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Latest On XFL Coaching Staffs, Front Offices

June 26th, 2022 at 10:12pm CST by Ely Allen

The XFL made a bit of a spectacle of announcing all of the staff that would be involved in the league once it returns in 2023. Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network provided a rundown of all eight teams’ staffs (all Twitter links).

Dallas Renegades

Director of player personnel: Rick Mueller
Head coach: Bob Stoops
Offensive coordinator: Matt McMillian and Jonathan Hayes
Defensive coordinator: Jay Hayes

Mueller, 54, has an extensive history in the player personnel circles of football. He’s spent time in the college ranks, the CFL, the UFL, and held high-level positions with the Jaguars, Saints, and Eagles. Stoops has a storied history as a college football head coach, most notoriously spending 18 years with the Oklahoma Sooners. Jonathan Hayes, the brother of Jay Hayes, coached with Stoops at Oklahoma before spending 16 years as the Bengals’ tight ends coach.

DC Defenders

Director of player personnel: Von Hutchins
Head coach: Reggie Barlow
Offensive coordinator: Fred Kaiss
Defensive coordinator: Gregg Williams

Hutchins is a former cornerback who played for the Colts, Texans, and Falcons back from 2004-2009. He also spent time in personnel roles with the Raiders and Packers. Barlow is a former NFL receiver who has head coaching experience with FCS Alabama State and Division II Virginia State. Kaiss has worked in the past with Barlow at the FCS level. Williams has vast NFL experience serving as the head coach of the Bills, interim head coach for the Browns, and defensive coordinator for eight different teams, most recently the Jets in 2020.

Houston Roughnecks

Director of player personnel: Marc Lillibridge
Head coach: Wade Phillips
Offensive coordinator: A.J. Smith
Defensive coordinator: Brian Stewart

Lillibridge has a bit of a thin history with the NFL with experience both representing and scouting players over the years. Phillips has enough NFL experience for the both of them, though. Phillips has served as the head coach of the Broncos, Bills, and Cowboys, interim head coach of the Saints and Falcons, and the defensive coordinator of eight different teams, calling defensive plays in Denver in two separate stints. Smith is an innovative, young coach who created a virtual system to train quarterbacks. He’s worked over the years with Gardner Minshew, Jimmy Garoppolo, Josh Rosen, and others. Stewart has worked previously with Phillips as his defensive coordinator in Dallas. Since his time in the NFL, he has served as a defensive coordinator at the collegiate level at Houston and on two separate occasions at Maryland.

Las Vegas (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Joey Clinkscales
Head coach: Rod Woodson
Offensive coordinator: TBD
Defensive coordinator: TBD

Clinkscales has served in personnel roles for the Steelers, Jets, and Raiders dating back to the early 1990s. At his height, he was hired as the Raiders’ director of player personnel in 2012, parting ways with the team when then-general manager Reggie McKenzie was fired in 2019. Woodson is a legendary former NFL defensive back who last played in the early 2000s. Since then, he has worked in some assistant coaching roles with the Bengals, Broncos, and Raiders.

Orlando (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Larry Lee
Head coach: Terrell Buckley
Offensive coordinator: Robert Ford
Defensive coordinator: Tony Carter

Lee is a former NFL center from the 1980s who became the Lions’ vice president of football operations after his retirement. He hasn’t worked in a professional football league in two decades, serving most recently as the deputy executive director of the Fritz Pollard Alliance. Buckley is a former NFL cornerback who moved to coaching after playing, holding multiple assistant coaching positions around the college ranks over the past 15 years. Ford has been coaching for almost 50 years, breaking into the NFL in 1991 with the Cowboys, where he won three Super Bowl rings as a tight ends coach. He has served as an assistant coach with the Dolphins, Cardinals, and Raiders, as well, with his last stint in the NFL coming back in 2006. Carter is another former NFL cornerback who moved to coaching after his playing time ended, taking small coaching roles with the Raiders and Lions since retiring.

San Antonio (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Will Lewis
Head coach: Hines Ward
Offensive coordinator: Jaime Elizondo
Defensive coordinator: Jim Herrmann

Lewis is a former NFL player and assistant coach who moved to the personnel side of football in the late 1990s. After starting as a scout with the Packers, Lewis has held high-level positions with the Seahawks and Chiefs. He also served as general manager for a franchise in the short-lived Alliance of American Football. Ward is a former longtime receiver for the Steelers who, since retiring, has held assistant coaching roles with the Jets and at the collegiate level. Elizondo has a long history of coaching football at the collegiate level and in the CFL, as well as serving as an offensive coordinator in the 2020 iteration of the XFL. Herrmann has been a defensive coordinator at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, as well as an assistant coach for the Jets, Giants, and Colts.

