HEADLINES

Month: September 2024

Latest On Browns QB Baker Mayfield

January 19th, 2022 at 7:29pm CST by Ben Levine

Baker Mayfield underwent successful surgery today on his torn labrum, the Browns announced. The QB is expected to make a full recovery in four to six months.

[RELATED: Browns Plan To Keep Baker Mayfield]

“We’ll check that box off to get this fixed, and now it’s onto the road to recovery,” Mayfield said in an Instagram post. “It’s not going to be an easy one, but it’s going to be one that I remember, and it’s going to be a special one. I’ll keep you guys updated. Thank you so much. This is not the end of my story. It’s going to be one of those things where I look back and remember one of those challenges and adversity that I’ll try to take advantage of, and it’ll make me a better person.”

The four-to-six-month timeline means Mayfield could be good to go at any point between May and July, but fortunately for Mayfield, the torn labrum was in his non-throwing shoulder. As a result, the team expects the 26-year-old to begin throwing in April, and he’s expected to participate in the offseason program on a limited basis. He’s expected to be fully recovered by the time training camp starts.

2021 wasn’t a banner year for Mayfield (17 touchdowns vs. 13 interceptions), but he was clearly hampered by his injured shoulder. The Browns still haven’t inked the former first-overall pick to a contract extension, leading some to question his future in Cleveland. However, a recent report indicated that the Browns are planning to have Mayfield under center when they open the 2022 campaign.

Chiefs Add DT Andrew Billings, OT Roderick Johnson To Practice Squad

January 19th, 2022 at 6:22pm CST by Ben Levine

The Chiefs have added a pair of veterans to their practice squad. The team signed defensive tackle Andrew Billings and offensive tackle Roderick Johnson to their taxi squad, per ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter). Running back Elijah McGuire was released from the practice squad.

Billings was a fourth-round pick by the Bengals in 2016. He started 30 of his 32 games between the 2018 and 2019 seasons, collecting a total of 3.5 sacks, 12 tackles for loss, and 11 QB hits. The defensive tackle joined the Browns during the 2020 offseason, but he chose to opt out of the subsequent season. Billings ended up seeing time in only six games for Cleveland in 2021, collecting a single tackle. He was ultimately waived by the organization before catching on with the Dolphins practice squad.

Johnson, a fifth-round pick by the Browns in 2017, spent the majority of his career in Houston. After getting into only one game through his first two years in the NFL, the lineman saw a larger role in both 2019 and 2020. Johnson got into 28 games (with six starts) through those two seasons, including a 2020 campaign where he appeared in 245 offensive snaps. Johnson spent the entire 2021 campaign with the Dolphins organization.

McGuire has spent the past year-plus with the Chiefs organization, but he didn’t make a regular-season appearance for Kansas City. The former sixth-round pick got into 24 games for the Jets between 2017 and 2018.

Giants Request Interview With Cowboys DC Dan Quinn

January 19th, 2022 at 4:31pm CST by Ben Levine

We’ve got our first official candidate for the Giants’ head coaching job. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (via Twitter), the Giants have requested permission to interview Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.

The Giants are currently interviewing GM candidates, and the team seemed focused on filling that role before moving on to their other vacancy. However, as Ralph Vacchiano of SNY tweets, the Giants saw the interest that Quinn was generating around the NFL and “wanted to get in the game.” Per our 2022 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker, Quinn has already been connected to five openings. The Giants completed their second interview with Chiefs executive director of player personnel Ryan Poles today, and they’ve already met twice with Bills assistant GM Joe Schoen. 49ers assistant GM Adam Peters will meet with the team tomorrow.

After being out of the game for much of last season, with the Falcons firing him after a bad start, Quinn has moved himself back onto the head-coaching radar. The Cowboys’ defense has improved significantly in his first season overseeing the unit. Quinn interviewed for the Broncos job yesterday and the Vikings job today, and he’s set to meet with the Dolphins and Bears. He previously declined an early interview with the Jaguars, and it remains to be seen if he’ll meet with the organization.

With Quinn on the board, we’ll surely learn of more Giants HC candidates in the coming weeks. So far, the organization has been connected to former Dolphins head coach Brian Flores and Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.

Latest Details On John Elway, Broncos’ Sale

January 19th, 2022 at 3:50pm CST by Adam La Rose

While nothing is official yet regarding the sale of the Broncos, more details have emerged with respect to John Elway’s role in any new ownership group. He has publicly stated a desire to be involved – albeit in a minor role – with the new owners if at all possible. 

