Mike McCarthy - Pro Football Rumors

Extra Points: Nkemdiche, Henry, McCarthy, Kelly

December 13th, 2015 at 9:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

Consensus top-10 pick Robert Nkemdiche remains in stable condition after a fall from a hotel room window in Atlanta, David Ching of ESPN.com reports.

Reports varied over the nature of the Ole Miss junior defensive lineman’s fall, with this tweet indicating the Atlanta police said Nkemdiche fell from a fourth-floor window. But according to Ching’s report, police indicated this was a one-story fall of approximately 15 feet.

Per Ching, Nkemdiche appeared to have broken the window, climbed over another wall before falling to the ground. A small amount of “suspected marijuana” was present inside the room.

Matt Miller of Bleacher Report projects Nkemdiche to go fourth in the 2016 draft, and Mel Kiper Jr. lists the former No. 1 overall recruit as his No. 5 prospect.

Here are some additional news items on draft prospects and other news from around the league.

Character issues are affecting Nkemdiche’s perception among NFL decision-makers, Miller reports (video link). Miller, however, cautions that demoting character risks can be costly, considering Justin Houston and Tyrann Mathieu‘s rapid rises.
Alabama running back Derrick Henry won the Heisman Trophy as college football’s best player, but that doesn’t automatically mean he will be a high draft pick, writes Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union. He spoke with former scout Dan Hatman, who has Henry rated between his 100th and 150th best prospect, citing his reliance on blocking, poor change of direction, and a heavy college workload as reasons to be wary of overrating the top college running back.
Mike McCarthy notified associate head coach Tom Clements on Monday he’d be reassuming control of calling the Packers‘ plays, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com reports. The 10th-year Packers coach was following the advice of others in the organization urging him to do so, but McCarthy demurred initially because of fear it would make Clements and offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett look bad, Demovsky notes. Entering Sunday’s game, the Packers ranked 22nd in offense and 26th in third-down conversions. They rushed for 230 yards against the Cowboys. Clements last called plays for the Drew Bledsoe-era Bills in the mid-2000s. “The personal part of it was brutal,” McCarthy told media regarding Clements’ demotion. “Professionally, I felt like I had to do it. I was worried about making sure I was going to do my job good.”
Chip Kelly denied calling LeSean McCoy this week, an alleged phone call that resulted in the former Eagles running back hanging up on his ex-coach. “When people want to make up false stories about me calling people up during the week and them hanging up on me – people (are) trying to get Twitter hits or things like that and make themselves significant,” Kelly told media. The Philadelphia Inquirer stands by the story, the Inquirer’s Jeff McLane writes. Kelly attempted to call McCoy after news of the trade with the Bills in March, however.
Gus Bradley‘s job should be safe after the Jaguars‘ 51-16 thrashing of the Colts, O’Halloran writes. O’Halloran believes Bradley was on thin ice prior to this performance, but notching his fifth victory and first over the Colts puts the former Seahawks DC on firm ground in O’Halloran’s mind.
A 2011 loss in Jacksonville prompted Jim Irsay to fire Bill Polian and Jim Caldwell, and Zak Keefer of the Indianapolis Star wonders if the Colts‘ owner’s reached his decision to fire Chuck Pagano after allowing the 5-8 Jaguars to put up 51 points. In his contract’s final year, Pagano seems a pretty safe bet for a Black Monday headline.
Next week’s must-win for the Colts could feature career backup Charlie Whitehurst at quarterback, Kevin Bowen of Colts.com writes. With Andrew Luck throwing but not yet practicing and Matt Hasselbeck exiting Sunday’s rout early, next week’s Colts-Texans game could double as Whitehurst’s second-biggest career start, after the infamous Week 17 2010 game that clinched the 7-9 Seahawks’ playoff berth. The 33-year-old Whitehurst has made nine career starts, including five last season with the Titans.

Rob Dire contributed to this report.

Mike McCarthy To Call Packers’ Plays

December 13th, 2015 at 2:59pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Packers have decided to make a change at play-caller, according to Jay Glazer of FOX Sports (Twitter link), who reports that head coach Mike McCarthy will take over the offensive reins from associate head coach Tom Clements. Green Bay’s game against the Cowboys later today will be the first contest to feature McCarthy as play-caller this season.

McCarthy had been the club’s de facto offensive coordinator since being hired as Packers head coach in 2006, but the club reshuffled its offensive duties during the offseason. Clements, previously the nominal offensive coordinator, was promoted to associate head coach and took over play-calling responsibility. Receivers coach Edgar Bennett, in turn, was shifted to OC (in name only).

