HEADLINES

Month: November 2024

Latest On Packers’ DC Vacancy

January 24th, 2024 at 12:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

With Joe Barry unable to save his job, the Packers are now looking for their third defensive coordinator of the Matt LaFleur era. LaFleur has now canned both Barry and Mike Pettine during the 2020s.

The Packers nearly changed Ejiro Evero‘s career path in 2021, choosing Barry over the then-Rams defensive backs coach — who had worked with LaFleur on McVay’s staff in 2017. Then-Wisconsin DC Jim Leonhard was believed to be LaFleur’s top choice at that point. While LaFleur may not be closing off the Sean McVay pipeline, one of the Rams leader’s better-known assistants will not be considered for the Packers job.

[RELATED: 2024 Offensive/Defensive Coordinator Search Tracker]

Brandon Staley is not on Green Bay’s radar, according to ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky. The first Chargers HC dismissed in-season since Kevin Gilbride in 1998, Staley has not been connected to any head coaching or defensive coordinator opening since that December firing. Staley rocketed to the HC radar in 2020, using the Rams’ DC post to reach that place. Previously, he had resided as outside linebackers coach for two teams — the Bears and Broncos — under Vic Fangio. The Fangio scheme’s present popularity aside, Staley has yet to receive an interview.

LaFleur also worked with Aubrey Pleasant back in 2017, during his season as Rams OC, and hired him following a Lions dismissal in 2022. Demovsky mentions the veteran staffer as a possible candidate. The team is also believed to have been impressed by Chris Harris in 2021; Harris, who spent this season as the Titans’ DBs coach, is back on the DC radar following the Titans’ firing of Mike Vrabel. Jerry Gray, who served as a Packers assistant from 2020-22, also could be a candidate, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler adds. A Gray and Barry philosophical disagreement led the former out of town in 2023; Gray spent this season on the Falcons’ staff. With 2023 Atlanta DC Ryan Nielsen taking over in Jacksonville, it is possible Gray would follow.

The Packers are allowing defensive assistants to explore opportunities, per CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones, but it is unclear if the team would allow lateral moves to take place at this point. It still looks like their defensive staff makeup will come down to what their next DC prefers, as should be expected.

Falcons, Michigan Still In Play For Jim Harbaugh

January 24th, 2024 at 12:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

12:22pm: The Atlanta meeting is on hold. Harbaugh will not go through with his second Falcons interview today, The Athletic’s Josh Kendall reports. The parties could circle back, but the postponing or canceling of an interview obviously does not bode too well for a Harbaugh path to Georgia.

11:27am: Harbaugh’s second Falcons interview is scheduled for today, according to Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz. The Michigan HC has spent the early part of his week in Los Angeles in serious discussions with the Chargers. Harbaugh trekking to Atlanta at this stage could certainly throw off Chargers talks, though he has been rather effective at maximizing his leverage in the recent past. A bidding war would do the trick. Schultz also confirms Michigan is not bowing out, making a continued push to retain the accomplished sideline bastion.

10:43am: As of Wednesday morning, the Chargers appear the favorites to employ Jim Harbaugh in 2024. But the two other teams interested in the national championship-winning head coach are not bowing out.

A return to Michigan remains in play for the nine-year Wolverines leader, according to the Washington Post’s Mark Maske. Harbaugh interviewed for NFL jobs in each of the previous two offseasons before ultimately staying at Michigan. The Big Ten program and its successful but polarizing HC have been in discussions on an extension for several weeks, but Harbaugh-Chargers talks have overshadowed Michigan negotiations.

[RELATED: 2024 Head Coaching Search Tracker]

The prospect of Harbaugh again backtracking and staying in Ann Arbor is viewed as more remote this time around, Sportskeeda’s Tony Pauline notes. The Wolverines are believed to have made multiple extension offers to Harbaugh, one a 10-year, $125MM deal. The latest update here included Harbaugh seeking several provisions in the deal, one believed to be assurance the Wolverines would not fire him if an NCAA suspension in connection with Michigan’s sign-stealing scandal comes to pass. The Chargers would need to pay Michigan $1.5MM to hire Harbaugh; the school is also attempting to bump that number to $4MM.

Already suspended twice in 2023, Harbaugh could face a harsher punishment from the NCAA for his alleged role in the scandal. He has since hired an agent and met with two teams. This all points to the former 49ers HC determining 2024 to be his NFL return window. It is not decided Los Angeles will be the place for it, though the Bolts remain in the lead. Harbaugh’s second Bolts interview is believed to have produced an agreement on salary.

