HEADLINES

Rob Moore

Panthers Hire Harold Goodwin, Three Other Assistants

January 30th, 2024 at 9:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

Already committed to bringing Buccaneers wide receivers coach Brad Idzik with him to Carolina, Dave Canales is adding another veteran Bucs staffer.

The new Panthers HC will bring Harold Goodwin with him to work as the team’s run-game coordinator. The Cardinals’ offensive coordinator under Bruce Arians from 2013-17, Goodwin will bring some experience to an offensive staff that lacks it — in the top positions, at least. Goodwin, 50, spent the past five seasons as the Bucs’ run-game coordinator.

This is an interesting pickup for Canales, as Goodwin was an Arians assistant for much of the past 20 years. Following Arians from Pittsburgh to Indianapolis to Tampa, Goodwin will make his first non-Arians-driven move since he began his NFL career on Lovie Smith‘s Bears staffs in the mid-2000s.

Todd Bowles is in the process of finding a new offensive coordinator; he will need to replace two key offensive assistants as well. This includes O-line coach Joe Gilbert, who is following Canales and Goodwin to Charlotte.

The Panthers sent out an interview request to Raiders assistant offensive line coach Cameron Clemmons about their O-line coach position, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. The Raiders already lost their O-line coach from last season, Carmen Bricillo, to the Giants. It is unclear if Clemmons remains in the Antonio Pierce-run team’s plans. But Canales will bring another Bucs assistant with him.

Gilbert joined Goodwin, 59, as an Arians hire back in 2019, and the veteran assistant spent the past five seasons as the Bucs’ O-line coach. This will be Gilbert’s third run as an NFL O-line coach; he initially held that position for the Colts under Chuck Pagano. While Canales and Idzik will run the Panthers’ offense, Goodwin and Gilbert will provide considerable experience. Gilbert replaces James Campen, a Matt Rhule hire who was not retained.

Additionally, the Panthers are adding Rob Moore as wide receivers coach and Bernie Parmalee as running backs coach. A former Jets and Cardinals standout receiver, Moore spent the past six seasons as the Titans’ wideouts coach. He held the same roles with the Bills and Raiders previously. A former running back, Parmalee spent the past three years as the Jaguars’ RBs coach. He has also coached special teams and tight ends during a 14-year NFL coaching career.

Coaching/Front Office Notes: Eagles, Bears, Jets, Browns

January 29th, 2024 at 9:14pm CST by Ben Levine

Clint Hurtt is heading to Philadelphia. After having spent the past two seasons as the Seahawks defensive coordinator, the veteran coach is joining the Eagles as their new defensive line coach, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

Hurtt worked with defensive linemen and linebackers in Chicago before joining the Seahawks as their assistant head coach/defensive line coach in 2017. He earned a promotion to defensive coordinator in 2022 and spent two seasons in that role. Seattle’s defense didn’t fare all that well with Hurtt at the helm, as the defense never finished better than 26th in points allowed and 20th in yards allowed.

Still, Hurtt has earned a reputation as a reliable DL coach. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Hurtt had multiple offers to coach defensive linemen, but he ended up opting for the Eagles opportunity.

Pelissero notes that the Eagles are also expected to hire one of Hurtt’s assistants from Seattle. Karl Scott is joining the Eagles as their new DBs coach. Scott spent the past two seasons as Seattle’s secondary coach/passing game coordinator.

