2020 January - Pro Football Rumors

Raiders Sign Nevin Lawson To Extension

January 23rd, 2020 at 12:17pm CST by Zachary Links

The Raiders have signed cornerback Nevin Lawson to a one-year extension, worth $3.29MM, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). The new deal will keep him in the fold through the 2020 season, allowing him to build off of a solid second half in which he joined the starting lineup.

Lawson was originally drafted by the Lions in the fourth round back in 2014. He spent the first five years of his career there, and became a full-time starter in Detroit for the last three. The Utah State product has started 50 games over the past four years and is still only 28, so he still offers upside.

Earlier this month, Lawson was hit with a one-game suspension for using his helmet as a weapon in the season finale against the Broncos. Therefore, he won’t be on the field when the Raiders play their first game as the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020.

Last year, Lawson earned a subpar 60.8 overall score from Pro Football Focus. He didn’t have enough snaps (301) to qualify for a ranking at his position, but in larger sample size, that would have placed him somewhere around the No. 70 CB in the NFL.

Giants Won’t Place Eli Manning On Reserve/Retired List

January 23rd, 2020 at 11:44am CST by Zachary Links

Giants legend Eli Manning is retiring from football, but he won’t formally be placed on the league’s list of retired players, as PFT’s Mike Florio explains. It’s a small, but important distinction that could be factor should the quarterback consider coming out of retirement in 2020.

Manning’s contract will formally expire in March, which means the Giants cannot place Manning on the reserve/retired list, per league rules. Players on the reserve/retired list who decide to unretire after the trade deadline must go on the waiver wire first.

Manning retired, in large part, because he would not have had an opportunity to start for the Giants or any other club in 2020. But, hypothetically, a midseason injury to Daniel Jones or another QB1 could open the door for someone like Manning.

If Manning was on the list and the Giants wanted him back, they’d be subject to the same potential barriers as Rob Gronkowski. In 2019, Gronk would have had to return by Week 13 if he wanted to suit up for the Giants, because he was officially designated as a retired player. Meanwhile, Marshawn Lynch was not on the list, which paved the way for his late-season Seahawks reunion. If Manning wants to come back, he’ll have no obstacles in his way, just like Beast Mode.

Vikings Hire Gary Kubiak As OC

January 23rd, 2020 at 10:16am CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings are bumping Gary Kubiak up to the offensive coordinator position, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Last year, Kubiak served as an assistant head coach and offensive advisor.

Kubiak will take over for Kevin Stefanski, who left to become the Browns’ head coach earlier this offseason. During Stefanski’s first full season at the helm, the Vikings ranked as a top-10 offense in points. With ample experience and knowhow, Kubiak will look to build on that.

Kubiak hooked on with the Vikes in January of last year, bringing him back to the sidelines as something other than a head coach since 2014, when he was the Ravens’ OC. Prior to that, he was in talks to return to Denver as their offensive coordinator, before those discussions went sideways.

As a head coach, Kubiak had a career 82-75 mark, including a 21-11 record across his two seasons with the Broncos. In his first year as the Broncos’ HC, Denver won Super Bowl 50 with a memorable win over the Panthers.

The Vikings fell short of their Super Bowl goal in 2019, but Kubiak will have plenty to work with on the offensive side of the ball. The team’s backfield trio of Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison, and Mike Boone finished in the top six in rushing yards and touchdowns last year. Meanwhile, quarterback Kirk Cousins enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career. Kubiak was a big part of that strategy and in 2020 he’ll have a chance to do everything his way while maintaining consistency.

Dolphins Expect Ryan Fitzpatrick Return

January 23rd, 2020 at 8:33am CST by Zachary Links

The Dolphins “fully expect” to see quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick back on the field in 2020, GM Chris Grier told reporters this week. This jibes with previous comments from the GM, who earlier this month said that the plan “right now” is for FitzMagic and Josh Rosen to stay in the fold.

The Dolphins will almost certainly select their QB of their future early in the draft, but in any circumstance, they’d love to have the veteran back. In 2019, Fitzpatrick was a bright spot for the Fins in an otherwise rocky year. The 37-year-old would be the perfect bridge for a young QB and his $8MM salary for 2020 would not be cost-prohibitive – particularly since the Dolphins have ample cap room heading into March.

Fitzpatrick has indicated that it would be difficult for him to walk away from football this year and his bond with the organization is evident. It all adds up to an obvious match, though the same can’t be said for Rosen, a former first-round pick who has yet to make a dent at the pro level.

Last year, Fitz threw for 3,529 passing yards with 20 touchdowns against 13 interceptions. He also helped the club end the year on a high note with back-to-back wins over the Bengals and Patriots.

