Marvin Lewis - Pro Football Rumors

AFC Notes: Jets, Broncos, Lewis, Jackson, Pats

April 10th, 2016 at 6:14pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Here is the latest from around the AFC, starting with the conference’s latest trade partners.

Following D’Brickashaw Ferguson‘s retirement and the acquisition of Ryan Clady, the Jets have a little more cap space to work with as they try to re-sign quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. But according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, the talks between New York and Fitzpatrick aren’t being hampered by cap room — instead, the two sides merely have a difference of opinion on what Fitzpatrick is worth. Per Cimini, the Jets are actually offering more than the commonly reported $7-8MM average annual value.
Earlier today, Paxton Lynch‘s planned trip to the Jets’ facilities surfaced. The Memphis quarterback who’s regarded as the No. 3 passing prospect in this year’s draft is also expected to visit the Broncos this week, according to a Denver Post report. The Super Bowl champions hold pick No. 31 and would likely have to move up to acquire Lynch. Denver did pick up an additional fifth-round pick, giving the team two third-rounders and two fifths in addition to its usual allotment.
We first heard back in January that Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis had approached former offensive coordinator Hue Jackson with a plan to succeed him — and thus, retain him as play-caller, and Mike Silver of NFL.com (video link) provides a bit more detail on the proposal. Lewis and Jackson discussed a scenario where Lewis would agree to step down as head coach after two more seasons, allowing Jackson to take over. The duo presented the plan to Bengals owner Mike Brown, who wasn’t comfortable locking up such a proposition in writing. Jackson, of course, went on to accept the Browns’ head-coaching job, while Lewis was recently extended through 2017.
Former Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds‘ visit with the Patriots has already been reported, but Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald dives deep into New England’s interest in the former Midshipman. The Patriots have apparently met with Reynolds several times, and worked him out multiple times in Annapolis. As Howe explores, New England has shown an affinity for Navy alums in the past.

Sam Robinson contributed to this report

AFC North Rumors: Schwartz, Browns, Steelers

March 24th, 2016 at 1:45pm CST by Luke Adams

It has already been an eventful day in the AFC North, where the Browns have officially signed Robert Griffin III to a two-year contract and ex-Browns linebacker Karlos Dansby is paying a visit to the division-rival Bengals. Those aren’t the only items of note worth passing along from out of the division today though, so let’s dive in and round up the latest…

Veteran free agent guard Geoff Schwartz is visiting the Steelers today, tweets Josina Anderson of ESPN.com. Pittsburgh currently has a strong trio of Ramon Foster, Maurkice Pouncey, and David DeCastro penciled in for its three interior line spots, so it’s not clear what sort of role the Steelers would have in mind for Schwartz if he signs with them.
Newly-signed Browns quarterback RGIII told reporters, including Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link), that it wouldn’t bother him “at all” if Cleveland drafts a QB early, adding that he’d “take the guy under my wing.” One potential target for the Browns is North Dakota State’s Carson Wentz, and Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com notes (via Twitter) that Hue Jackson, Pep Hamilton, and Andrew Berry were all at Wentz’s pro day on Thursday.
The Steelers had a noteworthy contingent at the University of Houston’s pro day, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (all Twitter links), who reports that GM Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin were in attendance. Pittsburgh is believed to be eyeing cornerback William Jackson III, who had a dinner meeting on Wednesday night with Colbert and Tomlin, according to Wilson.
Asked about the possibility of extending head coach Marvin Lewis‘ contract beyond the 2016 season, Bengals owner Mike Brown was somewhat noncommittal. “He’s going to be our coach this year. That’s in the bank,” Brown said, per Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “Where it goes, we’ll see how it plays out.” Of course, that doesn’t mean Lewis’ job is in jeopardy by any means, but if he doesn’t get a new deal in the coming months, it’s a situation worth watching.

AFC Notes: Jones, Texans, Browns, Bengals

January 15th, 2016 at 9:26pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite not failing a drug test or being arrested, Chandler Jones could be subject to discipline under the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.