More coaching and front office notes from around the NFL…

  • The Bears will interview Chargers wide receivers coach Chris Beatty for the same role, according to Pelissero. Meanwhile, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that veteran coach Ike Hilliard will also interview for the Chargers job. After a long college coaching career, Beatty took his first NFL job with the Chargers in 2021 as their WRs coach. Over the past few years, he’s helped guide the likes of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams to 1,000-yard seasons. Hilliard has spent time as the WRs coach with Washington, Buffalo, and Pittsburgh, and he was most recently on the coaching staff at Auburn. Hilliard worked alongside offensive coordinator Shane Waldron when the two were in Washington.
  • The Jets are hiring Tony Dews as their running backs coach, per Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports. Dews was Derrick Henry‘s coach in Tennessee between 2018 and 2022, and he spent the 2023 campaign as the Titans tight ends coach. He’ll be replacing Taylor Embree, who was let go after the season. Meanwhile, Connor Hughes of SNYtv reports that the Jets interviewed Rob Moore for their WRs coach job. Moore also recently worked for the Titans, spending the past six years as their receivers coach.
  • The Browns have hired Jacques Cesaire as their defensive line coach, per Pelissero. After playing his entire career with the Chargers, Cesaire broke into the NFL coaching ranks as the Bills assistant defensive line coach in 2020. He spent the past two seasons with the Texans, serving as the team’s defensive line coach. He’ll be replacing Ben Bloom, although Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com writes that the coach could still stick in Cleveland in a different role for the 2024 campaign.
  • Saints college scouting director Cody Rager is heading to the Broncos, according to Nick Underhill of NOF Network. Neil Stratton passes along that Rager will be Denver’s new vice president of player personnel. Rager spent the past nine seasons in New Orleans, including the past three as the assistant college scouting director. Rager got his NFL start with the Dolphins back in 2012.

Extra Points: Fitzgerald, Talib, Titans, Jets

January 29th, 2018 at 10:04pm CST by Micah Powell

Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald has yet to make his intentions for the 2018 season public knowledge, but signs are point toward the future Hall of Famer returning for his 15th NFL campaign.

New offensive coordinator Mike McCoy said he has talked with Fitzgerald and that the receiver is “excited,” reports ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss. Fitzgerald reportedly told the new offensive coordinator is verbiage was similar to previous coaches Bruce Arians and Ken Whisenhunt.

Kurt Warner also said that he gets the sense that Fitzgerald is leaning toward returning, the Hall of Fame quarterback said on 98.7 Arizona Sports radio. “Last couple of times I’ve talked, I really feel like he wants to come back and play this season and he’s more committed to it. But that was before all the changes that took place.But I get the feeling that he is going to come back.”

Fitzgerald hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down in recent years. After moving to the slot in 2015, the perennial Pro Bowl selection has cleared 100 catches and 1,000 yards in each season and has cemented his status as one of the game’s all-time greats.

Though he is leaning toward returning, his status is sure to be decided by what the Cardinals do to fill the vacancy at quarterback left by the retirement of Carson Palmer. With plenty of talent on both sides of the ball, the team making a run at Redskins signal-caller Kirk Cousins for a quick fix would make plenty of sense.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

  • Speaking of Cousins, the soon-to-be free agent is expected to receive plenty of interest from the Jets. On Monday, former head coach Mike Shanahan praised Cousins as a special player, the New York Daily News’ Manish Mehta writes. This portends to the Jets, as new offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates was groomed under Shanahan in Denver. Shanahan said: “I think Kirk Cousins could be successful in any offense that he ran. Those quarterbacks are hard to find.”
  • The Broncos, according to reports, have recently placed cornerback Aqib Talib on the trade block. ABC 7 in Denver’s Troy Renck looked at a few possible destinations for the veteran cornerback, listing the 49ers, Rams and Cowboys. Talib is signed through the 2019 campaign.
  • Bills center Eric Wood put his retirement on hold and remains on the Bills roster due to the team’s salary cap restrictions, ESPN’s Mike Rodak reports (Twitter link). When he is eventually moved to the retired list, Wood will receive $4.8 MM in injury guaranteed salary for 2018, while keeping the $4.3M in signing bonus paid, tweets NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
  • The Titans have hired Raiders wide receivers coach Rob Moore for the same position, ESPN’s Adam Caplan tweets. He also notes the team interviewed former Raiders running backs coach Bernie Parmalee last week.
  • The Panthers will hire Travelle Wharton as an assistant offensive line coach, ESPN’s David Newton hears. Wharton previously spent two stints with the Panthers as an offensive lineman.