But the changes haven’t helped, as Green Bay’s offense has struggled for much of the season (Jordy Nelson‘s season-ending ACL tear didn’t help matters). The Packers are averaging only 341.4 offensive yards per game, which ranks just 22nd in the NFL. And though the club does rank 12th in points per game and 10th in offensive DVOA, the lack of explosive plays have hurt them, as they place just 20th in yards per play.

As Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com writes, the move is probably for the best, as McCarthy remains the best pure play-caller on Green Bay’s staff. Additionally, Clements hadn’t called plays in more than a decade, last acting as OC for the Bills in the mid-2000s.

NFC Notes: Packers, Saints, Eagles

November 15th, 2015 at 9:31pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

A look around the NFC. . .

Although the Packers’ offense is slumping, head coach Mike McCarthy said after Sunday’s 18-16 loss to Detroit that he won’t take play-calling duties away from coordinator Tom Clements. “I like the way our staff works, and I like the way they work with our players,” McCarthy stated, per ESPN’s Jason Wilde. McCarthy called Green Bay’s offensive plays from 2006-14 before deciding to give the role to Clements this year.
The 4-6 Saints are entering their bye week, and Larry Holder of NOLA.com writes that it’s the perfect time for head coach Sean Payton to fire defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and give Ryan’s job to defensive assistant Dennis Allen. Payton brought in Allen after Ryan’s defense finished 31st in the league last season. Led by Ryan, the Saints have allowed 130 points over the last three weeks – including 47 in an embarrassing defeat in Washington on Sunday. Afterward, Payton said that “we’re not going to discuss any of those types of changes, certainly not right now.”
While Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford hasn’t been particularly good this year, Mike Sielski of the Philadelphia Inquirer submits that Sunday’s output by backup Mark Sanchez was a prime example of why nobody should call for Sanchez to take over the starting job. After an injured Bradford left the Eagles’ game against Miami with Philadelphia leading 16-13, Sanchez came in and failed to help the team to victory – even throwing a costly interception – in a 20-19 defeat. The season’s on the brink for the 4-5 Eagles, and Sielski doesn’t expect their playoff chances to stay alive for long if Bradford misses time and Sanchez has to be the No. 1 signal caller.
Jeff McLane of the Inquirer believes that Eagles head coach and football czar Chip Kelly‘s decision to trade for Bradford in the offseason was a worthy gamble. However, Kelly could be done in by his failure to surround Bradford with a sturdier offensive line and better receivers, McLane opines.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/14/15

October 14th, 2015 at 6:29pm CST by Zachary Links

Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts, and other moves..

The Cowboys claimed running back Rod Smith off waivers from the Seahawks, according to Bryan Broaddus of 105.3 The Fan (on Twitter). After previously trading for Christine Michael, it appears that the Cowboys are fans of Seattle running backs.
The Broncos announced that they have signed tight end Richard Gordon while waiving fellow tight end Mitchell Henry. This will be Gordon’s third AFC West team, after stints with the Chiefs and Raiders, who selected Gordon in the sixth round (No. 181 overall) of the 2011 NFL Draft from the University of Miami.
The Browns have been awarded defensive back Don Jones off waivers from the Saints, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. In a related move, outside linebacker Scott Solomon was placed on injured reserve with a sprained knee. Solomon’s injury certainly won’t help the Browns’ poor results against the run.
Mike Chappell of FOX59 (on Twitter) reports that the Colts have placed Tyler Varga on IR following his concussion. That move will help make room for the newly-signed Ahmad Bradshaw.
The Dolphins signed safety Jonathan Dowling off the team’s practice squad, as Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald tweets. Dowling was a 2014 seventh-round pick of the Raiders.
The Buccaneers cut Josh Martin from injured reserve with an injury settlement, Wilson tweets.
The Seahawks signed linebacker Nick Moody to their active roster, Wilson tweets.
The Bears announced (on Twitter) that they have promoted linebacker Jonathan Anderson from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
The Packers announced that they have signed tight end Justin Perillo to the active roster while placing safety Sean Richardson on IR. Coach Mike McCarthy wouldn’t comment on Richardson’s future when asked about it on Monday, but his playing career could be in jeopardy, as Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com writes. The Packers brought back Richardson this year as an restricted free agent when they matched the one-year, $2.55MM offer sheet he signed with the Raiders.