Jones’ recent incident reportedly involving synthetic marijuana and a police report indicating a smell of burned marijuana in Jones’ apartment would be enough to place the Patriots defensive end in Stage 1 of the substance-abuse program, Florio notes.

Synthetic marijuana isn’t among the substances for which the NFL tests, but being placed in the program would open up Jones to tests for other substances, and potential advancement within the program would about subsequent discipline a subsequent test comes back positive.

Jones’ recent bizarre happening won’t result in a suspension, Florio reports, unless the fourth-year defender was already in an advanced stage of the program. Confidentiality limits that knowledge to a select few, but Jones is not believed to be among those in the substance-abuse program.

Here are some more notes from AFC as the divisional round nears.

Ray Horton wants to be the Browns‘ defensive coordinator if he doesn’t receive a head-coaching opportunity, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports. John Wooten of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization that promotes minority coaches, front office personnel and scouts, told Cabot Horton “would love to come back to the Browns.” Horton served as Cleveland’s DC in 2013 under Rob Chudzinski but wasn’t retained after Chudzinski was fired after one season.
In addition to pursuing Kirby Wilson as their running-game coordinator, the Browns will attempt to land Packers assistant offensive line coach Mike Solari as their offensive line coach, with an aim to possibly give him more responsibilities, Cabot reports. The 60-year-old Solari’s most notable role came as Chiefs offensive coordinator in 2006-07 under Herm Edwards. Since, Solari served as the offensive line coach for the Seahawks (2008-09) and 49ers (2010-14) before joining the Packers’ staff.
The Texans hired former Patriots linebacker Larry Izzo as their special teams coordinator, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports. Izzo had previously served as the Giants’ assistant special teams coach. The 41-year-old Izzo played for three Patriots Super Bowl champion teams in the 2000s and is a Houston-area native.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has taken a lot of heat for deploying the likes of Vontaze Burfict and Adam Jones this week, but other coaches and executives believe the responsibility falls more on the Bengals’ ownership, Albert Breer of NFL.com reports. “I don’t think Marvin and that staff are about that stuff. Ownership is. They look at value, and see a way to gain an advantage,” one head coach told La Canfora. An NFC personnel man echoed that, questioning Mike Brown‘s organization’s offseason choices. “People want Marvin to pay with his job, but what about the GM? They went through this period of time where they had a bunch of dirtbags in there, guys like Corey Dillon, and they’ve changed some. But it’s still there. The Brown family, I love and respect them. They’re as high character and have as much integrity as any owners I’ve met. Yet, sometimes, the player selections make you scratch your head.”
Both Brock Osweiler and Malik Jackson will command contracts “well north” of $10MM per year, Mike Klis of 9News estimates. Both will be the Broncos‘ top priorities once Von Miller is likely franchise-tagged, Klis notes. The Broncos opted to let most of their departing talent walk the past two offseasons, save for Demaryius Thomas and Chris Harris, but today signed Derek Wolfe to a contract paying $9MM AAV. That figure sits seventh among 3-4 defensive ends, according to OverTheCap. The Broncos have $20MM+ worth of cap space heading into 2016, and that’s before factoring in Peyton Manning‘s likely departure, freeing up more than $20MM of additional dollars.

Bengals Plan To Retain Marvin Lewis

January 10th, 2016 at 1:49pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Despite falling to 0-7 in the playoffs with a loss to the Steelers in the Wild Card round last night, Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis is likely to return for a 14th season in 2016, as Adam Schefter of ESPN reports (Twitter link). Per Schefter, Cincinnati has no plans to make a coaching change at this time, and Lewis’ future with the club “really isn’t much of an issue.”

Reports this morning indicated that Lewis could be on the proverbial hot seat following last night’s loss. Not only did the defeat leave the coach still winless in the postseason, but the nature in which the Bengals lost was particularly embarrassing, with personal fouls in the final seconds of the contest ultimately costing Cincinnati a chance to move forward in the tournament.