AFC Notes: Joseph, Bengals, Titans, Bolts

January 28th, 2018 at 9:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

Johnathan Joseph played the past seven seasons of his career in Houston, and the soon-to-be 34-year-old cornerback would prefer to remain with the Texans. The UFA returning in 2018 would mark a 13th NFL season, but he’s not ready to retire. It doesn’t sound like Joseph certain he’ll be back in Houston, though. But Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle notes (on Twitter) he would like to be. “I’m just chilling. We’ll see how it goes,” Joseph said. “Obviously, I want to be here. That’s my first choice. We’ll see how it goes.” The Texans still have Kareem Jackson and Kevin Johnson under contract for 2018, the former on a $9MM cap number in the final year of his deal, and lost A.J. Bouye in free agency last year. Whether or not Joseph returns, the Texans will probably need to make another investment at this position in the near future.

Here’s the latest from the AFC as we enter Super Bowl week.

  • Mike Vrabel‘s Titans staff continues to fill out. Former Raiders wide receivers coach Rob Moore will trek east to coach Tennessee’s wideouts, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Since the former All-Pro wideout’s career concluded, he’s coached at the high school, JUCO, Division I college and NFL levels — the previous five being with the Bills (2013-14) and Raiders (’15-’17). His main task will certainly involve Corey Davis‘ development. Moore helped bring Amari Cooper‘s career forward, but the top Raiders target struggled this season.
  • Organizational optimism centers around Jake Fisher as the Bengals‘ right tackle despite an inconsistent first year as a starter, Paul Dehner Jr. and Jim Owczarski of cincinnati.com report. However, Fisher’s counterpart, Cedric Ogbuehi, may not figure in as prominently. The Bengals reporters expect the team will decline Ogbuehi’s fifth-year option, and Marvin Lewis offered a sobering assessment of the 2015 No. 21 overall pick’s status. “Ced’s had two seasons, basically, and it’s just not been exactly where we need it to be,” Lewis said. “That’s held us back.”
  • Texas A&M is attempting to hire Chargers assistant defensive line coach Eric Henderson, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. He spent his first season with the Chargers last season under Gus Bradley. The former NFL defensive lineman and New Orleans native, though, is viewed as a plus recruiter — particularly in the south — and spent three seasons with Oklahoma State and in 2016 coached Texas-San Antonio’s defensive linemen.

Titans Notes: Moore, McKenzie, Coombs

January 24th, 2018 at 9:18pm CST by Dallas Robinson

New Titans head coach Mike Vrabel swung and missed on each of his first two tries at hiring a coordinator, as Ohio State’s Ryan Day opted to stay in the collegiate ranks rather than become Tennessee’s offensive play-caller, while former Cardinals defensive coordinator James Bettcher chose the Giants over the Titans. Vrabel still needs to fill out a staff, however, and he’s been busy making potential additions today.

Here’s the latest from Tennessee:

  • Former Raiders wide receivers coach Rob Moore interviewed for the same position with the Titans, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link). Moore, who got his start in NFL coaching with the Bills in 2013, had been with Oakland since 2015 but wasn’t retained by new head coach Jon Gruden. 2016 was a banner year for Moore, as both Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree topped 1,000 yards, but both wideouts took a large step backwards in 2017.
  • Rams assistant special teams coach Tyrone McKenzie interviewed for an unidentified role on the Titans’ staff, per Pelissero. Like Vrabel, McKenzie is a former Patriots linebacker, although the two never overlapped in New England, as Vrabel was traded prior to 2009, the season McKenzie joined the club. McKenzie, also a former Buccaneer and Viking, has only one season of coaching experience.
  • Vrabel is dipping into his Ohio State ties — he played in Columbus before coaching there from 2011-13 — as he formulates his Titans coaching staff, and OSU defensive backs/special teams coach Kerry Coombs will be joining Tennessee, tweets Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports. There’s no word yet as to what Coombs’ role will be, but given that he’s never coached in the NFL before, he’s likely to keep leading the Titans’ secondary. Coombs began his collegiate coaching career with Cincinnati in 2006, and joined Ohio State in 2011.
  • Texans defensive assistant Shane Bowen is another candidate to join Vrabel with the Titans, reports Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com. Bowen not only worked under Vrabel in Houston during the past two seasons, but also spent the 2012 campaign coaching alongside the new Tennessee head coach at Ohio State. A Georgia Tech alum, Bowen coached linebackers at Kennesaw State University from 2013-15.

