Vance Joseph - Pro Football Rumors

Coaching Rumors: Lynn, 49ers, McDaniels

January 4th, 2017 at 10:40am CST by Zachary Links

The latest news on the league’s coaching vacancies:

For a complete rundown of every interview scheduled for the teams in search of a new coach, check out PFR’s 2017 NFL Head Coaching Tracker.
Anthony Lynn‘s interview with the 49ers will take place today (Wednesday), according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will interview with the Rams, Jaguars, and 49ers all on the same day, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe writes. McDaniels will huddle up with all three teams on Saturday in separate rooms at a hotel near Gilette Stadium. Those three teams will be permitted to interview McDaniels again in the week after the AFC title game, if the Pats make it to the Super Bowl.
The Chargers won’t force assistants on a new head coach, but they value their offensive staff, Rapoport tweets. There’s a good chance offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and his fellow offensive coaches stay put.
The Broncos are expected to talk to Lynn at some point and will interview Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph as soon as the rules allow, Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com tweets.
Cardinals offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin is scheduled to meet with the Rams on Thursday and the Bills on Saturday, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.
Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub will interview with the Broncos on Friday and then he has the Chargers on Sunday, Rapoport tweets.

49ers To Interview Sean McVay, Vance Joseph

January 3rd, 2017 at 4:58pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Redskins offensive coordinator Sean McVay and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph are the latest serious candidates to fill the 49ers’ head coaching vacancy. McVay will interview next Monday, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, and Joseph will also meet with the team sometime in the near future, tweets Rand Getlin.

If McVay were to land the job, the soon-to-be 31-year-old wunderkind would become the youngest head coach in the modern era. McVay, who has three years’ experience as a coordinator, teamed with head coach Jay Gruden to guide the Redskins to the NFL’s third-best total offense and a fifth-place DVOA ranking this season. The Rams are also targeting him as a result, though going to San Francisco – where his grandfather, John McVay, once thrived as an executive – would perhaps make for a more interesting story.

Unlike McVay, Joseph’s season isn’t over – the playoff-bound Dolphins will take on the Steelers in the wild-card round this weekend. Thus, it’s unclear when he’ll meet with the Niners. The Broncos will also interview Joseph, according to Getlin, while the Rams, Bills and Chargers have expressed interest in sitting down with him. Joseph, 44, is amid his first year as a defensive coordinator, one in which the Dolphins finished the regular season with unspectacular rankings in scoring (18th), DVOA (19th) and total defense (29th).

Coaching Notes: Joseph, Bills, Rams

January 2nd, 2017 at 8:54pm CST by Zachary Links

It’s been a busy day around the NFL, especially when it comes to coaching rumors. We’re keeping track of all of those interviews, and you can find our tracker here.

In the meantime, let’s take a look at some more coaching whispers from around the NFL…

The Rams, Bills, and Chargers are requesting permission to speak with Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). We learned earlier today that the 49ers have also expressed interest in Joseph.
If Joseph indeed gets a head coaching gig, linebackers coach Matt Burke is likely to replace him as the Dolphins defensive coordinator, Jeff Darlington of ESPN.com tweets. Burke joined the Dolphins last offseason after having previously served as the linebackers coach with the Bengals and Lions.
The Bills are expected to interview Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich for their head coaching opening, sources tell Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News (via Twitter). Prior to his time in Philly, Reich was the offensive coordinator for the Chargers.
The Bills have done some homework on Seahawks defensive coordinator Kris Richard, Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports tweets. Richard just completed his second season in that role.
All Rams assistants have been told they are free to seek other employment, freelance NFL reporter Michael Silver tweets. This doesn’t come as a huge surprise since the next coach in L.A. will probably want to bring in a lot of his own guys. Even if the next head coach wants to keep some of the current assistants, it wouldn’t be fair to hamstring them while the search continues.
The Rams, Jaguars, Broncos, and 49ers will all interview Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan between Friday and Saturday, reports Rapoport (via Twitter).
The Rams are planning on interviewing Panthers secondary coach and assistant head coach Steve Wilks for their head coaching gig, reports Rapoport (via Twitter). The 47-year-old has been in the NFL since 2008, and he’s also coached for the Bears and Chargers.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.