Seattle Dragons

Director of player personnel: Randy Mueller
Head coach: Jim Haslett
Offensive coordinator: June Jones
Defensive coordinator: Ron Zook

Mueller has served in the past as general manager for the Saints and Dolphins while holding other high-level positions for the Seahawks and Chargers. Haslett was the head coach of the Saints for six years in the early 2000s . He has also been a head coach in the UFL and served as interim head coach of the Rams. He’s held defensive coordinator positions with the Saints, Steelers, Rams, and Washington, as well as holding assistant coaching positions with the Raiders, Bengals, and Titans. Jones was the head coach of the Falcons back in the mid-1990s and, subsequently, served as a head coach in the CFL. He’s held offensive coordinator jobs at nearly every level of competitive football. Zook adds to the head coaching experience in Seattle with two stints as a college football head coach. He’s served as defensive coordinator for the Saints and special teams coordinator for the Steelers and Packers. He has lots of experience as a coordinator at the collegiate level, as well.

St. Louis BattleHawks

Director of player personnel: Dave Boller
Head coach: Anthony Becht
Offensive coordinator: Bruce Gradkowski
Defensive coordinator: Donnie Abraham

Boller has scouting experience with the Buccaneers back in the late 1990s. Becht is a former NFL tight end whose only coaching experience is as a positional coach in the AAF. Gradkowski is a former NFL quarterback who served as a backup for much of his career. Since his retirement, Gradkowski has been serving as a high school head coach in Ohio. Abraham continues the trend of former NFL player coaches in St. Louis with no NFL coaching experience. Abraham was a cornerback for the Buccaneers and Jets from 1996-2004. Since retiring he has been a head coach at the high school level, an assistant coach in the Arena Football League, an assistant coach at the collegiate level, and an assistant coach in the AAF.

Rams Hire Zac Robinson As Asst. QBs Coach

February 23rd, 2019 at 11:32am CST by Ben Levine

The Rams have found their Zac Taylor replacement. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that Sean McVay has hired Zac Robinson as the team’s new assistant quarterbacks coach.

After helping Jared Goff establish career-highs in completion percentage (64.9-percent), passing yards (4,688) and touchdowns (32), Taylor was hired as the Bengals new head coach earlier this month. Since that time, McVay and the Rams have been searching for a replacement. Schefter notes that the decision ultimately came down to Robinson and former NFL quarterback Bruce Gradkowski.

Robinson will see what he can do with one of the most desirable non-coordinator gigs in the league. The 32-year-old originally joined the NFL as a player, as he was a seventh-round pick by the Patriots back in 2010. He ended up having brief stints with the Seahawks, Lions, and Bengals before hanging it up in 2013.

Since that time, Robinson has spent time as an analyst for Pro Football Focus, and Schefter notes that he’s also been working as a “QB trainer.” Now, he’ll have a chance to take these experiences to the coaching circuit. One of his first duties as the Rams assistant quarterbacks coach will be working with the front office to find a backup for Goff. Former third-rounder Sean Mannion is set to be a free agent this offseason.

Steelers Release Bruce Gradkowski

October 7th, 2016 at 4:13pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Steelers have released quarterback Bruce Gradkowski from injured reserve, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link).

Injuries have been problematic lately for Gradkowski, who landed on IR last month after he suffered a hamstring tear. He previously spent all of last season on IR with shoulder and hand injuries. Nevertheless, Pittsburgh re-signed the journeyman in May, although it only gave him $80K in guarantees on a deal that could have been worth $965K.

Gradkowski joined the Steelers in 2013 and ultimately never attempted a regular-season pass with the club. For his career, the former Toledo Rocket has completed 375-of-709 passes for 4,057 yards, 21 touchdowns and 24 interceptions.

Gradkowski’s exit won’t have an effect on the Steelers’ depth chart, where they’re deep at quarterback. Pittsburgh has experienced backups Landry Jones and Zach Mettenberger behind Ben Roethlisberger.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Steelers Claim Zach Mettenberger

August 31st, 2016 at 4:16pm CST by Zachary Links

4:16pm: The Steelers announced they placed Bruce Gradkowski on IR to clear a roster spot for Mettenberger. Gradkowski re-signed with Pittsburgh in May on a one-year, $965K deal with $80K guaranteed. The 33-year-old passer spent last season on IR as well, with a thumb injury derailing his season. This time, a torn hamstring will end his season early.

3:25pm: Zach Mettenberger is now with his third team of the 2016 offseason. The Steelers have claimed the quarterback off waivers from the Chargers, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets.

Mettenberger now joins Landry Jones and Bryn Renner on the depth chart behind Ben Roethlisberger. It’s possible that the Steelers are looking at Mettenberger as a third-string option instead of Renner, a player who could probably be snuck through waivers and stashed on the taxi squad.

The 24-year-old was a sixth-round pick of the Titans in the 2014 draft. In his rookie season, Mettenberger saw time in seven games (six starts) and threw for eight touchdowns with seven interceptions. Early on this offseason, the Chargers claimed Mettenberger off waivers from the Titans. Days ago, the Bolts dropped him as they trimmed down to a 75-man roster.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Steelers’ Gradkowski Suffers Hamstring Injury

August 15th, 2016 at 2:29pm CST by Zachary Links

The Steelers could find themselves on the market for a quarterback as the season approaches. Today, the team learned that backup Bruce Gradkowski has suffered a sizable hamstring tear, according to a source who spoke with ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler.