Raiders Notes: Gruden, Bennett, Cable

January 13th, 2018 at 5:52pm CST by Micah Powell

On Friday, the Raiders announced the hiring of Rams quarterbacks coach Greg Olson as the team’s offensive coordinator. The 31-year NFL veteran coach, and Raiders offensive coordinator from 2013-14, won’t have to worry about calling plays. That duty instead will go to new head coach Jon Gruden, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe notes.

Gruden, who hasn’t coached in the NFL in nine seasons, has been preparing for the moment he would return to the sidelines for some time. He reportedly spends countless hours studying NFL and college plays and is expected to work closely with Derek Carr and the other Raiders quarterbacks.

Though he spurned advances for a role with Gruden, former quarterback Rich Gannon has full confidence that the former Super Bowl-winning coach won’t skip a beat.

“Jon has a system where he’s really going to count on the quarterback to be a big decision maker. He’s going to have a lot more flexibility and freedom at the line of scrimmage to change protections, to change plays. It’s going to be a fun offense to watch. He’s got a quarterback that can do it. That’s a big reason why he decided to come back.”

From the sounds of it, Carr will have more responsibility than ever before as he hopes to rebound from a disappointing 2017.

Here is more news from Oakland:

  • Gruden interviewed one person for the vacant offensive line coach position and had another meeting set up for Monday but dropped everything once the Seahawks fired Tom Cable, The Athletic’s Vic Tafur reports (Twitter link). After being fired as head coach in Oakland in 2010, Cable moved to Seattle and served as offensive line coach for seven seasons. Under his direction, Seattle established itself as one of the best running teams in NFL. His return could reunite him with Marshawn Lynch, should the Raiders retain the veteran back.
  • The Raiders continued to clean house on former head coach Jack Del Rio‘s staff, reports ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link). Among the expected departures are cornerbacks coach Rod Woodson, running backs coach Bernie Parmalee, assistant special teams coach Tracy Smith, wide receivers coach Rob Moore and safeties coach Brett Vieselmeyer.
  • Former Packers offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett didn’t have to wait long to find a new gig. He will be joining the Raiders as the team’s new receivers coach, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports (Twitter link). A former Packers running back, Bennett has spent 23 of his 25 seasons in the league as a player and coach in Green Bay.

Coach/Exec Notes: Washington, Jets, Raiders

January 27th, 2015 at 2:13pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell will be joining one of New York’s division rivals, having accepted a job as Washington‘s defensive backs coach, reports Jordan Raanan of NJ.com (via Twitter). The 49ers also had an offer out to Fewell, and one other suitor may have been in the mix, but staying close to his family in New York was a major factor in the coach’s decision, tweets Dianna Marie Russini of NBC Washington.

Here are a few more Tuesday afternoon items on coaches and front office execs around the league:

  • Reports have suggested for some time that Rams scout Brian Heimerdinger would be joining the Jets‘ front office, and the team has now announced the hiring in a press release. According to the club, Heimerdinger will serve as the director of player personnel under new GM Mike Maccagnan, who previously worked with him in Houston.
  • The Raiders formally announced four new additions to their coaching staff, with three of the names – Bobby Johnson (TE coach), Rob Moore (WR coach), and Bernie Parmalee (RB coach) – having been previously reported. The new name on the list is Tracy Smith, who will be the club’s assistant special teams coach.
  • Asked at Media Day in Arizona if he’d like another shot at becoming a head coach, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said he’d “love to do it again” in the right situation, according to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (Twitter link).
  • Joel Corry of CBSSports.com takes a look at the seven teams that made head coaching changes this offseason and attempts to predict how the new coaches could affect those clubs’ plans in free agency.

