HEADLINES

Month: September 2024

Coaching Rumors: Colts, 49ers, Dolphins

January 15th, 2019 at 10:21am CST by Zachary Links

The Colts are letting offensive line coach Dave DeGuglielmo go elsewhere, sources tell Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Even though the Colts’ OL improved greatly in 2018, head coach Frank Reich wants to bring in his own guy, Garafolo hears. DeGuglielmo, who was originally selected by would-be coach Josh McDaniels, is being recommended by Reich to other coaches around the league.

The move comes as a surprise given the results that DeGuglielmo was able to get out of his group last season. However, Reich and DeGuglielmo were not on the same page. You can expect a healthy market for DeGuglielmo’s services and he shouldn’t be unemployed for long.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • Broncos defensive coordinator Joe Woods will interview with the 49ers on Tuesday, Mike Klis of 9News tweets. Woods is not expected to return under new head coach Vic Fangio, but he’s not receiving DC interest from other teams either. In addition to the SF interview, Woods has also spoken with the Redskins and Cardinals about positions on their staff.
  • New Jets coach Adam Gase says he did not ask for control of the 53-man roster (via Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald). He also says that he never requested that power with the Dolphins; rather, it was something offered up to him during negotiations with Miami.
  • Terry Robiskie is expected to become the Jaguars‘ new running backs coach, according to Alex Marvez of SiriusXM (on Twitter). Robiskie has played and coached the position before at the NFL level and the Jags apparently believe that he can get the most out of star rusher Leonard Fournette.

Chiefs Activate LDT, Cut Parker

January 15th, 2019 at 10:01am CST by Zachary Links

The Chiefs activated guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif in advance of Sunday’s AFC Championship tilt against the Patriots (Twitter link via Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star). To make room for him on the roster, the Chiefs cut safety Ron Parker. 

Duvernay-Tardif was forced to go on injured reserve in early October with a fractured fibula. In late December, however, he was designated for return.

Andrew Wylie has been Kansas City’s primary starter in Duvernay-Tardif’s absence. Things have gone well enough with Wylie in the front five, but the Chiefs’ best offensive line configuration has LDT, a recent medical school graduate, in the mix.

Parker, 31, has been with the Chiefs since 2013, although his KC run was briefly interruped in the offseason when he was released from a five-year, $30MM deal and later brought back at a lesser rate.

In the 2018 regular season, Parker wound up starting 14 of his 15 games and amassed 77 tackles, two interceptions, and a sack.

Cowboys’ Jerry Jones On Elliott, Linehan

January 15th, 2019 at 9:47am CST by Zachary Links

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is determined to hammer out new deals with running back Ezekiel Elliott, quarterback Dak Prescott, edge rusher Demarcus Lawrence, and cornerback Byron Jones. However, he’s stopping short of any guarantees on those fronts. 

“I want him in the short-term and the long-term,” Jones said of Prescott in a radio interview (Twitter link via Jon Machota of the Dallas News).

He expressed the same sentiment about Elliott, Lawrence, and Jones while tempering expectations.

“Now, getting [those contracts done]…hell, I want a bigger boat,” said Jones.

This was an up-and-down year for Prescott, but the Cowboys seem committed to moving forward with the 25-year-old (26 in July). As it stands, they have the former fifth-round pick under contract for an $816K cap figure through 2019, which should work to the team’s advantage – given his relative lack of earnings to date, Prescott may take the security of a below-market long-term deal over the gamble of free agency next year.

New deals for Elliott and Lawrence will be expensive propositions, but the Cowboys are planning to devote a big chunk of their $54MM+ in cap space towards keeping the band together.

Later in the interview, Jones declined to give offensive coordinator Scott Linehan a vote of confidence.

“This is the time when these things are thought about,” Jones said when pressed on Linehan’s future (Twitter link). “This is the time when you may see an opportunity next week that you didn’t know existed next week, in the area of personnel or the area of coaching.”