As shown on Roster Resource, the team’s quarterback depth chart also features Landry Jones and free agent addition Dustin Vaughan. While Jones is considered to be Ben Roethlisberger‘s primary backup, Vaughan has never taken an NFL snap. Pittsburgh may want to have a more proven third-string option at QB and one has to imagine that they will examine the free agent and trade markets with that in mind.

Gradkowski, 33, missed all of 2015 with shoulder and hand injuries and it sounds like 2016 could also be a lost year for him. For his career, Gradkowski has completed 375-of-709 passes for 4,057 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions. Gradkowski has never completed more than 55% of his passes in a season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Steelers Re-Sign Bruce Gradkowski

May 5th, 2016 at 9:51am CST by Sam Robinson

THURSDAY, 9:51am: Gradkowski’s one-year deal is worth $965K with $80K guaranteed via his signing bonus, a source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter).

MONDAY, 8:18am: The Steelers have officially announced their new deal with Gradkowski.

SUNDAY, 6:30pm: Despite spending last season on the Steelers’ IR, Bruce Gradkowski will be heading back to Pittsburgh with a new contract. The Steelers intend to sign the veteran backup on Monday, Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com reports (on Twitter).

It’s a one-year deal for Gradkowski, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler (on Twitter).

He’ll vie for Ben Roethlisberger‘s backup job with Landry Jones, Marvez reports. GM Kevin Colbert said last week the team wouldn’t sign another quarterback until after the draft. Gradkowski worked out for the Steelers recently — a showcase Cobert deemed “satisfactory” — but the team elected to wait before signing him.

Gradkowski’s injury created uncertainty behind Roethlisberger before a season in which that position became incredibly relevant. It induced Pittsburgh to sign Michael Vick, and the now-journeyman reserve did not fare well in relief of Roethlisberger despite being given the first chance. Jones started two games after the Steelers demoted Vick, who started three, but didn’t perform much better. The offense ground to a near-halt under Vick, but he did complete 60% of his throws before Jones connected on 58% of his before Roethlisberger reclaimed his starting job.

However, Gradkowski has never completed more than 55% of his passes in a season. Signing with the Steelers before 2014, the now-33-year-old Gradkowski is also 6-14 in starts — which came for the Buccaneers, Browns and Raiders from 2006-10. Since, the former sixth-round Bucs pick in 2006 served as a backup for Andy Dalton prior to coming to Pittsburgh.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Steelers Place Bruce Gradkowski On IR

August 25th, 2015 at 6:31pm CST by Zachary Links

The Steelers announced that they have placed quarterback Bruce Gradkowski on the IR, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. The move clears a roster spot for Michael Vick, who now has a much better chance of sticking with the club long-term.

Gradkowski, 32, was expected to serve as Ben Roethlisberger‘s primary backup in 2015. However, the veteran dislocated a finger on his left hand in this weekend’s preseason game and the injury was apparently bad enough to end his season before it could start.

The 32-year-old has traveled the league over the course of his career, enjoying stints with the Bucs, Browns, Raiders, Bengals, and Steelers. Last year, Gradkowski appeared in only one regular season game for the Steelers. In the playoffs, Gradkowski attempted three passes and completed two.

AFC North Notes: Shazier, Smith, Hunt, Wilder

June 21st, 2014 at 9:02am CST by Matt Feminis

Steelers first-rounder Ryan Shazier looks like the “real deal,” according to Mike Prisuta of Steelers.com: “The Steelers knew Shazier was fast when they drafted him No. 1 from The Ohio State University. But since arriving on the South Side of Pittsburgh Shazier has gotten Maurkice Pouncey‘s attention with physicality in practice, stunned Bruce Gradkowski with leaping ability on the way to an interception and impressed Ben Roethlisberger as a potential defensive signal-caller someday. Shazier also has been running with the first-team defense since snap one of OTAs. He’ll still have to do it in pads this summer, but he created a consistent buzz this spring.”

Here’s a few more AFC North notes:

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh says veteran inside linebacker Daryl Smith, who re-signed for four years and $16MM, played at a high level last season, writes Garrett Downing on BaltimoreRavens.com. That means first-rounder C.J. Mosley and 2013 second-rounder Arthur Brown will compete for playing time next to Smith.
The Bengals have high expectations for 27-year-old, second-year Estonian defensive end Margus Hunt, writes Geoff Hobson on Bengals.com. A 2013 second-round project, Hunt is a “freakish,” 6-8, 291-pounder who might be ready to contribute at left end.
Bengals running back James Wilder Jr., an undrafted free agent out of Florida State, claims he broke a team conditioning record, but he’s on the outside looking in for now, says ESPN’s Coley Harvey.
Browns All-Pro Joe Haden is the latest to (delicately) express concern over Johnny Manziel’s partying ways (radio interview with 850 AM here), but says nothing Manziel is doing away from the team facility is negatively affecting his work. Haden merely suggests, “Just try to have fun without the whole world knowing.”