HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Browns Activate Joel Bitonio

January 15th, 2021 at 10:48am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns have activated left guard Joel Bitonio off of the COVID-19 list, per a club announcement. To make room, the Browns waived safety Tedric Thompson. The Browns will also have head coach Kevin Stefanski back on the sidelines against Kansas City, now that he’s been cleared.

Bitonio tested positive for the coronavirus just prior to the Browns’ first-round playoff game against the Steelers. It was a huge loss, but the Browns still managed to throttle the Steelers in the first quarter and hold on for the victory. Now, they’ll have the three-time Pro Bowler back in action as they face the Chiefs in the divisional round.

Bitonio has been a rock for the Browns throughout his seven-year career, despite constant instability in Cleveland. Up until the diagnosis, Bitonio hadn’t missed a snap since 2016. Still, the Browns aren’t 100% healthy on the offensive line. Tackle Jack Conklin was forced out of the Steelers game with a hamstring and his status might not be determined until we get closer to kickoff.

In addition to activating Bitonio, the Browns moved wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge off their reserve/COVID list. They will also have all their coaches back after coronavirus issues forced them to miss last week’s game. Secondary coach Jeff Howard, tight ends coach Drew Petzing and assistant offensive line coach Scott Peters will all coach Sunday, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com notes (Twitter links).

Falcons Offer Head Coaching Job To Arthur Smith

January 15th, 2021 at 10:40am CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons have offered their head coaching position to Arthur Smith, according to sources who spoke with ESPN.com’s Dianna Russini (on Twitter). The Titans’ offensive coordinator, who has been tied to every vacancy in the NFL, could be hours away from making it all official. 

Smith was set to chat with the Lions this week, but that meeting has been called off (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). The Texans, Chargers, and Eagles were also intrigued by the 38-year-old, but they’ll have to look elsewhere. The Jaguars and Jets were also tied to Smith, but they’ve since addressed those openings with Urban Meyer and Robert Saleh, respectively.

Smith’s stock has skyrocketed in recent years, especially after guiding Ryan Tannehill‘s remarkable resurgence. He’s only served as an OC for two years, but the Falcons — and plenty of other clubs — believe that he’s ready to run his own show.

Jets Officially Hire Robert Saleh

January 15th, 2021 at 10:25am CST by Zachary Links

The Jets have hired Robert Saleh as their new head coach, per a club announcement. It’s a five-year deal for Gang Green and the 49ers defensive coordinator , as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 

Saleh is now the Jets’ 20th head coach in franchise history. The 41-year-old was an early favorite for the job, based on the strength of his SF defense. In 2020, the Niners finished fifth in total yards, seventh in rushing yards, and fourth in passing yards allowed. In 2019, Saleh’s D surrendered just 169.2 passing yards per contest — the lowest average since Rex Ryan‘s 2009 Jets D.

The Jets have lots of holes to fill, but also lots of room to remake the team with their new coaching staff. They’ll have ample cap space to work with in March, plus two first-round picks (Nos. 2 and 23) in April.

There were seven vacancies in this cycle, and six of those teams requested interviews with Saleh. The Jets didn’t want to let him get away and, ultimately, they got their man.The 41-year-old edged out a number of qualified candidates, including Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. Smith — similarly popular in this cycle – had just completed a second interview. Here’s the full rundown, via PFR’s tracker:

Jaguars Hire Urban Meyer As Head Coach

January 14th, 2021 at 5:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

After a several-day waiting period, the Jaguars-Urban Meyer deal is finalized. The former national championship-winning Florida and Ohio State coach agreed to terms with Jacksonville.

Long the frontrunner for this position, Meyer spent the past few days closely connected to his first-ever NFL foray. He ultimately decided to accept the Jaguars’ offer. The team has announced the hire.

“I’m ready to coach the Jacksonville Jaguars,” Meyer said. “Jacksonville has an enthusiastic fanbase, and the fans deserve a winning team. With upcoming opportunities in the NFL Draft, and strong support from ownership, the Jaguars are well-positioned to become competitive.