The Falcons have also attempted to set up a second Harbaugh meeting, and Pauline adds the fiery HC has family in Florida. The subject of Harbaugh’s family relocating is key here, per Pauline, though the former 49ers, Stanford and University of San Diego HC obviously has extensive ties in California. Harbaugh saw his final NFL action as a Chargers quarterback and began coaching on the then-Oakland Raiders’ staff soon after. But the Falcons are believed to be prioritizing experience this time around. They have interviewed Bill Belichick twice and are expected to meet with Mike Vrabel. The assumed Atlanta frontrunner, Belichick may be losing some steam as the sides discuss how a fit would work.

Harbaugh’s Chargers meetings have gone well, and Maske adds discussions are ongoing. One source informed Pauline the Harbaugh-to-L.A. scenario should be given a 90% chance to happen. The Chargers have begun their second round of GM interviews, likely with a Harbaugh pairing in mind. While we could be hours away from this hire coming to pass, the Bolts remain without a head coach for now.

Eagles Interview Texans’ Jerrod Johnson For OC Position

January 24th, 2024 at 12:03pm CST by Sam Robinson

Barely 24 hours after firing Brian Johnson, the Eagles are at work interviewing replacement candidates. Following their Kliff Kingsbury meeting, the Eagles met with a younger candidate.

Texans quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson is on the Eagles’ radar, with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reporting the young assistant has also met with Philly about the job. Johnson, whom the Texans hired last year, has also met with the Saints and Browns about their respective OC openings.

As C.J. Stroud‘s position coach, Johnson certainly has momentum to use this season as a platform to land a coordinator job. The 35-year-old staffer has just one season of experience as a quarterbacks coach, coming to Houston after a stay as Minnesota’s assistant QBs coach. The Eagles would stand to join the Saints in seeking a play-calling OC, with the Browns preparing to hire a non-play-calling coordinator.

That said, Nick Sirianni is an offense-oriented coach. It is unclear if the Eagles are retaining Sirianni, though with ownership signing off on the team firing both its offensive and defensive coordinators, signs still point to the Super Bowl HC staying for a fourth season. Sirianni has not been the Eagles’ primary play-caller since he relinquished those duties to Shane Steichen midway through the 2021 season.

Johnson also has a history with Sirianni; both were on Frank Reich‘s Colts staff from 2019-20. Johnson broke into the coaching ranks as on a Bill Walsh Diversity Fellowship in 2019 and worked as a quality control staffer from 2020-21, leading to the Minnesota job offer. Sirianni brought ex-Colts coworker Marcus Brady to Philly, with Jonathan Gannon also coming over from Indianapolis back in 2021. With this hire being crucial to Sirianni’s Eagles future, it will assuredly take more than familiarity to fill the job.

Stroud rocketing out of the starting blocks has changed the Texans’ outlook, with the team venturing to the playoffs for the first time in four years. The No. 2 overall pick’s performance landing Johnson a job would add up, but with the Texans having Bobby Slowik still on the HC carousel, any staff continuity would be important going into the offseason.

Raiders, Kliff Kingsbury To Discuss OC Role

January 24th, 2024 at 11:37am CST by Sam Robinson

Linked to Kliff Kingsbury interest this week, the Raiders will go ahead with that meeting. Kingsbury will meet with the AFC West team about its offensive coordinator position, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets.

Out of the NFL this year, Kingsbury is again a popular figure on the interview circuit. He met with the Bears about their OC vacancy, and after that job went to Shane Waldron, the current USC quarterbacks coach became the first known candidate for the Eagles’ OC position. Kingsbury met virtually with the Eagles hours after their Brian Johnson firing.

[RELATED: Raiders Hire Tom Telesco As GM]

The Raiders are scheduling a Kingsbury meeting, per Breer. This will be the team’s sixth confirmed candidate for the position. Although the Raiders retained Antonio Pierce, they will not keep interim OC Bo Hardegree, opening the door for more experienced candidates.

While Kingsbury has never held an NFL OC role, he qualifies as experienced. The former Texas Tech head coach went straight to the NFL HC ranks, becoming a surprise Cardinals hire back in 2019. Kingsbury, who had signed up to become USC’s OC following his Texas Tech firing, joined the Cardinals and lasted four years as their HC. The Cards snapped a five-season playoff drought under Kingsbury, advancing to the NFC bracket in 2021. After a steep decline last season, the team fired Kingsbury despite having extended him during the 2022 offseason.