[Related: Broncos To Be Sold]

As noted by Mike Klis of 9News.com, Elway is still very keen on playing a part in the franchise, even after stepping away from the GM role he served in from 2011 to 2020. When asked about the impending auction of the team, he said, “I’m sure there will be a lot of things going on, but I would definitely like to be involved”.

He is making clear, however, that any position he takes on will not be at the forefront of the team. Klis notes that the 61-year-old “doesn’t have the type of financial wherewithal to become the controlling owner” given the Broncos’ estimated value of roughly $4B, but “he may have enough to invest as a limited partner”. That would certainly be Elway’s preference, as he added, “I’m not looking to be the face of the franchise. Whoever puts up that kind of money and whoever is that owner, it’s their franchise… My hope would be to help support the new owner”.

Those comments continue a back-and-forth trend for Elway concerning his ownership interest. Shortly after Pat Bowlen‘s death, he indicated he was not looking for an ownership role. This past September, however, it was reported he was attempting to put together a group to buy the team. In any event, the sale is not expected to be announced until after a new head coach is hired. It remains to be seen, then, if the Broncos legend will have his ownership desire come to fruition.

Steelers Likely To Retain OC Matt Canada

January 19th, 2022 at 2:55pm CST by Adam La Rose

While the search for a new quarterback, and, eventually general manager, are the dominant storylines in Pittsburgh for this offseason, news has come out with significant implications for the team’s offense. In his end-of-season press conference, head coach Mike Tomlin stated that offensive coordinator Matt Canada will likely return in 2022. 

When asked about the offense’s struggles this season, Tomlin expressed confidence in Canada, saying “I’m optimistic about Matt and what he’s capable of doing” (Twitter link via NFL Network’s Aditi Kinkhabwala). While he added, “I acknowledge we took a step back [on offense]. There’s some obvious tangible reasons why that occurred”, along with an intention to get better on that side of the ball, he is comfortable with giving Canada a second season at the helm.

Mark Kaboly of the Athletic notes that Canada took over as OC this year knowing the team’s emphasis had been placed on an improved running game. With major changes to the playbook, a vastly different offensive line and the drafting of Najee Harris, the team saw a minor uptick in production on the ground. Still, the Steelers ranked 29th in the league with an average of only 93 rushing yards per game.

As for the other elements of the offense, a notable regression took place across the board. The team’s averages in at least 10 major categories saw declines of varying degrees compared to the 2020 campaign. Perhaps the most significant one was the drop in points per game from 26 down to 20.2 – something which contributed to a total of 16 fewer offensive touchdowns being scored than last year, despite there being a 17th game this season.

The unit’s performance in the playoff loss to the Chiefs, which is widely expected to end up being QB Ben Roethlisberger‘s final NFL game, proved the need for drastic improvement going forward. That fact wasn’t lost on Tomlin, who also said, “I am not acknowledging satisfaction with any component of what we did”. He still used the word “attractive”, though, to describe the 50-year-old’s scheme, which he demonstrated in a successful college coaching career and helped him earn the OC role after one season serving as the Steelers’ QB coach.

Regardless of who the starting quarterback is for the Steelers in 2022, then, they will at least have an offensive coordinator with a year of experience and a vote of confidence working with them.

Eagles Reaffirm Jalen Hurts As 2022 Starting QB

January 19th, 2022 at 1:54pm CST by Adam La Rose

In his end-of-season press conference, Eagles GM Howie Rosemen made some comments that are certainly noteworthy, but also not surprising. As Around the NFL’s Kevin Patra writes, Rosemen has confirmed Jalen Hurts‘ status as the team’s starting quarterback entering the offseason. 

When speaking about the 23-year-old signal caller, Rosemen said, “We talk about Jalen and the growth he had, really, a first-year starter, second-year player, leading this team to the playoffs, [we were] tremendously impressed by his work ethic, his leadership” adding “we said we wanted to see him take the bull by the horn, and he certainly did that“.

After struggling early in the year, Hurts helped lead the team turn a 2-5 record into 9-8 and a playoff appearance. In 14 regular season games, he completed 61.3% of his passes for 3,144 yards and 16 touchdowns, to go along with nine interceptions. The more notable aspect of his game, of course, is his rushing ability though – something that led to a great deal of production on the ground. He finished the season with a team-leading 784 rushing yards on 139 carries (good for an average of 5.6 per attempt) and an additional 10 scores. As his performance in his playoff debut showed, however, there is certainly plenty of room for improvement in the passing game.

Head coach Nick Sirianni doubled down on the support for Hurts, stating “Jalen knows where he stands with us. I thought he did a great job of getting better throughout the year… He knows he’s our guy”. The vote of confidence doesn’t come as a surprise to many around the league, although others have remained skeptical Hurts can be a consistent enough passer to be the starter on a contending team.