“I’ve analyzed this decision from every angle — the time is right in Jacksonville, and the time is right for me to return to coaching. I’m excited about the future of this organization and our long term prospect for success.”

Meyer, 56, won three national championships while in Gainesville and Columbus — in 2006, 2008 and 2014 — and helped develop Alex Smith into a No. 1 overall pick while at Utah. Meyer was a college coach from 1986-2018, coaching briefly at the high school level in the mid-’80s. This will be a new challenge for the well-regarded coach, who has appeared on the NFL radar during past hiring periods.

Factoring in his previous stops at Utah and Bowling Green, Meyer has a lifetime 187-32 record in the college ranks. With Ohio State alone, he went 83-9 across seven seasons. He will almost certainly have the chance to coach Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence to start his NFL run. Working as a Fox analyst since stepping down as Ohio State’s HC, Meyer rated Lawrence as his No. 1 quarterback — over Buckeye passer Justin Fields — entering this season (video link). Lawrence has been expected to go No. 1 overall for a long time now, and the Jaguars’ 1-15 season locked them into the 2021 top slot.

Conflicting reports emerged about Meyer’s salary demands, with one putting them in the $12MM range. Given the Jags’ interest in Meyer, it is likely he will be one of the NFL’s highest-paid head coaches. The lengthy delay between the Jaguars’ interview with their preferred candidate and his acceptance, however, did reportedly frustrate the team. Meyer has stepped away from coaching on multiple occasions, doing so more than once at Florida, so it will be interesting to see how long he will stick around in Jacksonville.

It will also be interesting to see how Meyer and owner Shad Khan coexist. Khan took on a greater say in personnel matters last year and confirmed he will remain heavily involved in roster decisions going forward. Considering the franchise’s strong interest in Meyer, he will almost certainly have a significant say in personnel matters as well. The Jaguars have yet to hire a GM, but the to-be-determined executive will now walk into a situation featuring two high-profile power brokers.

Meyer has been linked to multiple assistants already, including former Texas HC Charlie Strong and Texans DC Anthony Weaver, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo and Fox 26’s Mark Berman (Twitter links).

Six OC Candidates Emerge For Dolphins

January 14th, 2021 at 5:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Dolphins are moving quickly on their third offensive coordinator search in three years. They have identified six candidates to succeed Chan Gailey, and some will be interviewing for the position.

Steelers quarterbacks coach Matt Canada interviewed for the post Thursday, according to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The team has also identified Chargers QBs coach Pep Hamilton and 49ers run-game coordinator Mike McDaniel as OC options, according to ESPN.com’s Cameron Wolfe, who adds Dolphin position coaches Eric Studesville and George Godsey will be considered as well (Twitter link).

Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott also emerged on Miami’s radar, but veteran NFL reporter Josina Anderson reports (via Twitter) the college assistant has opted against making a move to the pros at this time. The Titans also reached out to Elliott about their OC job, which Arthur Smith may well vacate soon given his interview frequency thus far, but Dabo Swinney‘s top offensive assistant will stay put in South Carolina.

Of this group, only Hamilton and Godsey have been NFL OCs previously. Hamilton spent three years in that role, serving as Colts OC from 2013-15. Godsey became the Dolphins’ quarterbacks coach during the season, Wolfe tweets. He served as Bill O’Brien‘s OC in Houston from 2015-16 but has been a position coach since. Hamilton is coming off a notable year, with Justin Herbert developing from a player expected to sit behind Tyrod Taylor for a while into an Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner.

McDaniel has worked with Kyle Shanahan with multiple teams; the 49ers assistant also popped up on the radar during the Browns’ most recent HC search. Studesville has been with the Dolphins in each of Brian Flores‘ two seasons at the helm. He served as Broncos interim HC in 2010 and was retained by multiple Denver HCs to stay on as running backs coach, a title he currently holds in Miami.