Of the coordinator candidates the Raiders are considering, none match Kingsbury’s play-calling experience. In addition to his time running the show in Arizona, Kingsbury called plays during his Texas Tech HC tenure. This, of course, included Patrick Mahomes‘ run with the Red Raiders. Kingsbury’s most recent college QB prodigy, Caleb Williams, improved his completion percentage (from 66.6 to 68.6) and yards per attempt (9.1 to 9.4) between his 2022 Heisman campaign and his junior season. Though, Williams’ yardage and TD totals dropped compared to his dominant 2022.

With a handful of other OC openings likely — once the remaining HC-needy teams begin coordinator searches — Kingsbury could see more interest emerge. The Lincoln Riley assistant looks to have done well to reestablish momentum in 2023. This, of course, comes after the Cardinals finished 4-13 in 2022. Kyler Murray‘s numbers, following his extension agreement, worsened in ’22. But the Kingsbury-handpicked QB fared much better in 2020, beating out Tom Brady for a Pro Bowl spot, and 2021. Murray’s two Pro Bowl nods came under Kingsbury, and the Cardinals rolled out the No. 11- and No. 13-ranked offenses in 2020 and ’21, respectively.

Giants’ Brandon Brown Books Second Chargers GM Interview

January 24th, 2024 at 10:12am CST by Sam Robinson

Seemingly close to hiring Jim Harbaugh as head coach, the Chargers look to be moving toward finalists for their GM position. Brandon Brown will be the first candidate given a second interview for the post.

The Giants’ assistant GM, Brown is in Los Angeles today for a second meeting, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets. Brown, whom the Giants hired in 2022, also interviewed for the Panthers’ GM position. Carolina ended its search this week by promoting assistant GM Dan Morgan.

Although Harbaugh would undoubtedly need to be paired with a GM he would not object to, a recent report indicated the veteran HC would not force the Chargers into a GM hire of his choosing. Harbaugh famously feuded with then-49ers GM Trent Baalke during their time together in San Francisco, helping lead the former to Michigan after four years.

Other Chargers HC candidates are still in the mix, but Harbaugh is the first to be given a second interview. With that meeting believed to have produced an agreement on Harbaugh’s HC salary, it would not surprise if a hire followed soon. As of now, the Chargers still have openings for their HC and GM roles.

A rising young exec, Brown joined Joe Schoen‘s Giants front office after years in Philadelphia. Brown also interviewed for the Vikings’ GM job in 2022, but this offseason’s GM carousel has featured a more prominent place for Schoen’s right-hand man. As shown on PFR’s General Manager Search Tracker, here is how the Bolts’ search looks as of Wednesday morning:

Titans GM Ran Carthon To Control Roster; Team Promotes Chad Brinker

January 24th, 2024 at 9:33am CST by Sam Robinson

Even if it was not necessarily a power struggle between Ran Carthon and Mike Vrabel that led to the latter’s ouster, the Titans’ GM selection did not sit well with the fired head coach. The organization will now give Carthon more power.

A year after his hire, Carthon received a promotion. The Titans bumped their GM up to the position of executive vice president, per a team announcement that also includes the Brian Callahan HC hire becoming official. Additionally, the Titans are elevating assistant GM Chad Brinker to president of football operations.

Carthon’s title bump means he will control the 53-man roster and oversee the coaching staff, TitanInsider.com’s Terry McCormick notes, as opposed to Callahan being given that power. This is not surprising, considering Amy Adams Strunk pushed back on Vrabel’s interest in controlling the roster. Vrabel is believed to have made that push before the Titans hired Carthon, whom the six-year HC did not view as an ideal GM candidate in 2023. Adams Strunk, however, confirmed Carthon will have more responsibility going forward.

“Ran’s exceptional reputation around the league as a talent evaluator and culture builder was a clear competitive advantage during last year’s free agency and draft process, as well as our recent search for a head coach,” Adams Strunk said. “Simply put, Ran Carthon makes the Tennessee Titans a destination for the league’s top talent.

“By expanding his role to include full roster control and oversight of the coaching staff, our organization will now benefit more completely from Ran’s unique ability to build and lead a championship-caliber football team.”

Wednesday morning’s title adjustments are also notable involving Brinker, whom the Titans hired as assistant GM last year. The ex-Packers exec joined Anthony Robinson as assistant GMs in Carthon’s first year leading the front office. The Brinker hire occurred first last year. No Robinson title change has taken place, pointing to the Tennessee power structure being Carthon-Brinker-Robinson in 2024. That said, veteran Titans reporter Paul Kuharsky indicates Brinker is expected to report directly to ownership. That would give the Titans two front office pillars who will do so.

