HEADLINES

John Morton

Jets Hire Saints’ John Morton As OC

January 31st, 2017 at 3:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Jets officially announced that they are hiring former Saints wide receivers coach John Morton as their new offensive coordinator. He’ll take over the post vacated by veteran coach Chan Gailey.

Morton and former Texans OC George Godsey were the two finalists for this position, and although Godsey offered OC experience, Morton was coming off a banner year coaching New Orleans’ receivers. The Saints led the NFL in total offense and generated constant production from their wideouts, including UDFA Willie Snead and rookie Michael Thomas.

Morton’s past with Sean Payton, willingness to use the West Coast offense, and plans to fully utilize the tight end position caught Todd Bowles‘ attention, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets. Jets tight ends under Gailey produced historically unproductive numbers with just 26 receptions combined during his tenure. Meanwhile, Bowles is expected to be more involved with the offense in 2017 than he was in the previous two seasons.

At one point, the Jets were potentially leaning toward Godsey, having done “extensive homework” on the former Texans assistant. The Jets also considered eventual Broncos OC Mike McCoy and interviewed current McCoy staffer Eric Studesville before the Denver running backs coach withdrew from consideration. The Eagles put the kibosh on a Jets meeting with quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo as well.

Morton served as OC at USC from 2009-11, but has no prior play-calling experience in the NFL.

AFC Notes: Cousins, Jets, Steelers, Bengals

January 24th, 2017 at 3:56pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Jets’ decision to hire Todd Bowles as their head coach instead of Dan Quinn in 2015 may have cost them a chance to acquire then-backup quarterback Kirk Cousins from the Redskins, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Quinn’s offensive coordinator in Atlanta, Kyle Shanahan, would have come with him to New York but would not have wanted to work with Geno Smith, sources told Mehta. Shanahan would have pushed to acquire Cousins, whom he knew from their time together in Washington in 2012. A big Cousins fan, Shanahan was reportedly “integral” in the Redskins’ drafting of the ex-Michigan State signal-caller. Along with Shanahan, Quinn would have brought former Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik with him to work in the Jets’ front office. Dominik is close with Redskins president Bruce Allen, and their friendship could have further helped lead the way to a Cousins trade, writes Mehta.

As we ponder what could have been, here’s more from New York and a few other AFC cities:

  • While Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is considering retirement, it will be a surprise if the 13th-year man doesn’t return in 2017, sources told Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link). In the seemingly likely event Roethlisberger does come back for his age-35 season, the Steelers should still give serious thought to using a high-round pick on a potential successor, opines Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
  • The Jets’ previously reported interest in Saints wide receivers coach John Morton has already led to an interview. The two sides met Tuesday, and Morton remains in the running for the job, reports Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.
  • It appeared the NFL had lifted running back Karlos Williams‘ 10-game suspension when the Steelers brought him back on a reserve/futures deal Monday, but that’s not the case. Williams still has one game remaining on the substance abuse-related ban the league handed him in November, tweets Fowler. He’ll be eligible to take the field again in Week 2 of next season.
  • The belief is that the Bengals are talking to pending free agent kicker Randy Bullock about a new contract, writes Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. Re-signing Bullock wouldn’t stop the Bengals from searching for other options at the position, notes Hobson. The 27-year-old Bullock didn’t join the Bengals until mid-December, when they claimed him off waivers from division-rival Pittsburgh after releasing Mike Nugent. Bullock, who was a member of three teams in 2016 (the Giants were the other), connected on 5 of 6 field goal tries and all six extra points in three games with Cincinnati.
  • The Broncos made a minor change to their Vance Joseph-led staff Tuesday, promoting special teams quality control coach Chris Gould to assistant special teams coach. They’re also set to retain Klint Kubiak, the son of previous Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak, as their offensive assistant/quarterbacks coach, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post.

Jets Interested In George Godsey, John Morton

January 24th, 2017 at 8:36am CST by Connor J. Byrne

Just over a week after he and the Texans parted ways, offensive coordinator George Godsey is drawing interest from the Jets, reports Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. New York, which is looking for a successor to retired O-coordinator Chan Gailey, could interview Godsey at the Senior Bowl as early as Tuesday, per Cimini. The club also has Saints wide receivers coach John Morton on its radar.

George Godsey (vertical)

It has been exactly three weeks since the embattled Gailey stepped down, but the Jets haven’t made much progress in finding a replacement. They previously targeted Mike McCoy, but he took Denver’s coordinator job, as well as Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo and Broncos running backs Eric Studesville. Those two aren’t leaving their current organizations, however, and the same seems likely for another coach the Jets have eyed, Chiefs co-OC Matt Nagy.

Godsey, meanwhile, is looking for work and would bring two years’ experience as a coordinator to the Jets. The 38-year-old had little to work with under center in Houston, whose offense struggled on his watch, and lost play-calling duties last September to head coach Bill O’Brien. As he did with the Texans, Godsey would have to deal with a less-than-ideal quarterback situation if he were to end up with the Jets. The team’s only options heading into the offseason are Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty. That means the Jets will have to hit the jackpot on a signal-caller either through free agency or the draft, in which they’ll pick sixth.

Unlike Godsey, Morton has no play-calling experience at the NFL level, but he was USC’s offensive coordinator under Pete Carroll in 2009 and Lane Kiffin from 2010-11. He then jumped to the pros, where he has coached wideouts with the 49ers and Saints over the past six seasons. Under Morton’s stewardship in 2016, the Saints had three receivers finish with at least 70 catches and 895 yards. One of those players, Michael Thomas, piled up 92 receptions, 1,137 yards and nine touchdowns as a second-round rookie.