NFC Mailbags: Newton, Lions, McCarthy, Giants

February 14th, 2015 at 10:00am CST by Ben Levine

We checked out ESPN.com’s AFC mailbags earlier this morning. Let’s now shift our focus to the NFC…

If quarterbacks like Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco can average $20MM annually, David Newton believes Cam Newton could certainly be included in that group. Ultimately, the writer believes the Panthers quarterback will receive a contract totaling about $100MM.
Kicker Matt Prater and defensive back Rashean Mathis want to return to the Lions next season, according to Michael Rothstein. There has been some contact between the organization and the agents for the team’s multiple free agents, but the writer cautions that nothing’s been “locked down.”
Despite Mike McCarthy‘s interest in the personnel aspect of the league, the Packers head coach does not want to be the team’s general manager, writes Rob Demovsky. The writer says the coach’s recent shuffling of the coaching staff indicates that he’d like to get involved in other areas of coaching.
Dan Graziano doesn’t see any incentive for the Giants to pursue Ray Rice over any other running back.
Considering the linebacker’s age and injury history, John Keim can’t envision Washington investing too much money in Brian Orakpo. Meanwhile, the writer could see the team bringing back quarterback Colt McCoy, tight end Niles Paul, and “perhaps” running back Roy Helu and wideout Leonard Hankerson. Santana Moss is among the players Keim would be surprised to see return.

Packers Announce Coaching Changes

February 12th, 2015 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

12:05pm: McCarthy confirmed at his press conference that Clements will call the offensive plays for the Packers in 2015, tweets Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

11:58am: The Packers have confirmed a handful of previously reported coaching changes, announcing today in a press release that the team has made changes on both sides of the ball, and named a pair of new special teams assistants as well. The new titles on Mike McCarthy‘s staff are as follows:

Tom Clements: Associate head coach/offense
Edgar Bennett: Offensive coordinator
Alex Van Pelt: Quarterbacks and wide receivers coach
Mike Solari: Assistant offensive line coach
Jerry Montgomery: Defensive front assistant
Ron Zook: Special teams coordinator
Jason Simmons: Assistant special teams coach

While the press release doesn’t mention anything about the Packers’ offensive play calls, McCarthy is expected to hand over the reins on play-calling to Clements as part of his promotion. Clements had previously been Green Bay’s offensive coordinator, while McCarthy called the plays, and now it appears that Bennett will be the OC while Clements calls plays.

McCarthy will speak to local reporters at the top of the hour to confirm the changes.

Packers To Make OC Change

February 8th, 2015 at 7:20pm CST by Dallas Robinson

7:20pm: The Packers have decided to shake up their offensive staff, elevating Clements to associate head coach and moving Bennett to replace him at offensive coordinator, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports.

The most notable change from this reshuffling: Clements will accept the play-calling reins from McCarthy. These increased roles could make it easier for Packers assistants to receive head-coaching interviews, Rapoport tweeted Sunday after McCarthy questioned why his top staffers were never the “hot candidates,” in a January Rapoport account.

A former running back in Green Bay, Bennett coached the receivers the past four years after presiding over the running backs in the previous six seasons. The Packers have continued to produce top-flight receiving corps despite losses of key homegrown cogs Donald Driver (retirement), Greg Jennings (signed with the Vikings in 2013) and James Jones (UFA-Vikings in 2014).

Homegrown talents Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb combined for 25 receiving scores this season, and both landed on Pro Bowl rosters.

4:36 pm: The Packers 2014 season was a successful one by most standards, as the club won 12 games and finished first in the NFC North. A devastating loss to the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game looms over Green Bay, however, and the team is now reportedly considering changes to its coaching staff. Sources tell Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com that head coach Mike McCarthy is “looking at different possibilities” with regards to altering his staff’s responsibilities, with once such scenario entailing him relinquishing play-calling duties.

Radio station 104.5 The Fan in Green Bay reported (Twitter link) that offensive coordinator Tom Clements is set to be promoted to associate head coach and will be handed the job of calling plays, while current receivers coach Edgar Bennett would shift to OC. Demovsky couldn’t confirm that exact structural change, and added that nothing has been finalized yet. Still, sources tell the ESPN scribe that McCarthy has privately noted the difficulty of managing the day-to-day operations of the team while also tending to play-calling, so the staff changes shouldn’t come as a surprise.

McCarthy, the Packers’ HC since 2006, has called the offensive plays for the duration of his reign in Green Bay. The offensive unit has been consistently above-average, finishing no lower than 11th in DVOA since 2007, including two No. 1 finishes (2011 and 2014). Clements has been on the Packers’ coaching staff since 2006, as well, acting as the QB coach from ’06-’12, then taking over as OC in 2013 following the departure of Joe Philbin. He was the play-caller for the Bills from 2004-05.

Sam Robinson contributed to this report.

Packers Sign Mike McCarthy To Extension

November 4th, 2014 at 9:44am CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 9:44am: The extension locks up McCarthy through the 2018 season, confirms Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

MONDAY, 3:05pm: The Packers have reached an agreement with Mike McCarthy to extend the head coach’s contract, the team announced today in a press release. The new multiyear deal will lock McCarthy up beyond the 2015 season, when his previous contract had been scheduled to expire.