Brinker joined the Titans after 13 years with the Packers. Although no GM interview requests have come Brinker’s way this offseason, he is well-regarded around the league. The Titans placed Brinker in charge of cap management during his first year in Nashville. Robinson, who came over from the Falcons last year, oversees the Titans’ scouting department.

Adams Strunk’s comments regarding Carthon’s work in the draft are interesting. A recent report indicated former interim GM Ryan Cowden ran the team’s draft board last year; Cowden is now with the Giants. After working alongside a head coach with a certain level of power in Vrabel, Carthon is clearly in charge now. Carthon is not believed to have been involved in Vrabel’s ouster; that move came directly from ownership. Should Callahan be fired during Carthon’s tenure, the latter will almost certainly have a hand in it. Carthon joined the Titans after six years with the 49ers.

Raiders Hire Tom Telesco As GM

January 23rd, 2024 at 9:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the Raiders kept Antonio Pierce, previous reports indicated he and interim GM Champ Kelly were not necessarily a package deal. That detail looks to prove critical now. The AFC West team is expected to go in a different GM direction.

Former Chargers GM Tom Telesco looks set to have an immediate second chance. The Raiders are likely to hire the 11-year GM veteran, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. Telesco worked as the Bolts’ GM from 2013-23 but was fired shortly after the Raiders’ 63-21 demolition late this season. With no other team interviewing Telesco for its GM vacancy, he is now set to team with Pierce in Las Vegas. The Raiders subsequently announced the hire.

This hiring comes after the team had Kelly sitting in on HC interviews ahead of the Pierce hire. While Kelly had established clear momentum and was certainly on the radar to join Pierce as the rare interim figure to keep a job, the Raiders will go with a more experienced candidate. This could well lead Kelly elsewhere, though The Athletic’s Tashan Reed notes he remains under contract. The well-respected front office figure only met with one other team — the Panthers — about its GM job. Carolina promoted Dan Morgan to fill that post Monday.

It would be a bit odd to see Telesco sign off on working with perhaps his top competition for this job, so it bears monitoring to see if Kelly will remain with the Raiders.

For Telesco, this will provide a chance to start over after his Philip Rivers– and Justin Herbert-centered rosters repeatedly ran into obstacles in Southern California. Injury issues routinely plagued the Chargers during the 2010s and 2020s, though their rosters always always generated praise coming into seasons. Telesco will now work with another first-time HC. Hiring only rookie HCs during his run with the Chargers (Mike McCoy, Anthony Lynn, Brandon Staley), Telesco’s teams only qualified for three playoff fields in his 11-year run.

Telesco, 51, came in for a second Raiders interview Monday. That meeting may have changed the team’s thinking. The longtime Chargers front office leader will bring more than 30 years of NFL experience to Las Vegas. Beginning his career as a Bills intern during Bill Polian‘s GM run, Telesco followed the future Hall of Famer to Charlotte and then Indianapolis. With the Colts, Telesco worked his way up to director of player personnel. He held that title for six years, being with the team during its Super Bowl XLI win and its Super Bowl XLIV loss three years later. A year after the Colts fired Polian and hired Ryan Grigson, Teleseco received his GM opportunity and became one of the longer-serving true GMs entering this past season.

With the Chargers, Telesco gave Rivers Pro Bowl pieces in the late 2010s. He drafted Keenan Allen in the 2013 third round and added Joey Bosa and Derwin James in 2016 and ’18, respectively. Telesco added Pro Bowl left tackle Rashawn Slater in the 2021 first round as well. He excelled on the extension front, giving new deals to Melvin Ingram — ahead of the veteran’s Pro Bowl years — along with Allen, Bosa, James and Mike Williams. Telesco also signed Austin Ekeler to what became one of the best running back deals in recent memory, a four-year, $24.5MM pact that locked in the passing-down dynamo before back-to-back seasons leading the NFL in touchdowns.

Telesco landing Herbert at No. 6 overall may be his defining GM move, and the decision-maker gave the next Chargers GM a boost by extending Herbert through 2029 last summer. Herbert has become one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks, quickly showing that form. However, Telesco’s Staley hire — and the litany of injuries to plague the Bolts — have restricted the prodigious passer. The Chargers are just 1-for-4 in playoff appearances with Herbert, and the lone cameo resulted in a 27-point wild-card collapse in Jacksonville. Rather than fire Staley and go after Sean Payton — long rumored as interested in the job — Telesco (and Chargers ownership) retained Staley. This preceded the December firings of the Bolts’ HC and GM.

