Matt Rhule - Pro Football Rumors

Matt Rhule To Meet With Panthers, Giants

January 4th, 2020 at 1:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Matt Rhule-to-NFL path may be close to forming. The Baylor head coach has scheduled two interviews. He will meet with the Panthers on Monday and the Giants shortly after, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

A New York native, Rhule is believed to be the frontrunner for the Giants job. He spent 2012 as their assistant offensive line coach, working with the franchise during Dave Gettleman‘s final season during his first Giants stint. Rhule’s Giants meeting is expected to take place Tuesday.

As a college coach, Rhule is 47-43 in seven seasons at Temple and Baylor. But it’s the Bears’ quick turnaround from the Art Briles tenure that has likely sparked interest among NFL teams. Baylor completed the transition from 1-11 in Rhule’s first season in 2017 to ending its 2019 campaign in the Sugar Bowl. While Baylor did not fare well against Georgia, Rhule was already an NFL candidate before guiding the Big 12 program to an 11-win season. And prior to Rhule’s Baylor stay, he led Temple to back-to-back 10-win seasons — the first such stretch in the program’s 90-year history.

The Panthers have already interviewed Mike McCarthy (twice) and Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy. They are tentatively scheduled to meet with Vikings OC Kevin Stefanski late next week. The Giants are interviewing Bieniemy and Ravens DC Don “Wink” Martindale on Saturday and have already spoken with McCarthy and Cowboys secondary coach Kris Richard. Both teams are also interested in Josh McDaniels, who has previously been a Giants target.

Rhule turned down an opportunity to interview for the Browns job, doing so a year after agreeing to return to Baylor despite Jets interest. Rhule interviewed for the job that went to Adam Gase and has said he would leave for the NFL if the right opportunity presented itself. The latest NFL hiring period will put the 44-year-old coach to the test.

NFC East Rumors: Giants, Cooper, Jenkins

January 1st, 2020 at 9:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

Baylor’s Matt Rhule is rumored to the be the Giants‘ preferred candidate, and although he turned down the Jets last year, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv notes the native New Yorker is expected to consider leaving the college ranks to coach the Giants. This and the soon-to-be-available Cowboys job might be the only ones Rhule would presently consider, per Vacchiano. Rhule, who spent 2012 as the Giants’ assistant offensive line coach, has drawn interest from the Panthers and Browns as well. The 44-year-old college coach plans to go on vacation soon after Wednesday night’s Sugar Bowl, but Vacchiano adds the Giants are expected to meet with him before he departs for said trip.

Mike McCarthy, however, may have the best shot at competing with Rhule for the job, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post writes. The former Super Bowl-winning Packers coach is believed to have gained steam, per Vacchiano. McCarthy is scheduled to meet with the Giants on Friday. He’s set to interview with the Browns on Thursday and has already met with the Panthers twice.

Here is the latest from the NFC East:

In Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper, the Cowboys have two of the league’s top free agents. Prescott is certainly not going anywhere and, despite the prospect of the team using its franchise tag on its quarterback, Cooper is not expected to reach the market, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). Cooper continues to indicate Dallas is where he wants to be. The lack of a new collective bargaining agreement helps the Cowboys on this front, as they could use both their franchise and transition tags if no CBA is in place by March 10. However, to fully avoid the risk of losing one of these key players, the Cowboys would need to reach an extension with one of them before the March 10 franchise tag deadline. A wide receiver franchise tag is expected to cost just more than $18MM; a transition tag would come in at nearly $16MM.
Leonard Williams told Dave Gettleman he wants to stay with the Giants, according to the GM (via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post). (Williams, however, has said he will hit free agency if the Giants don’t give him “top-tier money.”) The Giants made the strange move of trading two mid-round draft picks for the contract-year defensive end, and Gettleman said he wanted to get an up-close look at Williams in the Giants’ system. Of course, the Giants will likely have a new defensive system soon once a new head coach arrives.
Giants center Jon Halapio suffered another severe injury this season — a torn Achilles in Week 17 — but the team is expected to tender him in restricted free agency, per Dunleavy. Halapio suffered a broken leg in September 2018 but returned to start a career-high 15 games this season. The 28-year-old snapper is not expected to be ready until at least training camp. He underwent surgery Tuesday.
The Eagles‘ longtime safety tandem of Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod may break up in March, with the latter a free agent. But Jenkins is a rumored extension candidate, and Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP.com expects a re-up that would make Jenkins one of the NFL’s highest-paid safeties to occur soon (Twitter link). Jenkins, 32, would be a 2021 free agent. The Eagles have been busy with major extensions lately, coming to terms with Brandon Brooks and Lane Johnson during the season.

