Scot McCloughan

NFC Notes: Mangini, McCloughan, 49ers

January 9th, 2015 at 3:29pm CST by Ben Levine

Washington has solidified their front office over the past couple of days, and now the organization is focusing on it’s coaching staff. Dianna Marie Russini of NBC4 D. C. tweets that Washington will interview current 49ers assistant coach Eric Mangini for their defensive coordinator opening.

The 43-year-old has spent the past two seasons as San Francisco’s tight ends coach, which followed his tenure as head coach of the Jets and Browns. Mangini’s last coordinator job was with the Patriots, where he served as the defensive coordinator in 2005.

Let’s take a look at some more whispers from around the NFC…

Scot McCloughan was introduced as Washington’s general manager today, and the former 49ers GM stated that his current roster is better than the roster he inherited in San Francisco. “Coming in here, this roster, from what I know about right now, is much more improved than the 49ers,” McCloughan said (via Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group).
Mike Shanahan interviewed to become the next 49ers head coach, and Eric Branch of SFGate.com wonders if the 62-year-old would be comfortable having significantly less power than he has in the past.
According to Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter), Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has accepted that some of his coaches will likely be receiving offers for better gigs this offseason.

Washington Hires Scot McCloughan As GM

January 8th, 2015 at 5:30pm CST by Luke Adams

THURSDAY, 5:30pm: At long last, it’s official. Washington announced that they have hired McCloughan as GM, as John Keim of ESPN.com tweets.

12:31pm: Washington and McCloughan have now finalized an agreement that will make the veteran exec the team’s new GM, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). As noted below, it’s a four-year pact, tweets Breer, who adds in a second tweet that McCloughan will report to Allen, which comes as a bit of a surprise. Still, McCloughan will have final say over the club’s 53-man roster, according to Breer (Twitter link).

WEDNESDAY, 8:22am: The deal between Washington and McCloughan is expected to be finalized this morning, tweets Florio.

TUESDAY, 8:41pm: Not so fast. McCloughan’s deal with Washington hasn’t been completed yet as he is still discussing jobs with the Jets and Raiders, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Meanwhile, the negotiations with Washington have some non-financial details that need to be ironed out. One of those issues likely has become whether McCloughan will have control over the roster and the draft. Currently, Allen has those powers.

According to a person with knowledge of the situation that spoke with Dom Consentino of the Star-Ledger, the Jets have had conversations with McCloughan, but not about their vacant job at GM.

Meanwhile, Albert Breer of the NFL Network (on Twitter) hears that Washington and McCloughan hope to have their deal finalized by tomorrow morning.

1:31pm: Former 49ers general manager Scot McCloughan will be returning to an NFL front office for the coming season, according to Michael Robinson of NFL Network, who reports (via Twitter) that Washington is hiring McCloughan as the team’s new general manager. Per Robinson, a press conference to formally announce the move is expected before the end of the week.

Rumors of McCloughan’s foray back into a front office position started to pick up steam yesterday, when Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported that Washington had reached out to the veteran executive about a top football position in the organization. We later heard that two other clubs had spoken to McCloughan about joining their respective front offices. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweeted earlier today that one of those teams was the Jets.

Bruce Allen currently holds the general manager title in D.C., and will receive a promotion to president once McCloughan comes aboard, tweets Michael Silver of NFL.com. A report yesterday suggested that McCloughan wasn’t interested in a proposal from the Raiders that would have seen him work under GM Reggie McKenzie, since he wanted control of football operations. It appears he’ll get that control in Washington — Allen’s say in football decisions figures to be reduced in a “promotion” similar to the one Eagles executive Howie Roseman received last week.

Mike Jones of the Washington Post (Twitter link) hears from a source that there’s no deal in place yet between Washington and McCloughan, but multiple other reporters have corroborated Robinson’s account. Per Albert Breer of NFL Network (Twitter link), McCloughan has agreed to join the organization, and the two sides are currently negotiating the contract. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com adds (via Twitter) that it should be a four-year deal for McCloughan.

Meanwhile, according to Silver (via Twitter), Raiders owner Mark Davis spoke to McCloughan one final time last night, offering him a title of president of personnel under McKenzie, which didn’t interest McCloughan.

Extra Points: Newman, McCloughan, Bradham

January 5th, 2015 at 11:44pm CST by Luke Adams

As Terence Newman nears potential free agency, the veteran cornerback will have to decide whether or not he’ll continue his playing career, writes Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. While Newman would love a chance to compete for a Super Bowl, there’s also some appeal in going out on his own terms, as he explains.