Canada spent more than two decades as a college coach before making the move to the Steelers last year. From 2003-18, Canada served as offensive coordinator at eight colleges — including LSU, Wisconsin and Maryland.

Titans Interview Teryl Austin For DC Job

January 14th, 2021 at 5:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

Teryl Austin is back on the defensive coordinator radar. The Titans have interviewed the veteran assistant for a DC role, according to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Working with the Steelers the past two years, Austin served as a defensive coordinator from 2014-18 — with the Lions and Bengals. He has coached the Pittsburgh secondary, while helping Mike Tomlin with game management, over the past two seasons.

Although the Titans held the Ravens to 20 points and registered five sacks in Sunday’s loss, they finished as the NFL’s worst third-down defense and recorded just 19 sacks this season. Following Dean Pees‘ retirement, Tennessee went without a true defensive coordinator this year. Outside linebackers coach Shane Bowen called defensive plays. Mike Vrabel referred to Bowen as a de facto defensive coordinator, but the team is interested in more experience on its defensive staff.

Austin’s 2014 Detroit defense fared quite well, ranking third in scoring and second in yards allowed. After Ndamukong Suh‘s Miami move, however, Detroit’s unit fell off in the years that followed. Austin resurfaced in Cincinnati under Marvin Lewis in 2018, but the Bengals fired him prior to that season’s conclusion.

Interestingly, Austin has met with the Titans previously. The team interviewed him for its then-vacant head coaching position, which ended up going to Mike Mularkey, in 2016.

Washington Eyeing Chargers’ JoJo Wooden, Falcons’ Nick Polk For GM Job

January 14th, 2021 at 4:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

Two more candidates for Washington’s GM job surfaced Thursday. The team is expected to interview Chargers executive JoJo Wooden, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, who adds Washington also submitted an interview request to Falcons exec Nick Polk (Twitter links).

After the Washington GM job sat vacant for a year, the team is moving ahead with several candidates for the position. These two join ex-GMs Marty Hurney, Martin Mayhew and Rick Smith, along with Titans staffer Ryan Cowden, in Washington’s search so far. Wooden and Polk are much less seasoned on the GM circuit, but each has been a high-ranking NFL exec for well over a decade.

Wooden serves as the Chargers’ director of player personnel and has been with the franchise since Tom Telesco‘s 2013 arrival. A Syracuse linebacker in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Wooden spent 16 seasons with the Jets, beginning under Bill Parcells in the late ’90s. Wooden worked as Gang Green’s assistant player personnel director for six seasons prior to a relocation to San Diego.

Polk has been the Falcons’ director of football operations for 11 years, but with the Falcons transitioning to perhaps Terry Fontenot at GM, Thomas Dimitroff-era execs’ roles certainly stand to be in flux. However, Polk has been with the Falcons for multiple GM regimes, beginning with the team prior to Dimitroff’s arrival.

Alabama’s Patrick Surtain II, Jaylen Waddle, Mac Jones To Enter Draft

January 14th, 2021 at 3:43pm CST by Sam Robinson

Days after a lopsided national championship victory, Alabama will see several of its starters make the expected jump to the NFL. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, cornerback Patrick Surtain II, quarterback Mac Jones and defensive tackle Christian Barmore announced Thursday they will enter the 2021 draft.

All four are projected first-round picks, according to ESPN.com’s Todd McShay. Surtain, Jones and Waddle will respectively forgo their senior seasons, while Barmore will leave two Crimson Tide years on the table. Surtain and Waddle have appeared in first-round mocks for a while now; it is not out of the question both join Heisman winner DeVonta Smith as top-10 picks.