Coaching Notes: Giants, Rhule, Redskins, Dolphins

December 30th, 2019 at 6:45pm CST by Ben Levine

We heard rumblings that Baylor head coach Matt Rhule will be the Giants’ top choice to replace Pat Shurmur, who was canned as head coach earlier today. Yahoo’s Charles Robinson tweets that the organization is “motivated and borderline excited” to hear of Rhule’s various requests, and “they’ll be ears” if the coach asks to revamp any areas of the organization. This was a topic of contention last year when Rhule interviewed with the Jets.

Meanwhile, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo clarifies (on Twitter) that while Rhule would have the “leeway to make big decisions throughout the building,” the coach doesn’t necessarily want full personnel control.

Speaking of, Executive Vice President (and co-owner) Steve Tisch said he plans to take on a bigger role with the organization in 2020.

“I am involved. I would like to be more involved. I will become more involved,” he said (via ESPN’s Jordan Raanan on Twitter).

Let’s check out some more coaching notes from around the NFL…

Those waiting for Ron Rivera‘s impending hiring by the Redskins will have to wait a bit longer. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport said negotiations between the organization and their presumed next coach good drag into Tuesday (Twitter link). However, the two sides are still expected to come to agreement on a deal.
The Dolphins let go of offensive coordinator Chad O’Shea earlier today, but the organization doesn’t doubt his ability to coach receivers. Sources told Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network (Twitter link) that the 47-year-old is viewed as a great wide receivers coach, but “people inside the building didn’t view him as a good coordinator.” The longtime assistant spent 10 years with the Patriots as the club’s WRs coach and joined former New England DC Brian Flores in South Beach when Flores became the ‘Fins head coach this year.
O’Shea wasn’t the only member of the Dolphins who won’t be back next season. Veteran offensive line coach Dave DeGuglielmo told NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo that he and the organization have decided to part ways (Twitter link). Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets that the Dolphins have also let go of safeties coach Tony Oden.

Browns Request Interview With Josh McDaniels

December 30th, 2019 at 9:55am CST by Rory Parks

The Browns, who fired head coach Freddie Kitchens yesterday, have requested an interview with Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com says McDaniels is the Browns’ top choice (Twitter link).

Of course, McDaniels’ brief and disastrous tenure as the Broncos’ head coach from 2009-10 and his jilting of the Colts after he agreed to become their head coach in February 2018 are well-known. But he remains one of the most respected offensive minds in the game, and he has once again become a popular head coaching candidate.

Cabot writes in a full-length piece that the Browns’ job is attractive to McDaniels, an Ohio native. The question is whether McDaniels would want to work within the Cleveland front office as it’s currently structured. We heard yesterday that GM John Dorsey may be on the hot seat, and while the report of Kitchens’ firing indicated that Dorsey was safe, that may not be the case.

Indeed, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports believes owner Jimmy Haslam will, in fact, alter the executive layer of his team, and he thinks the dynamic between chief strategist Paul DePodesta and Dorsey will change (Twitter link). Cabot confirms that there is a disconnect between DePodesta and the analytics side of the operation and Dorsey and the football side, and that disconnect would obviously need to be resolved prior to McDaniels — or anyone else — agreeing to come on board.

Because of his desirability, McDaniels can afford to be particular and can largely dictate the makeup of a team’s front office. He is likely to want a lot of authority over personnel matters, and he may want to bring current Pats exec and popular GM candidate Nick Caserio along with him.

Meanwhile, Browns assistant coaches met with team brass this morning, per Cabot. They were not fired but were given permission to seek other jobs.

Baylor head coach Matt Rhule, another top candidate for NFL head coaching jobs, is not interested in the Cleveland gig, per Michael Lomabrdi of The Athletic (via Twitter).

Giants Fire HC Pat Shurmur, Will Retain GM Dave Gettleman

December 30th, 2019 at 8:36am CST by Rory Parks

The Giants have fired head coach Pat Shurmur, according to multiple sources, including Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Shurmur went 9-23 in his two seasons as Big Blue’s sideline general.

Meanwhile, the club will retain GM Dave Gettleman, as Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter). A report from ESPN yesterday indicated that this was the expected outcome, but it could have a bearing on the team’s head coaching search. Several sources, like Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com (via Twitter), believe Baylor head coach Matt Rhule will be New York’s top choice to replace Shurmur, but a candidate like Rhule could require authority over personnel matters before agreeing to accept a head coaching position and leaving his current comfortable post.

In any event, the writing was on the wall for Shurmur. There was some thought that he could be retained for a third year in order to maintain continuity for QB Daniel Jones, but his play-calling and decision-making were repeatedly called into question during his brief tenure with the Giants, and we heard earlier this month that organizational support for him was dimming. He was by no means gifted with a playoff-worthy roster, but it’s difficult to fault the Giants for the move.

