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Mike Maccagnan

Latest On Jets, Bears GM Searches

December 30th, 2014 at 1:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Of the five teams hunting for new head coaches, two have an even more daunting task ahead of them, as the Bears and Jets are also on the lookout for new general managers to head their football operations departments. The Jets have tasked two consultants, Charley Casserly and Ron Wolf, with identifying potential candidates, while the Bears hired former Giants GM Ernie Accorsi as an advisor for their search.

Heading into today, we’d heard Seahawks director of pro personnel Trent Kirchner and Vikings assistant GM George Paton linked to the Jets’ opening, while things had been relatively quiet on the Bears’ front so far. More rumors and rumblings on both positions are starting to surface though, so let’s round up the latest updates:

  • The Jets intend to interview their current senior director of football administration Rod Graves for their GM opening, a source tells Brian Costello of the New York Post (Twitter link). Mehta, confirming the report, tweets that it’s a “courtesy” on the Jets’ part.
  • Costello adds (via Twitter) that the Jets have also asked the Browns permission to interview personnel executive Bill Kuharich.

Earlier updates:

  • The Jets are interested in interviewing Texans director of college scouting Mike Maccagnan for their GM vacancy, tweets Brian Costello of the New York Post. A source confirms to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (Twitter link) that the Jets have indeed asked Houston for permission to speak to Maccagnan.
  • Mehta also reports (via Twitter) that the Jets have requested permission to interview Eagles director of pro personnel Rick Mueller. Mueller has previously worked for the Jaguars and Saints as well.
  • The Jets are expected to make a strong push for Ravens assistant GM Eric DeCosta, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). However, as Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links) points out, DeCosta is contractually designated as Baltimore’s GM-in-waiting behind Ozzie Newsome — he’s a strong GM candidate for rival clubs, but is in a good situation with the Ravens and is “highly valued” by the organization. For now, the Jets have asked for permission to interview him, tweets Mehta.
  • Four interview targets have emerged for the Bears‘ general manager opening, according to Rapoport, who lists the following candidate (via Twitter): Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard, Giants VP of player evaluation Marc Ross, Titans VP of player personnel Lake Dawson, and Ravens director of pro personnel Vince Newsome.

La Canfora’s Latest: Texans, Browns, Harbaugh

December 28th, 2014 at 9:23am CST by Dallas Robinson

Let’s check out the latest from CBS Sports scribe Jason La Canfora:

  • The Texans are expected to make a change at general manager during the offseason, with current GM Rick Smith shifting into a new role that doesn’t involve football operations. Head coach Bill O’Brien will have significant input on who is hired to fill the position, and sources tell La Canfora that the club already has several candidates in mind. Patriots executive Nick Caserio would likely be O’Brien’s top choice, as the two worked together in New England. Other external options include the Eagles’ Tom Gamble and the Pats’ Jon Robinson, while internal candidates could include scouting director Mike Maccagnan and director of pro personnel Brian Gaine. Texans vice chariman Cal McNair has denied La Canfora’s report, tweets John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.
  • Meanwhile, changes could also be coming in Buffalo and Tennessee, writes La Canfora. Bills GM Doug Whaley doesn’t have a great relationship with head coach Doug Marrone, and given that the current Buffalo front office was responsible for the selection of E.J. Manuel, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the club completely overhaul its management team. Meanwhile, the Titans could opt to fire general manager Ruston Webster, and replace him with executive Lake Dawson.
  • The Browns are growing increasingly frustrated with both Josh Gordon and Johnny Manziel, sources tell La Canfora. Gordon, who was suspended for today’s game after missing a walkthrough on Saturday, will file a grievance against the team in order to maintain his free agent status after 2015. But Cleveland officials say Gordon “has to go,” although La Canfora says it’s unclear whether owner Jimmy Haslam is willing to trade the talented wideout. For his part, Manziel was also absent yesterday, and team security was forced to go to his house to retrieve him. The rookie quarterback reportedly threw a team party Friday night (which led to several Browns being late on Saturday), the latest questionable decision by a player who recently vowed to take the game more seriously.
  • Five clubs — the Raiders, Jets, 49ers, Falcons, and Bears — are expected to make coaching changes in the coming days. The Raiders still have their eye on Jim Harbaugh, but if he takes the Michigan job as expected, the club could bring in Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. And while the 49ers are expected to look at some of the younger offensive coaches during their search, the Jets, Falcons, and Bears are looking to hire an established head coach, per La Canfora. Rex Ryan is an option in Atlanta, though if the Falcons lose today and miss the playoffs, general manger Thomas Dimitroff could be axed there. In Chicago, the club could look to reunite Mike Shanahan with Jay Cutler.
  • The Raiders will indeed attempt to make their pitch to Harbaugh, and would even engage in trade talks with the 49ers if possible. La Canfora notes (via Twitter) that NFL executives won’t believe Harbaugh has a deal with Michigan until it’s officially signed.
  • Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin is a name to watch regarding head-coaching vacancies. La Canfora says sources have compared Autin’s rise to that of Mike Tomlin, who went from an unknown position coach to leading the Steelers in rapid time. Austin is expected to garner several interviews, including one with the Falcons.

Coaching, GM Notes: 49ers, Sparano, Jets, Saints

December 22nd, 2014 at 3:04pm CST by Rob DiRe

Saints‘ defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has been disappointing this season, and with the team eliminated from playoff contention in a historically lackluster division, Ryan’s job could be in jeopardy, writes Mike Triplett of ESPN. The Saints’ players, however, expect their coach back next year, including defensive backs Kenny Vaccaro and Keenan Lewis.

“Rob will be here,” Vaccaro said. “Rob’s my guy. I love Rob. I’ll fight for Rob every game. I’m a Rob guy, so there’s no point even asking me about Rob. He’ll ride with me until the end.”

“I want him back. I’m gonna ride with him 100, no matter what the situation is. A great coordinator,” said Lewis. “You can’t just blame him when things go wrong.”

Here some other organizational notes as we approach the end of this NFL regular season:

  • The 49ers are already vetting potential head coaches, and could look to a division rival to find their man, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. In the video clip associated with that Bleacher Report article, Cole puts the spotlight on Seahawks‘ defensive coordinator Dan Quinn as a top option to replace Jim Harbaugh. Cole also believes the team could target Patriots‘ offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. The top in-house candidate is defensive line coach Jim Tomsula.
  • Tony Sparano has gone 3-8 as interim head coach of the Raiders, and while he isn’t expected to be the team’s first choice, he is a legitimate candidate to be the head coach in 2015, writes Bill Williamson of ESPN.com. Harbaugh is thought to be the team’s number one option, but if he decides to take a different job either in the NFL or with the University of Michigan, Williamson believes that Sparano will be among a group of coaches considered for the job.
  • Williamson also notes that among other coaching candidates to emerge for the Raiders will be Broncos‘ defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. Del Rio has previous head coaching experience with the Jaguars.
  • After hiring Charlie Casserly as a consultant, Jason La Canfora has made a connection between the potential general manager opening with the Jets and Texans‘ scouting director Mike Maccagnan (via Twitter). He believes Maccagnan has a strong relationship with Casserly. La Canfora also highlights Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles as a coaching candidate due to his relationship with Casserly from their time together in Washington (via Twitter).