It is important to keep in mind that the QB market has yet to fully take shape for this offseason. The fact that some, or all, of Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson among many others may be available via free agency or trade – coupled with the fact that Philadelphia owns three first round picks – could change the Eagles’ plans. As Patra notes, Rosemen publicly supported Carson Wentz this time last year before trading him, and that “Roseman could shift gears if a potential upgrade materialized”. For now, at least, the Eagles are proceeding with confidence in the status quo at the quarterback position.

Ed Dodds Withdraws From Bears GM Search

January 19th, 2022 at 12:41pm CST by Zachary Links

Thanks, but no thanks. After some consideration, Colts assistant GM Ed Dodds has withdrawn his name from the Bears’ GM search (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero).

It’s not yet clear if Dodds is staying put or if he’s choosing to focus on other opportunities. The Raiders also have Dodds on their GM search list, alongside Bengals scout Trey Brown, Bears assistant director of player personnel Champ Kelly, and Patriots director of personnel Dave Ziegler.

Dodds in the running for GM jobs with the Lions and Panthers in the past cycle, so he has enough cache to be selective. A Colts exec since 2017, Dodds also impressed in his previous front office role with the Seahawks.

On the plus side, the Bears have already cast a wide net with roughly 15 candidates in the mix. As you’d expect, most of the names in this group are out-of-house candidates, though Kelly, a former Ryan Pace lieutenant, had the chance to interview last week.

Texans Request Interview With Rams’ Kevin O’Connell

January 19th, 2022 at 11:14am CST by Zachary Links

The Texans have asked the Rams for permission to speak with offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell about their head coaching vacancy (Twitter link via Albert Breer of The MMQB). It’s likely that the Rams will OK the request, given that O’Connell is already set to chat with the Vikings and Broncos.

O’Connell has been a popular name since taking over as Rams offensive coordinator in 2020. Following an impressive first season in Los Angeles, the Rams offense took a small step back in 2021, although this was mostly due to an inconsistent rushing attack.

In the last cycle, newly-hired Chargers coach Brandon Staley was interested in bringing O’Connell with him from the Rams. However, Rams HC Sean McVay blocked the lateral move, choosing instead to furnish O’Connell with more responsibilities (and, likely, a pay raise).

In addition to O’Connell, the Texans are also eyeing ex-Dolphins HC Brian Flores, Eagles DC Jonathan Gannon, Chargers OC Joe Lombardi, Patriots linebacker coach Jerod Mayo, and former Steelers star Hines Ward.

Matt Eberflus Set For Second Bears Interview

January 19th, 2022 at 11:08am CST by Zachary Links

The Bears will conduct a second interview with Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus next week (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). With that, Eberflus now finds himself as a finalist for both the Bears and Jaguars. 

Despite lots of injuries, Eberflus’ Colts defense has been mostly solid over the past four years. The 51-year-old has long been regarded as one of the league’s sharpest minds and, finally, it appears that he’s on the verge of scoring his first ever head coaching position.

The Jets strongly considered Eberflus last year, but ultimately found a different defensive guru in Robert Saleh. The Chargers also met with Eberflus, though they ultimately chose Brandon Staley as their HC.

Colts head coach Frank Reich has spoken highly of Eberflus’ credentials and so has Nick Sirianni, the one-time Colts offensive coordinator who now serves as the Eagles’ HC.

“Adapt or get exposed at practice. Yes, we hustle. Yes, we finish. But we put a (higher) standard on it after being with Flus for a little bit,” Sirianni said towards the end of 2020 (via FOX59). “The way they practice obviously makes us better. The reason I think we’re good at protecting the football is because of how crazy they are at coming after it. Not everybody practices that way.’’

Giants, Adam Peters Schedule Second Interview

January 19th, 2022 at 10:57am CST by Zachary Links

Adam Peters will interview with the Giants once again on Thursday (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). With that, the 49ers assistant GM becomes the third known finalist for the Giants’ GM vacancy, joining Joe Schoen of the Bills and Ryan Poles of the Chiefs.

[RELATED: Giants Cast Wide Net In GM Search]

The Giants have considered at least nine candidates for the position, per PFR’s GM Search Tracker:

It’s possible that some of the other names on this list will be brought back for another round but, for now, it’s Peters, Poles, and Schoen in the lead to replace Dave Gettleman. Peters, who has been with the 49ers since 2017, offers ~18 years of NFL experience, including time with the Broncos and Patriots.

The Giants’ next GM will be tasked with heading the team’s latest rebuilding effort, which will include the hiring of a new head coach. Reportedly, the team is already eyeing former Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, who may want to bring Deshaun Watson with him.

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