“I think Barry Sanders did it best,” Newman said. “He just said, ‘Hey, this isn’t for me anymore.’ He was probably one of the only people that ever went out on his own terms; he wasn’t forced out age-wise or whatever. He just called it quits because he wanted to. He’s probably the only person I can think of that ever did that.”

Assuming Newman does decide to continue playing, another year with the Bengals is a possibility. The cornerback says he expects to be in contact with the team, adding “[we’ll] see what happens.” Here’s more from around the NFL:

The draft order has been set for picks 21 through 24 this year, as Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk details. Based on record and strength-of-schedule tiebreakers, it’ll be the Bengals at No. 21, followed by the Steelers, Lions, and Cardinals, respectively.
We heard on Monday morning that Washington has interest in hiring former 49ers GM Scot McCloughan to a front office role, and Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links) reports that McCloughan actually has offers from at least three teams for prominent front office positions. McCloughan is “relishing” being his own boss at the moment, but may seriously consider taking a role with an NFL team, says La Canfora. Meanwhile, Michael Silver of NFL.com (Twitter links) says the Raiders courted McCloughan, but were unwilling to give GM Reggie McKenzie‘s decision-making power to McCloughan, who would only have been interested in the role if he were running the team’s football department.
Greg Roman, who is expected to land with another team as an offensive coordinator, definitely won’t be back with the 49ers, says Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com, who identifies a few possible candidates to oversee San Francisco’s offense in 2015.
After reporting on Monday morning that the Bills were interested in negotiating a new deal for newly-extension-eligible linebacker Nigel Bradham, Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports tweets that Bradham has hired agent Drew Rosenhaus to represent him.
Addressing his team’s defensive line and its inability to create a consistent pass rush, Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther said today, “We need to improve the guys who are coming back here next year and continue to improve, and we need to infuse some new players, to be honest with you” (link via Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer).
Nick Fairley‘s NFL future is largely tied to that of Ndamukong Suh, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com, who explains that the Lions won’t have the ability to keep both defensive tackles this offseason.
In response to a report that Rams owner Stan Kroenke plans to build an NFL stadium in Los Angeles, St. Louis officials released a statement today indicating that the city is “ready to demonstrate our commitment” to keeping the franchise in Missouri, per Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal (TwitLonger link).

Front Office Notes: Jets, Saints, Bears

January 5th, 2015 at 9:55am CST by Luke Adams

As the first full week of 2015 gets underway, we have updates on two teams hunting for a new general manager, as well as a pair of clubs whose front offices may be undergoing some changes. Here’s the latest:

Although the Jets would like to speak to Saints executive Ryan Pace about their general manager position, it’s unlikely that Pace will elect to interview for the opening, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). As Rapoport explains (Twitter link), Pace – a favorite of Sean Payton – assumed more day-to-day duties with the Saints in 2014 as GM Mickey Loomis worked more with the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans. Rapoport adds that Pace’s role will only increase, and that he could be in line for a promotion.
A source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that Loomis “remains entrenched” as the Saints‘ GM, with no need to elevate anyone in the front office to handle any of his duties. However, Florio agrees that it appears as if Pace will stay put in New Orleans for now.
Texans director of scouting Mike Maccagnan will have his interview with the Jets for their GM vacancy today, tweets Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.
Speaking to one veteran front office executive who called the head coach/GM marriage “the most underrated dynamic in the business,” Mehta writes in a Daily News piece that the Jets should ensure they create an equal partnership when they hire a new coach and GM.
Within the same piece, Mehta reports, via sources, that Seahawks personnel executive Trent Kirchner likely won’t be paired with Dan Quinn as a GM/head coach duo, since Quinn’s preference would be to work with a “more seasoned” front office executive.
The Bears will interview Titans executive Lake Dawson on Tuesday and Chiefs exec Chris Ballard on Wednesday this week, says Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
Washington has reached out to personnel man Scot McCloughan about becoming a top executive in the team’s front office, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). McCloughan, a former 49ers general manager, most recently worked for the Seahawks.

Seahawks Notes: Carpenter, Visits, McCloughan

April 24th, 2014 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

The defending champion Seahawks will host the Packers on September 4 to kick off the NFL season, but that’s the last time during the regular season the club will play a prime-time game at home. A league source tells Curtis Crabtree of Pro Football Talk that the lack of prime-time games at CenturyLink Field is a result of Seattle’s track record — in the last several seasons, the club has been too good in its nationally televised home games, and the league is wary of scheduling blowouts in prime time. As Crabtree points out, the Seahawks have won their last three prime-time games in Seattle by a combined 82 points.