Former Bucs DC Mike Smith Retires

January 15th, 2019 at 8:46am CST by Zachary Links

Former Buccaneers head coach Mike Smith says that he will no longer pursue coaching opportunities (Twitter link via SiriusXM’s Alex Marvez). The 59-year-old says it’s time “to do something different” in his life after 36 years in the profession. 

Smith’s last stop came with the Bucs, but that ended when they made a change at DC just weeks into the season. At the time, Tampa Bay had one of the league’s worst defenses with 34.6 points allowed per contest and 82 points allowed over its past two games under Smith. The Bucs’ matador D was on pace to allow the most points in NFL history, so Smith’s October dismissal did not come out of the blue.

Smith began his career as a graduate assistant at San Diego State in 1982. In 1999, he crossed over to the professional ranks as an assistant with the Ravens. His first big break came as the Jaguars’ defensive coordinator in 2003, and he parlayed that into a long run as the Falcons’ head coach beginning in 2008.

We here at PFR wish Smith the best in retirement.

Coaching Rumors: Rizzi, Dennison, Browns

January 14th, 2019 at 9:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

Darren Rizzi interviewed for the Dolphins coaching job that is likely to go to Brian Flores, but the special teams coordinator is a coveted commodity around the league. The Packers are set to interview him, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. Miami wants to retain Rizzi, who has been with the team throughout the 2010s, but has given him permission to seek employment elsewhere. That may soon prompt an extensive interview circuit. Five teams are interested in bringing him aboard, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets. The Vikings look to be one of those. Rizzi, 48, has only coached for one NFL franchise. His pre-Dolphins gigs were college jobs in the northeast, including a one-season stay (2008) as Rhode Island’s head coach.

As week three of many teams’ offseason begins, here is the latest from the coaching circuit:

  • Todd Monken‘s rise to Buccaneers play-caller earned him interest in teams’ OC jobs. He ended up landing with the Browns, but the other recent play-caller on this staff will call Cleveland’s plays next season. Freddie Kitchens will be the game-day director for the Browns’ offense next season, Pat McManamon of ESPN.com notes (on Twitter). This won’t be too new for Monken, who spent the first two seasons as Bucs OC watching Dirk Koetter call plays.
  • The Vikings announced Klint Kubiak (quarterbacks coach) and Brian Pariani (tight ends) are following Gary Kubiak to Minnesota, with the latter’s official title being assistant head coach/offensive advisor. Expected to be part of the Gary Kubiak gang getting back together up north, Rick Dennison was not included in this announcement. But Mike Klis of 9News notes the former Broncos and Bills OC is indeed believed to be part of the next Vikings staff (Twitter link). When Kubiak agreed to reprise his longtime role as Broncos OC, he wanted Dennison to oversee the team’s offensive line concepts, per Klis. The Broncos’ pursuit of Mike Munchak overruled this, and Dennison — the Jets’ O-line coach in 2018 — could be set to have a role in aiding the Vikings’ blockers next season.
  • Speaking of Munchak, the Broncos went beyond their usual offensive line coach budget to bring him over from Pittsburgh, Klis notes (on Twitter). Munchak, who has coached for just two franchises (the Oilers/Titans and Steelers), has family in the area.
  • The Steelers promoted Shaun Sarrett to replace Munchak as their O-line coach, the team announced. Sarrett had previously served as the team’s assistant offensive line coach. He has been with the Steelers for seven seasons, helping instruct their offensive linemen for most of that time.
  • After the Steelers let running backs coach James Saxon go, he will move to Arizona. The Cardinals are hiring Saxon to coach their running backs, Aditi Kinkabwala of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). He will replace Kirby Wilson and attempt to revive Arizona’s No. 32-ranked ground game. Saxon has 19 years’ experience coaching running backs in the NFL — the past five with the Steelers, where he oversaw Le’Veon Bell‘s rise and James Conner and Jaylen Samuels‘ quality replacement efforts — and should help rookie NFL coach Kliff Kingsbury.
  • Kris Kocurek will move from south Florida to the Bay Area, shifting from the Dolphins’ defensive line coach to the same role with the 49ers, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM tweets. Kocurek, 40, was the Lions’ D-line coach for nine seasons prior to moving to Miami.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/14/19

January 14th, 2019 at 8:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Monday’s reserve/futures contract decisions:

Dallas Cowboys

Los Angeles Chargers

  • K/P Ty Long

New England Patriots

  • OL Ryker Mathews

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Bills, Browns Interview Joe Philbin

January 14th, 2019 at 7:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

In addition to interviewing with the Vikings, Joe Philbin took part in meetings with the Bills and Browns, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports.