The Dolphins will go into the draft with an absolute stockpile of draft capital, giving them the ability to move up for a signal caller that might not be available at No. 5 overall. However the QB room shakes out, we know this much – the offense will be guided by Chan Gailey, who was hired to replace Chad O’Shea on New Year’s Eve.

Dolphins Prepared To Move Up In Draft?

January 23rd, 2020 at 8:23am CST by Zachary Links

If the Dolphins want to move up to the No. 1 pick for LSU’s Joe Burrow – or to another pick for any other player – they’ll have the ammunition to get a deal done. This week, GM Chris Grier, who has a bevy of picks this year, publicly acknowledged the potential for a big jump on the board.

At the same time, Grier pointed out what we all know – around this time of year, teams are eager to spread information that benefits them in order to drum up leverage. In other words, the Dolphins almost certainly want to come away with their quarterback of the future in this year’s draft, but their eagerness to land Burrow or any of this year’s other signal callers might be overstated.

Alabama star Tua Tagovailoa is among the prized QBs in this year’s crop and many have connected the dots between him and the Fins. For what it’s worth, Grier says he doesn’t feel pressured to roll the dice on the one-time consensus top prospect who has serious question marks due to his hip injury.

“We’ll evaluate him just like every player,” Grier said. “When people were talking about [us taking him], we said we weren’t tanking. We were trying to win and build. And so to say one player was attached to us, you can’t control what fans and people in the media say. So there’s no pressure for us. The pressure for us is to find the right guy to be the quarterback for the Dolphins, whether it’s him or someone else. That’s the pressure. Finding the right guy to lead the organization.”

For now, the Dolphins are slated to pick at No. 5 where Tagovailoa and other top QBs besides Burrow will be available. After that, they’re up again at Nos. 18 and 26.

Browns Might Not Hire OC

January 23rd, 2020 at 8:12am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns are without an offensive coordinator, and it might stay that way. This week, new head coach Kevin Stefanski said it “remains to be seen” whether they’ll hire an OC for the 2020 season.

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“I’m committed to adding the right people to our building,” Stefanski said (via Ben Axelrod of WKYC.com). “That remains to be seen. We’re definitely looking at all avenues as we try to put a really good staff together.”

The Browns have spoken to former Broncos offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello, but it’s not clear if he’s being looked at for the OC role. Meanwhile, Stefanski might want to control the headset himself, and he has the experience of new offensive line coach Bill Callahan to advise him during his first season at the helm. In light of that, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Stefanski go without an OC.

On the other side of the ball, the Browns are expected to hire 49ers defensive backs coach Joe Woods after the Super Bowl.

Steelers’ Cameron Heyward Eyeing Extension

January 23rd, 2020 at 8:03am CST by Zachary Links

With one year to go on his deal, Cameron Heyward is ready to talk turkey. The Steelers defensive end says he’d be “more than happy to facilitate” contract extensions with the club, as Mark Kaboly of TheAthletic.com writes.

“I would love to be a Pittsburgh Steeler the rest of my life,” Heyward said as he motioned toward his wife and three young children standing by his side. “It is what I call home and my family loves it. We are very thankful to be here. We will see what happens. I have no control over it. If they reach out, I will be more than happy to facilitate.”

The Steelers would like to keep Heyward for the long run, especially since he has emerged as a leader in the locker room. A new deal could also help their tight cap situation – Heyward is currently slated to count for $13.2MM against the 2020 payroll.

Heyward expects to meet with the Steelers in “June or July” but would also be open to getting “something done earlier.” If his desire to stay in Pittsburgh means a willingness to take a hometown discount, that should help to move things along.

“They’ve done right by me so far, and I want to continue to do them right,” Heyward said.
“That’s what I love about Pittsburgh — you have to earn your way. If I play well and they show me love, I want to show love back. I want to make sure as them being my employer and them being my family, you always want to make sure that you represent your family well.”

In 2019, Heyward earned a First-Team All-Pro nod, despite playing most of the year without Stephon Tuitt on the opposite side. He finished out with nine sacks and set a new career high with 83 tackles.

Coaching Notes: McCown, Kitchens, Woods

January 22nd, 2020 at 9:59pm CST by Ben Levine

Whenever Josh McCown decides to hang up his cleats, it sounds like he’ll have an opportunity to pursue a new career path. Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the Eagles discussed “the idea of [McCown] returning to the team in a coaching role” next season.