Still, for a team that has preached continuity above all else, today’s report shouldn’t be particularly surprising. Under owner/GM Mike Brown, the Bengals aren’t a team to make reactionary decisions, as evidenced by Lewis being the second-longest tenured NFL head coach. It’s not as if Lewis hasn’t had success in the Queen City — he’s posted a career record of 112-92 — but until his team finally wins in the postseason, calls for him to be replaced aren’t likely to die down.

Cincinnati’s coaching staff is expected to undergo wholesale changes, however, at least on the assistant side of things. Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson is interviewing today with the Browns and the 49ers, and is said to be the leading candidate for the San Francisco job. Defensive coordinator Paul Guenther has drawn interest from both the Eagles and the Browns, while defensive backs coach Vance Joseph appears likely to become the Dolphins’ DC.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Sunday Roundup: Wood, Burfict, Koetter

January 10th, 2016 at 12:51pm CST by Rory Parks

As the Vikings and Seahawks do battle in frigid Minneapolis, let’s take a look at some links from around the league:

New Lions president Rod Wood admits to not having any football experience, but no one was especially concerned about that, as Wood is expected to handle the business side of the club while new GM Bob Quinn will handle the football side. But as Kyle Meinke of MLive.com writes, Detroit’s press release announcing Quinn’s hire noted that Quinn would report to team ownership and to Wood, which suggests that Wood could be wielding more power than initially believed.
Unsurprisingly, Bengals LB Vontaze Burfict is facing a suspension for his hit on Antonio Brown last night, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
ESPN’s Ed Werder believes it is “unlikely” that the Bengals will part ways with head coach Marvin Lewis (Twitter link), and Mark Maske of the Washington Post lays out the reasons for his belief that Lewis should stay.
Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel believes the Packers‘ efforts this season have been hampered by GM Ted Thompson‘s lack of in-season roster moves to address the team’s weaknesses. Since 2010, Green Bay has been awarded just two players on waivers, and Thompson has gone to the practice squad 70% of the time to fill vacancies on the 53-man roster.
Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune tweets that Dirk Koetter is still the leading candidate for the Buccaneers‘ head coaching job, though Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets that Koetter “really impressed” the 49ers during his interview with San Francisco yesterday. Tampa Bay also interviewed Panthers DC Sean McDermott yesterday.
Gus Bradley is taking his time with the Jaguars‘ search for a new defensive coordinator and has yet to establish a deadline for the decision, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida-Times Union.
Texans unrestricted free agents Ben Jones and Jared Crick both expressed their desire to remain in Houston, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).
Meanwhile, two notable players have declared that they will enter the NFL draft: Arkansas RB Alex Collins (Twitter link via ESPN’s Joe Schad) and Utah State LB Nick Vigil (Twitter link via Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net).

Marvin Lewis Back On The Hot Seat?

January 10th, 2016 at 8:55am CST by Rory Parks

On the heels of a gut-wrenching loss to the hated Steelers on Saturday night–a loss that dropped his overall playoff record as a head coach to 0-7–there is speculation that Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis could be on the outs in Cincinnati. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes that the loss–or, more specifically, the way in which the loss unfolded–might have put Lewis firmly on the hot seat.

By now, the game has been dissected ad nauseum. With a 16-15 lead late in the game, Bengals RB Jeremy Hill lost a fumble deep in Steelers territory as his team was attempting to run out the clock, giving Pittsburgh one last gasp. Although the Steelers were able to convert a fourth down to keep their hopes alive, they were still well outside of field goal range with time running out when Vontaze Burfict was flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty for a brutal hit laid on Antonio Brown after a Ben Roethlisberger pass sailed over Brown’s head. As Brown was being tended to by Pittsburgh’s medical staff, the Bengals were hit with another 15-yard penalty when Adam Jones bumped into an official while jawing with Steelers assistant coach Joey Porter (who was doing a fair amount of chirping in his own right, and who should not have been on the field at that time).

In any event, the thirty yards’ worth of penalties put the Steelers squarely in field goal range without having to run another play, and after kicker Chris Boswell split the uprights on a 35-yarder, the game was essentially over and the Bengals had suffered the type of loss that will leave permanent scars on the Queen City. And, as the man in charge of a team renowned for its volatility, Lewis may be forced to pay the price.