Pairing Pierce with a seasoned GM makes sense. Of the candidates the Raiders interviewed, Telesco is the only one with experience as a full-time GM. Mark Davis spoke of the possibility of bringing in a football ops-type presence to lead the way. With Telesco being hired, he might well be that figure to work alongside the owner and head coach.

Kelly and Colts assistant GM Ed Dodds were believed to be the other finalists, per CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. Dodds and Kelly were believed to be the frontrunners recently, Reed adds, indicating the team was leery about putting Pierce with a first-time GM. Dodds interviewed for the Las Vegas GM job in 2022 and was believed to have made a good impression on Davis. It is unsurprising the longtime Indianapolis exec was again in this race until the end. While Dodds figures to stay in his current post, it will be interesting to see if Kelly — hired to be Dave Ziegler‘s assistant GM in 2022 and taking over as interim GM in November — ends up elsewhere.

Given Pierce’s limited coaching background, it should be expected it will be Telesco making the final calls regarding the team’s 53-man roster. While Josh McDaniels was widely believed to be calling the shots in Vegas during his short HC tenure, Davis emphasized it was Ziegler controlling the roster. The Raiders’ coordinator hires will be the next dominoes to fall. While the team has blocked DC Patrick Graham from making lateral moves, it will be interesting to see if the HC carousel regular will be OK working for a head coach with considerably less experience.

For now, Telesco will step into a situation that differs from his Chargers setup. Rivers was entering his eighth season as a starter when Telesco took over in 2013. With the Dolphins selecting Tua Tagovailoa fifth overall in 2020, Herbert was available. The Raiders are unlikely to have comparably easy access to a top-tier QB talent this offseason, holding the No. 13 overall pick after an 8-9 season. That will be the top roster need for Telesco, who will join Pierce in assembling a coaching staff.

Eagles To Fire OC Brian Johnson

January 23rd, 2024 at 9:54pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Eagles will have new offensive and defensive coordinators in 2024. Not long after Sean Desai was fired, OC Brian Johnson is out as well. The latter has been let go, as noted by Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Derrick Gunn of JAKIB was first to report Johnson was unlikely to return.

Both changes have been expected for some time now. The Eagles struggled on both sides of the ball during their nosedive to close out the campaign, although the team’s offense still managed to post strong numbers in a number of offensive categories. Philadelphia ranked eighth in yards per game and seventh in scoring, but those figures are insufficient for Johnson to receive a second year at the helm.

The 36-year-old represented a logical internal replacement candidate for Shane Steichen once the latter departed last offseason to take the Colts’ head coaching job. Johnson had spent the past two years as Philadelphia’s quarterbacks coach and developed a strong relationship with Jalen Hurts. As a result, it came as little surprise when Johnson was tapped as Steichen’s successor.

By the time Philadelphia’s wild-card matchup against the Buccaneers came around, however, a rift had emerged on offense amidst the Eagles’ overall struggles. Hurts regressed from his 2022 performance while playing through injury, and the team scored just nine points in a lopsided loss to Tampa Bay. Reports of signficant staffing changes quickly emerged, and it came as little surprise when Desai (who had already been stripped of play-calling duties) was dismissed on Sunday.

Head coach Nick Sirianni‘s job security was a talking point both before and after the wild-card loss, and his evaluation from ownership was dependent on a plan to replace both offensive and defensive coordinators for the second consecutive offseason. Sirianni appears to be safe, but the Eagles’ staff will be worth watching closely as the team likely prepares to look outside the organization to fill both the OC and DC positions.

As his fate in Philadelphia remained unsettled, Johnson took head coaching interviews with the Falcons and Titans. A meeting with the Panthers was originally scheduled, but Carolina is set to move in a different direction. While it seems unlikely Johnson will land a HC gig this year, his outside interest could allow him to land a new coaching opportunity in some capacity relatively soon. Meanwhile, Philadelphia’s search for his replacement will be worth monitoring.

On that note, Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter had been named as a candidate to return to the Eagles as OC. However, McLane notes that Cooter is not expected to be a finalist to replace Johnson. In any case, Philadelphia’s 2024 staff is set to look much different than its 2023 iteration with Desai’s interim replacement (Matt Patricia) expected to depart. While that has left plenty of unanswered questions on the defensive side of the ball, the Eagles now have a signficant vacancy on offense as well.

