.

Despite their denials, the Jets had early interest in Jim Harbaugh, Vacchiano hears. The Jets did background work on the Michigan head coach, but ultimately concluded that he wasn’t the right fit, possibly due to his desire for too much power, too much money, or a lack of desire to leave Ann Arbor.

Here’s more on how the Jets’ coaching search unfolded, plus other news out of New York/New Jersey:

The Jets started asking around about Mike McCarthy after he was fired by the Packers in December, but they were concerned about his sensitivity to criticism and how it might be amplified by the New York press, Vacchiano hears. There were also reports that McCarthy would consider sitting out the 2019 season, which may have given the Jets additional pause. McCarthy’s interview was not bad, per se, but Vacchiano hears that he did not hit it out of the park.
Adam Gase, on the other hand, leaped over McCarthy with a strong interview in which he displayed the energetic personality that the Jets wanted. Even though Gase went 23-25 in three years with the Dolphins, the Jets did not forget about his reputation as a hot offensive assistant just three years ago, Vacchiano writes.
New Jets defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has agreed to a three-year deal with the club, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Before the Jets hired him, the Redskins made a push to land him as their DC.