Lewis, of course, is no stranger to the hot seat. Despite an otherwise admirable coaching tenure in which he has turned one of the league’s laughingstocks into a yearly contender, Lewis has yet to deliver a playoff win, and rumors regarding his job security seem to spring up to at least some degree each offseason. But if team owner Mike Brown sees last night’s debacle as a direct reflection of Lewis’ control over his team, then he could finally decide to go in a different direction.

If he does, offensive coordinator Hue Jackson–who is expected to land a head coaching gig of his own anyway–could be offered a promotion to the top job, although Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets that defensive coordinator Paul Guenther would be the top internal candidate. For all of his flaws, Brown has at least recognized that maintaining continuity at the head coaching position is generally the appropriate strategy, but after a loss like last night’s, maybe it’s time for a change.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC Notes: Brady, Weddle, Lewis, Kromer

July 30th, 2015 at 9:23pm CST by Zachary Links

A U.S. District Court judge ordered the NFL and NFLPA to try to resolve their differences over Tom Brady‘s suspension without litigation, as ESPN.com writes. Of course, it seems unlikely that the two sides will peacefully resolve the conflict regarding the Patriots quarterback. Here’s more from the AFC..

Chargers safety Eric Weddle says that he will not hold out from camp but added that he believes this will be his last year with the team, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets. Weddle and the Bolts have been embroiled in a contract dispute all offseason and there has been no sign of the two compromising on an extension.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis wants to win a Super Bowl this season and “walk away” afterwards to leave the game on top, Paul Daugherty of The Cincinnati Enquirer writes.
Bills offensive line coach Aaron Kromer entered a written plea of not guilty in a Florida court, as Mike Rodak of ESPN.com tweets. Kromer is scheduled for a September 2nd pre-trial hearing.

Bengals Extend Marvin Lewis Through 2016

April 22nd, 2015 at 10:27am CST by Luke Adams

Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis will no longer have to worry about heading into the 2015 season on a lame-duck contract. The club announced today (via Twitter) that it has extended Lewis’ contract by one more year, keeping him locked up through the 2016 campaign.

Lewis, who has been coaching the Bengals since 2003, is the second longest-tenured head coach in the NFL, behind Bill Belichick in New England. During his 12 seasons with the team, Lewis has led Cincinnati to a 100-90-2 regular-season record and has earned a playoff spot six times. However, the Bengals have yet to win a postseason game under Lewis.

Lewis said back at the combine in February that he had yet to speak to the team about a new contract, so discussions for this extension likely occurred within the last couple months. While the extra year gives Lewis a little more security, it wouldn’t necessarily prevent the Bengals from making a coaching change a year from now if the club endures a disappointing 2015 season.

Bengals’ Brown Talks Green, Lewis, Contracts

March 22nd, 2015 at 10:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Bengals and A.J. Green could be heading toward a franchise tag arrangement next March, according to Paul Dehner Jr., of the Cincinnati Enquirer.

“Our problem is what you just said, the money is so big,” Bengals owner Mike Brown told Dehner Jr. “We are going to have a finite cap room with a handful of players who are going to be eligible for free agency. We are going to have to see what we can get done with that. We don’t know yet where we are going to end up but we have tried to prepare ourselves for it some by holding back on cap expenditures this year which can be rolled over into next year.”

A four-time Pro Bowler who has offered four-digit receiving-yardage totals in each of his four seasons, Green may not have a clear market as of now, with top-five wideout peers Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas being tagged this month.

Brown expressed obvious desire to strike a long-term accord with the Bengals’ top 2016 free agent priority, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com, but Green’s deal will affect the team’s ability to pay other ’16 free agents. Starters Andrew Whitworth, Leon Hall, Andre Smith and Reggie Nelson are among the lineup bastions with expiring contracts this season, and Andy Dalton‘s cap number vaults from $9M+ this season to more than $13MM in 2016. Excluding Smith, however, each of those will-be free agents are over 30.

Green will make $10.17MM this season on his fifth-year option and will almost certainly play in Cincinnati in 2016 on either a long-term deal or tag.