Latest On Chargers, Jim Harbaugh

January 23rd, 2024 at 9:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

It now looks like it would be an upset if Jim Harbaugh is not coaching Justin Herbert next season. While the longtime Michigan HC has been known to go through with extensive NFL flirtations during the 2020s, the Chargers are much farther down the road here compared where the Vikings and Broncos ventured in the past two offseasons.

Harbaugh is going through his second interview with the Chargers, and this meeting looks to be about more than his mere candidacy. Assistants are being discussed, and Outkick.com’s Armando Salguero reports the sides are believed to be in agreement on salary.

The Bolts, who have not hired a coach with previous NFL HC experience since bringing in Norv Turner in 2007, have attempted to push back on the narrative they are cheap when it comes to coach spending. Harbaugh’s would-be salary looks set to back that up. They have offered more than Michigan, per Salguero, who indicates the “extremely strong” proposal the Bolts made surpasses the $12.5MM-per-year number from his Wolverines talks.

Harbaugh’s next NFL salary would not hit his initial asking price, however, with Salguero adding that number is believed to have checked in around $18MM. That aligns with what the Broncos are believed to be paying Sean Payton. Denver brass, which met with Harbaugh twice last year, gave Payton the monster salary due to his credentials and the leverage he held. With FOX at the time, Payton was linked to having interest in the Chargers’ job. The team did not fire Brandon Staley following the 27-point collapse in Jacksonville, helping lead Payton Denver via trade. Payton’s Super Bowl win and the potential for the ex-Saints HC waiting another year — perhaps for the Bolts’ job — gave him rare leverage, and he is believed to be earning a top-five coaching salary.

The Chargers’ past three searches produced first-time HCs (Mike McCoy, Anthony Lynn, Staley); Harbaugh’s experience laps those candidates’. His four-year win percentage from the 49ers period (.695) ranks fifth in NFL history — higher than any active NFL coach. The 60-year-old leader is also coming off a national championship.

Also linked to a potential Harbaugh pursuit, the Raiders having followed through with their long-rumored Antonio Pierce promotion left Harbaugh with one less option. The Falcons have a second interview scheduled, but they have also been closely linked to Bill Belichick, Mike Vrabel and others. Vrabel met about the Chargers’ vacancy last week, but it certainly appears he trails Harbaugh.

Personnel matters are also on today’s agenda, per Salguero. Harbaugh and Trent Baalke famously feuded during the latter’s time as 49ers GM, leading to a power struggle that sent Harbaugh to his alma mater. While Harbaugh is not exactly a universally liked presence among NFL front office figures, his coaching credentials are strong. He would undoubtedly carry significant input regarding the Chargers’ next GM hire, though it is not believed he would force a GM on the Bolts.

This process appears near the goal line, but it will be interesting if more updates come on the Michigan side; negotiations on another extension have transpired for weeks. Harbaugh has returned to the college ranks after the meetings with the Vikes and Broncos, but a long-rumored NFL return appears close.

Giants Request DC Interview With Bills’ Bobby Babich

January 23rd, 2024 at 8:43pm CST by Ben Levine

The list of Giants defensive coordinator candidates continues to grow. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Giants requested permission to interview Bills linebackers coach Bobby Babich for their defensive coordinator job.

Babich has spent the past seven seasons in Buffalo, four of which he worked alongside current Giants head coach Brian Daboll. Babich started as an assistant defensive backs coach in Buffalo before earning a promotion to safeties coach in 2018. After four years in that role, Babich replaced his father, Bob Babich, as the Bills’ linebackers coach in 2022. During his first season as Buffalo’s LBs coach, Babich helped guide Matt Milano to his first All-Pro season.

Babich started his NFL coaching career with the Panthers in 2011. He later had a stint with the Browns before spending a single season at FIU.

As our 2024 Offensive/Defensive Coordinator Search Tracker shows, Babich is now the fifth candidate to potentially replace Don Martindale in New York. The rest of the group includes:

Elsewhere in New York, the Giants interviewed Larry Izzo this past weekend for their special teams coordinator vacancy, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. The former Patriots special teams ace was the Texans ST coordinator in 2016 and 2017. He’s spent the past six seasons in Seattle, including the past three as the special teams coordinator.

Izzo joins a growing list of candidates to replace Thomas McGaughey in New York. Matt Harper, Carlos Polk, and Michael Ghobrial were among the names previously connected to the open position.

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