Waddle will land alongside Smith and LSU opt-out Ja’Marr Chase atop the receiver prospects in what is expected to be another deep wideout class. While Waddle saw an ankle fracture interrupt his final Alabama season, he suited up against Ohio State — albeit at far less than 100% — and should be expected to go off the board fairly early in the draft. Smith and Waddle, who averaged 21.1 yards per catch this season, will follow ex-Crimson Tide teammates Henry Ruggs and Jerry Jeudy as first-round prospects. Waddle is not certain to be ready for the Combine or pre-draft workouts, however.

An All-American as a junior, Surtain finished with a career-high nine passes defensed this season. He will follow his father, Patrick Surtain, into the pros. The elder Surtain was a longtime NFL corner who became a Dolphins second-round pick in 1998. McShay has the younger Surtain and Barmore going off the board at 10th and 27th overall, respectively. The latter recorded eight sacks this season.

At Alabama during Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovailoa‘s starting tenures, Jones took over late last season after Tagovailoa’s hip injury. Despite the COVID-19-altered season limiting Alabama to 13 games total, Jones set a program record with 4,500 passing yards and finished with a 77% completion rate and a 41-4 TD-INT ratio. He will join Trevor Lawrence, North Dakota State’s Trey Lance, BYU’s Zach Wilson and (likely) Ohio State’s Justin Fields as surefire Round 1 prospects.

Panthers To Hire Scott Fitterer As GM

January 14th, 2021 at 2:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

Scott Fitterer surfaced late in Carolina’s GM search, but he is now expected to be the team’s new GM. The Panthers intend to hire the Seahawks executive to succeed Marty Hurney, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero (on Twitter).

Fitterer, whom the Seahawks promoted in September, interviewed twice for the Panthers position this week. He joined a host of candidates in a wide-ranging search but is in line to team with Matt Rhule to oversee Carolina’s rebuild effort.

The Panthers brought in Fitterer, Titans exec Monti Ossenfort, Chiefs staffer Ryan Poles and 49ers VP of player personnel Adam Peters for second interviews this week. Fitterer has hovered on the GM radar a bit longer than the rest of this contingent, and the Seahawks’ VP of player personnel will receive a chance to lead another NFC franchise’s front office.

Fitterer has been with the Seahawks for nearly 20 years, predating John Schenider and Pete Carroll‘s arrivals in beginning his run with the franchise in 2001. The Seahawks promoted him to co-player personnel director in 2015 and gave him a new title last year. Fitterer was involved in the Jets’ GM search in 2019, along with the Chiefs’ and Colts’ search processes in 2017. That year, Fitterer also interviewed for the 49ers’ GM job that went to John Lynch.

Alongside fellow Schneider lieutenant Trent Kirchner, Fitterer helped the Seahawks become Super Bowl champions and two-time NFC champs during the 2010s. Rhule is locked down via seven-year contract, so it would not surprise to see Fitterer receive a six-year deal — which would match Rhule’s through-2026 accord — as Carolina continues a rebuild that began last year.

Texans Request Brandon Staley Interview

January 14th, 2021 at 2:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Texans are hoping to speak with Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley. Now led by GM Nick Caserio, the team sent the first-year DC an interview request, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

Staley has met with the Chargers and Jets about their HC position. He is not permitted to meet with teams in person until the Rams’ season concludes. The Rams face the Packers on Saturday afternoon.

Rising from Broncos outside linebackers coach to a head coaching role in a two-year span would represent a remarkable rise from Staley, 38, but Wade Phillips‘ successor has helped the Rams reassemble a dominant defense. The versatile Aaron Donald– and Jalen Ramsey-powered unit ranks first in weighted DVOA, after the group slowed Russell Wilson considerably in a one-sided divisional-round win.

The Texans have not hired a defensively oriented head coach since the first HC in franchise history, Dom Capers, who held the job from 2002-05. Thanks in part to previous HC Bill O’Brien‘s GM work, the Texans have a host of needs on defense after the unit ranked 31st in DVOA this season. Staley and Leslie Frazier represent the team’s defensive candidates to this point. Colts DC Matt Eberflus turned down a Houston interview.

Load More Posts