Brown hasn’t shown any urgency to give Marvin Lewis another one-year extension which would keep the coach out of lame-duck status this season, with Lewis joining the aforementioned contingent with expiring contracts. Lewis, who signed a one-year extension last March to avoid this expiring-deal scenario, is the second-longest-tenured coach in the league behind Bill Belichick.

“We have a good relationship. I hope that relationship goes forward into the future. But we aren’t at the future yet,” Brown told Dehrer Jr. “We don’t have to make this decision until after this year. He doesn’t have to make this decision until next year. Right now he’s under contract, and he’s fulfilling it as we would expect and he knows he should.”

The Bengals’ much-publicized playoff win drought extended to four straight years under Lewis, which may explain the owner’s reluctance to commit to giving him a potential 14th season (via Dehner Jr., on Twitter).

Other iteams from Brown, via Hobson: they haven’t made a decision on offering fifth-year options to 2012 first-rounders Dre Kirkpatrick and Kevin Zeitler; A.J. McCarron will get the chance to become Dalton’s understudy with the third quarterback likely coming through the draft, and Brown won’t vote for replay expansion (Twitter link) this week at the owners’ meetings.

Combine Pressers: Colts, Bengals, Falcons

February 19th, 2015 at 4:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The last of today’s head coach and general manager press conferences with the media are in the books, so let’s check in on the highlights for the noteworthy sessions that we haven’t already covered. Here’s the latest, with all links going to Twitter accounts for reporters on the scene in Indianapolis:

Colts general manager Ryan Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano:

The team will take a look at all its options at the safety position, which may be an area of need. Grigson indicated that the Colts would like to re-sign Mike Adams, who “never played like he was long in the tooth.”
Both Pagano and Grigson stressed the importance of improving the team’s running game. Asked about the possibility of adding a workhorse back, Pagano said he’d love to have a player like that, but added that the club could get the production it needs with a committee approach.
Expect the Colts to always be on the lookout for pass rushers. Grigson said today that even if he had 12 pass rushers, he’d want a 13th.
Veteran wideout Reggie Wayne hasn’t yet informed the team if he wants to play in 2015. As Grigson notes, everyone knows what he means to the organization, so if Wayne does continue his career, it will almost certainly happen in Indianapolis — for now, he doesn’t have a contract for next season.

Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis:

According to Lewis, there have been no discussions yet about his contract, which is set to expire after the 2015 season.
Lewis didn’t exactly give a ringing endorsement for Jermaine Gresham when he was asked today if there’s a place on the Bengals for the free-agent-to-be going forward. The veteran tight end is considered likely to land elsewhere this offseason.
According to Lewis, the Bengals have made a conscious effort to draft high-character plays in recent years. The head coach acknowledged that in some cases he can’t “fix” a player with off-field issues, and he doesn’t want to waste his time dealing with the distractions.
Lewis confirmed that he has spoken to veteran defensive back Terence Newman, who wants to continue his playing career. It’s not clear yet if there will be a spot in Cincinnati for Newman, who will turn 37 in September.

Falcons head coach Dan Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff:

We covered Dimitroff’s presser earlier this afternoon, but the GM also spoke to local media off to the side, and addressed a few more topics. Among them: Dimitroff said the Falcons would like to get a deal done quickly with kicker Matt Bryant, who is eligible for free agency.
We heard this morning that the Falcons haven’t opened negotiations yet on a contract extension for Julio Jones, but Dimitroff was adamant today the club wants to keep the standout receiver in Atlanta for years to come.
Both Dimitroff and Quinn are high on running back Devonta Freeman, whom the GM thinks could be a full-time back in Kyle Shanahan’s offensive scheme.
According to Dimitroff, Quinn’s philosophy is that you don’t have to pay a huge amount for a pass rusher. The GM added that he believes the free agent class has some depth at that spot, and it’s worth noting that Quinn’s defense in Seattle frequently rotated part-time specialists in and out as a way of pressuring the quarterback.
Cornerbacks Desmond Trufant and Robert Alford should be scheme fits for the Falcons’ new system, per Quinn.