Coaching Notes: LeBeau, Bills, Raiders, Bears

January 25th, 2015 at 8:25pm CST by Rob DiRe

Former Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau is no longer in the running to join the staff of the Cardinals, reports Kent Somers of AZCentral.com. Since he resigned from his long time post with the Steelers, the Cardinals seemed like a logical option for the 77-year old Hall of Fame coach. While it was thought that LeBeau would only be interested in coordinator positions, he was reportedly set to be a senior assistant and serve as the Cardinals linebacker coach.

With the Cardinals out of the mix for his services, the only other organization with which he has been linked is the Titans, where he could also serve as a senior assistant in some capacity.

The Cardinals are expected to promote from within to fill their defensive coordinator role vacated when Todd Bowles was hired as head coach of the Jets.

Here are some other coaching notes from around the NFL, with more recent news added to the top:

  • The Bills are expected to hire Chris Palmer to their coaching staff as a senior offensive assistant, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN (via Twitter). Palmer’s long career most recently brought him to the Titans, where he served as offensive coordinator from 2011-2012.
  • The Raiders have also added former Lions assistant offensive line coach Bobby Johnson to their staff, reports Thayer Evans of SI.com (via Twitter). Johnson will be the Raiders tight ends coach.
  • The Bears have brought Jay Rodgers onto the staff to coach the defensive line, reports Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter). Rodgers is the older brother of special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers.

Earlier Updates:

  • The Broncos have not tried to hide the fact that they would like to hire Bengals secondary coach Vance Joseph as their defensive coordinator, but they may not get a chance until after the Bengals are able to secure another coach, writes Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com. The Bengals reportedly have their eye on former Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell, and would likely allow Joseph out of his contract if they are able to hire Fewell. The Broncos are willing to wait to see if Fewell is hired by the Bengals before moving on to their next option.
  • While there have been no official announcements made, the Raiders have reportedly added Bernie Parmalee as their running backs coach and Rob Moore as their wide receivers coach, reports Jerry McDonald of InsideBayArea.com (via Twitter). He also notes that defensive backs coach Marcus Robertson is the only member of the staff set to return so far.
  • The Falcons are planning on hiring Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn as their head coach after the Super Bowl, and reports have it that Quinn will be targeting former Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris as part of his staff. However, Mike Jones of the Washington Post writes that Morris is being considered for an assistant head coach/passing game coordinator position, and not defensive coordinaor (via Twitter). Jones reports that the deal is not finished, but it is close (via Twitter).

Coach/Front Office Notes: Texans, Broncos, Jets

January 24th, 2015 at 7:09pm CST by Ben Levine

It’s already been a busy day in the coaching rumor mill. The Jets hired Pepper Johnson as their defensive line coach, the Falcons were granted permission to interview Raheem Morris, and the Bears added former Broncos coach Bo Hardegree. Let’s check out a couple more coaching and front office notes, including more moves by the Jets:

  • The Texans have hired Paul Pasqualoni as their defensive line coach, tweets John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. The former Dolphins and Cowboys defensive coordinator spent 2014 as the Bears d-line coach.
  • The man that Pasqualoni will be replacing, Bill Kollar, was recently hired as the Broncos new defensive line coach. One of his former players, J.J. Watt, supports his former coach’s new gig. “He’s always going to shoot you straight,” Watt told Mike Klis of The Denver Post. “He’s going to coach you hard and tell you like it is. Kubiak, Kollar, everybody, yeah, you guys (in Denver) have got a great staff.”
  • The Raiders will interview Bills wide receivers coach Rob Moore on Sunday, tweets ESPN’s Adam Caplan. If everything goes well, the 46-year-old will get the job, sources tell Caplan.
  • The Jets will hire former Bears scout Rex Hogan as their college scouting director, tweets Albert Breer of the NFL Network. It was thought that recently hired Brian Heimerdinger would take over the role, but Breer notes that the former Rams executive will instead be taking over a “prominent front office role.”