“We are very happy to extend our relationship with Mike,” said general manager Ted Thompson in a statement. “Over the past nine years, he’s provided great stability and consistency to the Packers organization and our community as an excellent coach and leader. He’s a good man and we look forward to the future with Mike as our head coach.”

McCarthy, who turns 51 next Monday, took over the Packers’ coaching job prior to the 2006 season, making him the fourth-longest-tenured head coach in the NFL. Since taking the reins, McCarthy has led the club to an 87-48-1 record in the regular season and a 6-5 playoff record in six postseason appearances, including a Super Bowl run in 2010.

We heard way back in May that the Packers and McCarthy had started working on an extension, and after the team announced a new contract for Thompson during training camp, it figured to be just a matter of time until McCarthy got his new deal as well. As Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets, Thompson’s pact is believed to keep him under control through 2018, so McCarthy’s extension will likely cover the same period, which would mean it adds three new years to his previous contract.

Demovsky also notes (via Twitter) that McCarthy’s previous contract paid him more than $5MM annually. Financial terms for the new agreement have not been announced or reported, but I’d expect at least a modest raise for the Green Bay head coach.

Extra Points: Packers, Vikings, Chiefs, Raiders

September 13th, 2014 at 12:30pm CST by Ben Levine

Packers coach Mike McCarthy has seen his fair share of players succumb to injuries, including offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga. When asked whether it would be a good idea to be cautious and sit out the former first-rounder, McCarthy acknowledged that the organization may have done that too much in the past.

“I think sometimes we may have done that in the past,” McCarthy said. “I think our medical department tilts that way, but the reality is you’re only given 16 games and I know from a player’s perspective, they want to play in every single game.

“If Bryan Bulaga feels that he can go in this game, that’ll be a part of the decision. But we’re not saving anybody for next week or so forth. If Bryan cannot go, it will be clearly from a medical standpoint that we don’t feel it’s in his best interest.

“I just think medically people are a lot more conservative today. I think the landscape is a challenge for every medical group. I think it’s only natural. But at the end of the day, that’s why you have the process. That’s why it’s set up the way it is on who makes those decisions.

“At the end of the day, and I know I’ve said this numerous times in here, from (general manager) Ted Thompson and myself as far as you look at our players, we’re never going to jeopardize a player’s future for one game. But the importance of playing in every game is important.”

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

Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press predicts that Vikings offensive lineman Mike Harris is the most likely player on the roster to be cut (via Twitter), but he clarifies in another tweet that Harris could easily be re-signed next week. He also suggests tight end/fullback MarQueis Gray as a potential cut (via Twitter).
Chiefs safety Eric Berry is so impressed by Travis Kelce, he refuses to compare his teammate to any other tight end in the league. “Nah, he’s a different breed. For real,” Berry told Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports. “He’s big, he’s got speed and he’s got moves. He’s got a lot of swag about his play. He doesn’t do it like how it says in the book.”
Vincent Brown would be a good fit for the Raiders, writes ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson. The former Chargers receiver was waived by the team at the end of August, and Williamson believes Oakland could use his consistency.

North Rumors: McCarthy, Rice, Browns

May 20th, 2014 at 5:47pm CST by Zachary Links

Asked by Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) about the possibility of extending head coach Mike McCarthy, Packers president Mark Murphy said it won’t happen until the team extends GM Ted Thompson. Murphy declined to comment when asked as a follow-up by Rapoport if Green Bay is working on a new deal for Thompson (Twitter link). Here’s more out of the AFC and NFC North..

Ravens running back Ray Rice will be allowed to enter a program to avoid prosecution in an alleged assault of his now-wife, writes Lynda Cohen of the Press of Atlantic City. The NFL will likely levy a suspension and/or significant fine.
The Browns have hired former Redskins director of pro personnel Morocco Brown, a league source tells Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. While the team has yet to announce Brown’s new title, he’ll most likely become an assistant general manager in Cleveland, per Cabot. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com notes (via Twitter) that the hiring is a coup for Browns GM Ray Farmer, adding that Brown has been considered for past GM openings and is on track to run a team someday.
The Browns announced that Bill Kuharich has been promoted to executive chief of staff, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com. Kuharich had been a consultant for the Browns since February.
Minnesota has won the bid to host Super Bowl LII (2018), tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. It’s a big blow to Saints owner Tom Benson, who will turn 87 in July, tweets Jeff Duncan of The Times-PIiayune. Having SB LII in New Orleans would have been a part of his legacy.