Here’s more on the 2014 Super Bowl champions:

The Seahawks are currently leaning against picking up their 2015 option on offensive lineman James Carpenter, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. As our fifth-year option tracker shows, Carpenter would be in line for a $7.438MM salary in 2015 if his option is exercised, though it wouldn’t be fully guaranteed until the first day of the ’15 league year.
University of Washington quarterback Keith Price was one of 19 players to participate in the Seahawks’ local prospect day on Wednesday, as Clare Farnsworth of Seahawks.com details.
Senior personnel executive Scot McCloughan has resigned from his position in Seattle’s front office to tend to a family matter, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). McCloughan, who has been a key part of general manager John Schneider‘s staff since being hired by the Seahawks in June 2010, reportedly drew interest from both the Dolphins and Browns when those teams replaced their GMs earlier this offseason.

Latest On Browns’ Front Office Shakeup

February 11th, 2014 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

The Browns shocked the football world today when they announced that Ray Farmer has been promoted to general manager, replacing Michael Lombardi, who is leaving the organization. Meanwhile, CEO Joe Banner is also on his way out, though not immediately. The Browns held a press conference this morning to discuss the front office overhaul, but before they did, a number of reports about the moves surfaced:

A league source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that owner Jimmy Haslam felt like Lombardi had to go and that Farmer deserved to have complete control over the football decisions, “unfettered by Banner’s authority” in football operations.
Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports suggests (via Twitter) that failing to deliver on who they could hire to replace former coach Rob Chudzinski may have doomed Lombardi and Banner in Cleveland.
NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport passes along a few notable tidbits on the Browns’ coaching search, tweeting that Farmer wasn’t present during Pettine’s interview. Rapoport adds that if Cleveland had been able to hire Adam Gase of the Broncos, the club wanted to pair him with Seahawks exec Scot McCloughan, replacing Lombardi (Twitter link).
Rapoport also reports (via Twitter) that the team secretly interviewed Wisconsin’s Gary Andersen back in January. The Badgers coach confirmed as much to Bruce Feldman of CBS Sports (Twitter link): “After our initial conversation, I decided not to pursue the position.”
Lombardi and Banner were surprised and “devastated” by the Browns’ decision, according to Will Burge of Bleacher Report (via Twitter). Burge also hears from a source (Twitter link) that Haslam made the announcement rather abruptly in a meeting this morning.

At today’s press conference, Haslam began by taking questions from reporters on his own, addressing many lingering questions, including a few of the topics mentioned in the above list. Here are the highlights from Haslam (all link go to various reporters’ Twitter accounts):

Banner will continue to work in a transitional role in the organization until May or June.
Farmer, head coach Mike Pettine, and team president Alec Scheiner will all report directly to Haslam.
Haslam had nothing but praise for Banner and Lombardi, suggesting that the duo had left the team in a good position with regard to the draft and cap space.
The team has no regrets about its head coach and is happy with the one it landed, in Pettine. Haslam added that reports of candidates not wanting to speak to the Browns are inaccurate.
Haslam shot down the idea of the Browns as a dysfunctional organization, or one without any continuity, pointing to the fact that Farmer has been in the front office for a year and the team’s scouts are already in place, so it’s not a complete overhaul.
Today’s moves are the last major changes coming to the Browns organization. Presumably, that statement applies to the 2014 offseason.
Farmer will have the final say on the Browns’ 53-man roster, while Pettine will make the decisions on game-day rosters.
Farmer played a key role in the Browns’ coaching search. However, that role primarily involved information gathering rather than actually being in on the interviews.
Haslam wouldn’t say whether any coaching candidates told him they wouldn’t accept the job if Banner or Lombardi was employed.
Haslem didn’t promise Farmer the Browns’ GM job to get him to remove his name from the Dolphins’ GM search.

Finally, Farmer took to the microphone and spoke to the media about a number of topics. Here were the noteworthy takeaways from the new GM’s portion of the presser (all Twitter links):

Farmer has signed a four-year deal with the Browns, which should keep him under contract through the 2017 season.
The Dolphins GM job was “not right” for Farmer, according to the new Browns GM, dismissing the idea that he withdrew his name from consideration because he knew the promotion in Cleveland was coming.
Farmer sidestepped football-related questions about the franchise tag and D’Qwell Jackson‘s contract situation, indicating that those decisions will be made at a later date.
While Farmer had been in communication with Haslam for a few days about the upcoming front office changes, he didn’t know definitively until last night that he’d be promoted to GM.
The team is in contact with troubled receiver Davone Bess, and the Browns’ top priority is making sure he gets any help he needs.