The interview with Minnesota was for the franchise’s offensive line coach job; it’s not clear what position(s) Philbin discussed with Buffalo and Cleveland. The latter, however, filled its offensive line coach position with James Campen on Monday.

The Browns fired O-line coach Bob Wylie last week. After firing Juan Castillo, the Bills are still believed to need an offensive line coach. Buffalo also appears to have, according to Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (on Twitter) parted ways with assistant O-line coach Andrew Dees and offensive assistant William Vlachos.

Philbin spent the 2018 season as the Packers’ offensive coordinator and interim head coach. Green Bay interviewed Philbin and hired Matt LaFleur for the full-time HC job, triggering an extensive Philbin interview circuit. The 57-year-old coach served as the Packers’ OC twice and was the Dolphins’ head coach from 2012-15. He coached tight ends and the offensive line in Green Bay and coached Indianapolis’ O-line from 2016-17.

Raiders To Discuss Playing 2019 In Oakland

January 14th, 2019 at 7:32pm CST by Sam Robinson

After the city of Oakland’s lawsuit against the Raiders and NFL, the chances of the team finishing its lame-duck stay in Oakland decreased significantly. But there remains a chance the Raiders stay in their home market for one more year.

The Raiders will meet with the Coliseum Authority one more time to discuss the team playing at its longtime home stadium in 2019.

“Yes, there still is a possibility that an agreement can be reached. Not sure what the odds are, but still possible,” Coliseum Authority executive director Scott McKibben said, via the Bay Area News Group’s Jon Becker. “Once the Raiders have completed all their research on other places we will sit down and talk one last time.”

While the Raiders have been searching for other sites, having been most connected to the San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Park, the prospect of remaining in Oakland was not completely scrubbed, either. Mark Davis has not been a proponent of sharing Levi’s Stadium with the 49ers. Though, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports the Raiders’ most likely 2019 home is AT&T Park or Levi’s Stadium.

A tentative lease for one more Coliseum season existed, per Becker, but the lawsuit nixed that. Said lease was going to more than double the Raiders’ rent for 2019. The Raiders paid $3.5MM in rent this season, Becker reports. Under the tentative agreement, that would have spiked to $7.5MM, with an option to play the 2020 season in Oakland in the event the Las Vegas site was not ready for play yet. The NFL wants the Raiders to make this decision by Super Bowl LIII or shortly after.

The Raiders have not yet discussed a deal with San Diego, but they continue to monitor Qualcomm Stadium as an option, per La Canfora. However, the league office is not sold on that option. Reno, Nev., remains a possibility as well, JLC adds. The London option is now seen as untenable, he notes, adding that Reno would also cause more issues than a season in Santa Clara, Calif., would.

The 49ers still have territorial rights to San Francisco, which could pose a problem for a Raiders season at AT&T Park — located within the San Francisco city limits. But the Raiders are not 100 percent set to move on from their home stadium yet. They remain slated to relocate to Las Vegas for the 2020 season.

NFC Notes: Peat, Cowboys, Eagles, Crowder

January 14th, 2019 at 6:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

Andrus Peat committed four penalties during the Saints‘ divisional-round win over the Eagles, and part of the reason for his struggles surfaced. The veteran guard suffered a broken hand in Week 17, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. NOLA.com’s Josh Katzenstein notes the Saints’ starting left guard broke his right hand. The injury during New Orleans’ meaningless regular-season finale led to Peat undergoing surgery during the bye week, Schefter adds. Against the Eagles, Peat played through “serious pain.” It is unclear if or how much Peat aggravated his injury on Sunday, and it’s not certain if he will be available to face the Rams. Though, Peat’s postgame comments do not point to him resting against Los Angeles. He played through ankle and quadriceps injuries this season and suffered a concussion. This was also the second straight year the Saints’ playoff opener has involved a Peat injury. The former first-round pick suffered a broken fibula during New Orleans’ wild card-round win last year and missed the Saints’ divisional game in Minnesota.