However, New York will now be seeking its fourth head coach in four years, and with their QB of the future apparently in tow, the club needs to get this hire right. Announcing that Gettleman will be back before the HC search can truly commence seems to be an odd way of doing business, but the job is attractive enough that the Giants may still be able to land the candidate of their choice. Indeed, Rhule and Gettleman worked together on the 2012 Giants and do have a relationship.

In a statement, co-owner John Mara said:

“Dave Gettleman is our general manager in 2020 and hopefully for many years after that. We believe he is the right person to lead us going forward. Dave has a long record of success. We think he’s capable of putting a great team together and he’s going to get that opportunity. To the extent we need to make changes in personnel or the way we do things, we’re going to discuss that.”

The statement also indicated that the team’s search for a new HC will be “extensive.”

HC/GM Rumors: Gase, Lynn, Panthers, Shurmur

December 29th, 2019 at 11:37am CST by Rory Parks

Black Monday is tomorrow, so let’s take a look at the latest coaching and GM rumors from around the league:

This doesn’t come as much of a surprise, given that neither man was really believed to be on the hot seat, but Jets HC Adam Gase and Chargers HC Anthony Lynn will both be back in 2020, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (h/t NFL Update on Twitter).
We learned yesterday that the Panthers would seek to interview Baylor head coach Matt Rhule, which David Newton of ESPN.com confirmed today. Matt Miller of Bleacher Report believes Rhule would leave Baylor if the right opportunity presented itself, despite signing a lengthy extension with the school back in September (Twitter link).
Despite speculation that the Panthers could look to move on from GM Marty Hurney, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic says owner Dave Tepper remains intent on keeping Hurney, and Hurney wants to stay (Twitter link). Tepper does want to bring in an assistant GM, and Joe Person of The Athletic offers a list of potential candidates. The problem, as NFL insider Adam Caplan observes, is that Carolina could be blocked from interviewing candidates under contract with other teams unless the Panthers’ gig comes with decision-making responsibilities (Twitter link).
We heard earlier today that the Browns are doing their due diligence on HC candidates, which isn’t a good sign for Freddie Kitchens. As Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets, the team wanted to see modest progress from Kitchens this year, which is why a loss to the Bengals on Sunday afternoon could seal his fate. But for all his faults, Kitchens remains well-liked in the building, so he’s not a goner just yet. We also heard today that Browns GM John Dorsey may be on the hot seat.
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reiterates yesterday’s report that Ron Rivera is high on the Redskins‘ wish list, and that Rivera could have a new job as soon as tomorrow (video link). However, other clubs also want a crack at Rivera. One of those clubs, the Cowboys, will almost certainly move on from Jason Garrett if they are eliminated from playoff contention today, and Rapoport names Rhule, Lincoln Riley, and Rivera as names to watch for Dallas’ expected vacancy.
In the same report, RapSheet says Giants ownership is split on head coach Pat Shurmur, with Steve Tisch wanting to move on and John Mara not quite convinced. A win over the Eagles today could save Shurmur’s job.
Dan Graziano of ESPN.com confirms (via Twitter) that former Texans GM Rick Smith is definitely a name to watch if the Redskins move on from Bruce Allen, which they are expected to do. Graziano says it’s still unclear as to whether Smith wants to return to a front office, contrary to a report from last month, but if he is, Redskins owner Dan Snyder will be interested. Mark Maske of the Washington Post hears that Smith, who lost his wife to cancer 11 months ago, is not quite ready to return to football (Twitter link).

Head Coach Search Updates: Rivera, McCarthy, Panthers, Candidates

December 28th, 2019 at 8:21pm CST by Marc Delucchi

Former Panthers head coach Ron Rivera will not be unemployed for long. An earlier report noted that Washington had “strong interest” and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that sources close to Rivera expect an agreement to form quickly and could even come together in the next couple days. Aside from Washington, Rapoport notes that some teams that are considering firing their head coach (like the Giants) have Rivera circled as a top target if they do create an opening.

Rivera served as the head coach in Carolina from 2011-2019 and led the team to a 73-63-1 regular season record and a 3-4 postseason record. A linebacker in his playing days with the historic 1980s Bears defenses, Rivera has always been a defensive-minded coach. Prior to his time with the Panthers, he had served as a linebackers coach with the Eagles and Chargers and as the defensive coordinator for the Bears and Chargers.