Notably, the exit meeting was attended by the 40-year-old quarterback, head coach Doug Pederson, general manager Howie Roseman… and owner Jeffrey Lurie, who rarely makes an appearance at those meetings. It’s uncertain if McCown was offered a definitive coaching gig, and the 40-year-old ultimately couldn’t commit to retirement. At the very least, it sounds like the organization is optimistic about the veteran’s coaching ability.

McCown had retired following the 2018 season and caught on with ESPN as an analyst. However, he later signed with the Eagles following injuries to backups Nate Sudfeld and Cody Kessler. The 18-year veteran ended up appearing in three games for Philly, and he filled in for Carson Wentz during the team’s playoff loss to the Seahawks.

Let’s check out some more coaching notes from around the league…

Earlier this month, we heard whispers that former Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens could land with the Giants. However, Dan Duggan of The Athletic writes that the coach “isn’t a lock” to land in New York. We learned yesterday that the two sides still hadn’t finalized an agreement. Kitchens worked alongside new Giants head coach Joe Judge during their time at Mississippi State, and there was speculation that the 45-year-old could join the staff as a tight ends coach. The Browns went 6-10 during Kitchens’ lone season as their head coach, and he was canned following the regular season.
Before hiring Patrick Graham as their defensive coordinator, the Giants had interest in Saints defensive backs coach Aaron Glenn, reports Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post (via Twitter). While he missed out on the gig, the 47-year-old still interviewed for another role on the Giants coaching staff today. Prior to this stint with New Orleans, the 1994 first-round pick served as the Browns assistant defensive backs coach.
Joe Woods is the favorite to become the Browns defensive coordinator, but the 49ers won’t let that happen without a fight. Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune tweets that San Francisco is making a “late push” to retain their defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator. Woods has coached in the NFL since 2004, and he served as the Broncos defensive coordinator between 2017 and 2018.
Speaking of the Browns, head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed that three assistants will be sticking around next season (via the team’s website): special teams coordinator Mike Priefer, assistant special teams coach Doug Colman and run game coordinator/running backs coach Stump Mitchell.
Vikings receivers coach Drew Petzing won’t be back with the team next season, reports Goessling (via Twitter). Petzing had spent the past six seasons with the organization, spending time with wideouts, running backs, and quarterbacks.

Broncos Won’t Retain Executive Mike Sullivan

January 22nd, 2020 at 7:29pm CST by Ben Levine

The Broncs are moving on from one of John Elway‘s right-hand men. Mike Klis of 9News in Denver reports (via Twitter) that director of football administration Mike Sullivan will not be retained. The executive’s contract expired following the 2019 season.

Sullivan had spent eight years with the organization, and as Klis notes, he served as the front office’s “salary cap guru/contract negotiator.” The former agent played a role in Peyton Manning‘s move to Denver, and he also guided the organization to their 2014 free agent haul (DeMarcus Ware, Aqib Talib, Emmanuel Sanders, and T.J. Ward).

Klis makes it clear that Sullivan isn’t retiring (Twitter link). The executive’s experience means he could catch on with another organization or the league office. The reporter also suggests that Sullivan’s insight could lead to a career in media.

Meanwhile, Troy Renck of Denver7 tweets that the Broncos wouldn’t have made this decision without a plan to replace Sullivan, and the reporter expects the front office to hire someone quickly. After all, the Broncos are flush with cap space and have a number of important decisions to make when it comes to handing out contracts to current players. Whoever’s hired to replace Sullivan will immediately make their mark on the organization during the offseason.

Packers To Stick With DC Mike Pettine?

January 22nd, 2020 at 6:38pm CST by Ben Levine

While the Packers’ season came to a disappointing end in the Conference Championship, it sounds like their defensive coordinator won’t be a casualty. ESPN’s Rob Demovsky reports that Mike Pettine will return next season.

When head coach Matt LaFleur talked to reporters earlier today, he wasn’t willing to definitively commit to his defensive coordinator.

“Yeah, we’re still working through everything right now,” LaFleur said (via Grant Gordon of NFL.com). “Just trying to evaluate everything. Like you said, I think our defense did a lot of great things. Obviously the last game was really disappointing in terms of our performance. It just wasn’t good enough, especially when you get to a championship game like that. You know what’s at stake. Just all across the board, it wasn’t just the defense — our offense and special teams weren’t up to par as well.”

Apparently, LaFleur was willing to commit soon after the press conference ended. Demovsky writes that the head coach met with Pettine this afternoon, and it was decided that the defensive coordinator will stick around for the 2020 campaign.

Pettine joined the Packers organization prior to the 2018 season. Despite the Packers moving on from head coach Mike McCarthy, LaFleur decided to stick with the coordinator. Green Bay’s defense rebounded in 2019, finishing this most recent campaign in the top-10 for points allowed and takeaways.