As the coaching carousel spins, here is the latest from the NFC’s non-coaching news cycle:

  • The Cowboys are among the league leaders in projected cap space, at $54MM-plus, but they are not expecting to be major players in free agency. “It doesn’t mean that we won’t play free agency at all; we just won’t be paying a high-profile free agent, more than likely,” VP Stephen Jones told 105.3 The Fan (via Jon Machota of the Dallas News on Twitter). “Never rule anything out all the way, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that’s going to be our strategy going into the offseason.” Dallas is likely saving money to pay its glut of extension-eligible young talents. Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, Byron Jones and Jaylon Smith are now all eligible for re-ups. With Dallas also making Zack Martin the richest guard in football last year, big outside investments may not be realistic this offseason.
  • Speaking of playing through injury, Eagles wideout Alshon Jeffery played through cracked ribs against the Saints, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. An MRI last week revealed the injury. Jeffery dropped a Nick Foles pass that ricocheted into Marshon Lattimore‘s arms. This setback likely will not be nearly as troublesome for Jeffery to surmount as the one he played through in 2017. Jeffery’s previous shoulder issue caused him to miss all of Philadelphia’s offseason program and sidelined him into the 2018 season.
  • While a scenario may exist involving the Eagles franchise-tagging Foles and attempting to trade him, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes (video link) expects the quarterback to hit the free agent market. Foles’ impending exit would further tether the Eagles to Carson Wentz, who has suffered season-ending injuries in back-to-back years. But Wentz said Monday doctors have assured him this back injury is not expected to linger long-term.
  • Elsewhere in the NFC East, the Redskins do not want to let another of their mainstay wide receivers walk as a free agent. Washington allowed both Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson to depart in 2017, and while neither 30-something pass-catcher has matched his Washington work since, the Redskins have not been the same at wideout either. Jay Gruden said (via ESPN.com’s John Keim) the team wants to try to re-sign Jamison Crowder “for sure.” Crowder will not be looking at Jarvis Landry money but is a sneaky-interesting name that could be on the market. Although injuries plagued Crowder this season, limiting him to nine games (career-low 388 receiving yards), it will not be especially cheap for Washington to bring him back. “It’s a great time to be a slot receiver,” Crowder said, via Keim.

Packers To Hire Nathaniel Hackett As OC

January 14th, 2019 at 5:10pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nathaniel Hackett‘s Packers meeting went well. Green Bay is bringing the former Jacksonville offensive coordinator aboard as its OC, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter).

The Jaguars fired Hackett midway through this season, and he interviewed for the Lions’ OC job. He’ll now join Matt LaFleur‘s staff and play a major role in revamping the Packers’ offense.

The Packers interviewed Hackett and recent Browns OC hire Todd Monken for this job and are set to entrust key Rodgers prime seasons to two recent AFC South offensive coordinators — both 39. LaFleur has less experience being an offensive coordinator than Hackett; they will pair up in hopes of guiding the Rodgers-centered team back to the playoffs.

This will be Hackett’s third NFL OC gig. He served in that role under Doug Marrone at Syracuse and then with the Bills before following Marrone to Jacksonville in 2015. The Jaguars promoted him to OC during the 2016 season. Neither of Marrone and Hackett’s Buffalo units ranked in the top half of the league, and they took a major step back this season. But in 2017, the Jags ranked in the top six in both points and yards on their way to the AFC championship game.

Despite their 2018 descent, the second-generation coordinator will land on his feet. And after working with the likes of E.J. Manuel, Kyle Orton and Blake Bortles, Hackett will now oversee the work of one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history. Quite the change of scenery.

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