Here’s some more notes from the NFL coaching carousel:

As the Panthers look to replace Rivera, former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy has emerged as a one of the leading candidates to take over in Carolina. According to Rapoport, McCarthy has already interviewed with the Panthers twice and did very well. Given the strong reputation of Rivera, a candidate like McCarthy, with a long resume (that includes a Super Bowl title) may be more desirable to franchise brass. With that said, Rapoport noted that Carolina plans to interview some younger coaches as well including Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Baylor head coach Matt Rhule, and Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy among others.
While some teams have already begun their head coaching searches, the hiring search process will heat up as soon as teams complete the regular season. For an in-depth primer on the wide variety of coaches that could be in line to become head coaches this season, take a look at Rapoport and Tom Pelissero’s detailed list of coaches to know, which includes short descriptions on the most prominent names. The list breaks candidates into categories from former NFL head coaches to first-timers and even examines some college coaches.

East Rumors: Rhule, Meyer, Jets

December 15th, 2019 at 12:42pm CST by Rory Parks

Despite reports connecting the Cowboys to Lincoln Riley and Urban Meyer, team owner Jerry Jones on Saturday downplayed the notion that he would pursue a college coach this offseason. However, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports says Jones remains interested in Riley, and he is also paying close attention to Baylor head coach Matt Rhule.

Rhule was a hot name on the NFL head coaching circuit last year and reportedly could have had the Jets’ job if he agreed to certain appointments to his coaching staff. He signed an eight-year extension with Baylor in September, but pro teams are still interested in him. Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network shot down recent speculation that the Cowboys would pursue Sean Payton, but he says Dallas made it known through back channels last offseason it was interested in the Saints’ HC, which helped Payton land his extension with New Orleans in September (video link).

Now for more from the league’s east divisions:

The Cowboys may not be the only team interested in Meyer. As JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington tweets, Meyer is at FedEx field for the Redskins‘ contest against the Eagles today, and Washington would love to land Meyer as its next HC. Meyer, of course, served as Dwayne Haskins‘ head coach at Ohio State, but it seems like the Redskins don’t really meet Meyer’s criteria for coming out of retirement.
Rich Cimini of ESPN.com expects the Jets to overhaul 50% of their roster this offseason, and he unsurprisingly names Brian Winters and Quincy Enunwa as two of the big-name players who could be cut. He also says that, if New York retains Le’Veon Bell, it should bring in another RB with the speed to run outside the tackles.
Though the Patriots just cut kicker Josh Gable two days after adding him to the practice squad, head coach Bill Belichick suggested that Gable could be back in 2020 as possible competition for Stephen Gostkowski, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com writes.
In the same piece linked above, Reiss says Patriots D-line coach Bret Bielema, a former collegiate head coach with Wisconsin and Arkansas, is generating interest from college teams. Bielema is said to be open to such an opportunity if the right one presents itself.
The NFL’s decision on the Patriots‘ punishment for Spygate 2.0 is expected shortly.

Baylor, Matt Rhule Agree To Extension

September 30th, 2019 at 12:35pm CST by Zachary Links

Baylor head coach Matt Rhule has drawn significant interest from NFL teams in recent years. But, after agreeing to a new contract extension with the Bears, he might not consider a jump to the pros for a while.

Per an announcement from the school, Rhule has a new deal that will tie him up through the 2027 season. The new pact includes performance bonuses, retention incentives, and a bump in base salary.

Like records, college football coaching contracts are meant to be broken. But, the new deal probably includes a seven-figure buyout clause for an NFL team to buy him out, and that could be a barrier for any team looking to hire Rhule.

Rhule, who turns 45 in January, interviewed for the Colts job in 2017. Then, in January, he nearly became the Jets’ new head coach before the club ultimately landed on Adam Gase. Reportedly, Rhule was offered the gig, but turned it down when the Jets tried to influence his staffing hires.

Coaching Rumors: Vikings, Kubiak, Dolphins

January 14th, 2019 at 2:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Here are the latest coaching rumors from around the NFL:

The Vikings are in play for Gary Kubiak, according to Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). The OC job is already occupied by Kevin Stefanski, but Kubiak could work with him on that side of the ball. Kubiak’s son, Klint, was on the Vikings’ staff in 2013-14 and worked with Stefanski during that time, so there’s some degree of familiarity there.
Jim Caldwell is expected to join the Dolphins‘ staff in some capacity, though it won’t necessarily be as offensive coordinator, Albert Breer of The MMQB hears. The Dolphins could go with a younger coordinator and have Caldwell serve in a mentor-type role, but Caldwell could also don the headset after Miami missed out on guys like Greg Roman and Kliff Kingsbury.
Christopher Johnson says the report the Jets tried to tell Matt Rhule or Mike McCarthy who to hire is completely untrue (Twitter link via Connor Hughes of The Athletic). If he is to be believed, then new head coach Adam Gase will have a good degree of freedom to fill out his staff. If you choose to believe the reports, then Gase will probably have to work off of a limited list of options provided by GM Mike Maccagnan and the rest of the front office.