Coaching Rumors: Shanahan, Rams, Broncos

January 2nd, 2017 at 12:49pm CST by Zachary Links

It’s a New Year and a new start for many teams on the sidelines. With a zillion interviews being requested today, we’ll run down the latest coaching rumors and requests here:

The Rams and Broncos have requested permission to talk to Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, as Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. GM John Elway says the team will consider “three or four” candidates for the job, which means that Shanahan is on the short list. It will be interesting to see if the rocky relationship between Elway and Shanahan’s father, Mike Shanahan, plays a role in his candidacy.
Cardinals coach Bruce Arians confirmed that the Bills and Rams have asked permission to interview offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin (Twitter link via Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic). As previously reported, the Jaguars will interview Goodwin today.
The Bills will make a push for former Jacksonville head coach Gus Bradley as their defensive coordinator, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. La Canfora, like many, expects Anthony Lynn to shed the “interim” title this offseason and take over as head coach.
The Rams have requested interviews with Lynn and Matt Patricia (Patriots defensive coordinator), according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link).
The Jaguars will interview Buccaneers defensive coordinator Mike Smith for their head coaching vacancy, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.
Dolphins head coach Adam Gase said teams have contacted Miami about talking to Vance Joseph for head coaching jobs, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald tweets.

49ers Targeting Tom Cable, Others For HC Job

January 2nd, 2017 at 9:56am CST by Zachary Links

Josh McDaniels isn’t the only candidate on the 49ers’ list. The team is also looking to bring in Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable, Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn, Jaguars interim coach Doug Marrone, and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, according to CSNBayArea.com’s Matt Maiocco.

The Jets interviewed Cable for their head coaching vacancy before the 2015 season, but he did not receive any interviews last offseason. Cable, of course, offers head coaching experience after nearly three years at the helm in Oakland. From 2008-2010, the Raiders went 17-27 under Cable and never finished higher than third in the AFC West.

Meanwhile, the top GM candidates right now are Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio, Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard, ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, Vikings assistant GM George Paton, and Seahawks co-player personnel directors Trent Kirchner and Scott Fitterer.

CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe are leading the search to fill both vacancies. After witnessing years of discord between former coach Jim Harbaugh and former GM Trent Baalke (and perhaps some disagreement between Baalke and recent ex-coach Chip Kelly), the 49ers may opt for a ready-made GM/coach combo like McDaniels and Caserio. McDaniels appears to be one of the hottest coaching candidates on the market this offseason and Caserio has been viewed as a rising front office star for the last couple of years.

Vance Joseph A Candidate For Broncos HC?

January 1st, 2017 at 1:52pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Given reports that Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak is likely to retire at season’s end, general manager John Elway & Co. could soon be conducting a head coaching search. Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph could be a strong candidate for the position, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Joseph, 44, interviewed for Denver’s vacant head coaching position during the 2015 offseason when he was still the Bengals’ defensive backs coach. Though the Broncos ultimately hired Kubiak, the club maintained strong interest in bringing Joseph in as defensive coordinator, but Cincinnati blocked the move. Since that time, Joseph has moved on to Miami, where he’s helped improve the team’s defense from a No. 25 DVOA rank in 2015 to No. 17 this year.

Meanwhile, Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan is also expected to be on the Broncos’ “radar,” tweets Mike Klis of 9NEWS. Shanahan will be a candidate for nearly every head coaching job that opens this offseason, but a move to Denver could be particularly difficult given Shanahan’s father’s relationship with Elway, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Some sources say Mike Shanahan — who coached Elway to two Super Bowl victories — doesn’t get along with the current Denver GM, per Florio.

Coaching/GM Notes, Pt. 1: Pagano, Payton, Kelly

January 1st, 2017 at 10:48am CST by Rory Parks

We heard earlier today that Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak is likely to step down while the Bears are expected to retain head coach John Fox and GM Ryan Pace. Let’s take a look at some other coaching and GM rumors from around the league, which are so abundant that we will split this post into two parts. Part 2 can be found here.

Colts owner Jim Irsay has attempted to downplay the notion that head coach Chuck Pagano and/or GM Ryan Grigson are on the hot seat, but ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Irsay has been “very unhappy” with his team’s performance, and coaches within the organization believe that change is coming. It appears as if Pagano’s job is certainly in jeopardy, although it remains unclear whether Grigson could be fired as well. Irsay could not be reached for comment.
There is “mutual interest” between the Rams and Saints head coach Sean Payton, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, who reports that the ball is in New Orleans GM Mickey Loomis‘ court. If Loomis decides he’s willing to part with Payton for moderate compensation, Payton would be the clear front-runner to take over in Los Angeles. And if the Saints do move on from Payton, Jaguars interim head coach Doug Marrone would be a strong candidate to replace him in New Orleans, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. Marrone could also take over the Jacksonville job on a permanent basis.
The Jaguars will not, however, consider Chip Kelly, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes.
La Canfora tweets out a list of names who could be in contention for the 49ers‘ GM job, a list that includes Louis Riddick, Scott Pioli, and George Paton. Meanwhile, San Francisco is said to be high on Patriots OC Josh McDaniels and Dolphins DC Vance Joseph as head coaching candidates.
Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com tweets that Panthers DC Sean McDermott is lined up for multiple head coaching interviews.

Jaguars To Interview Tom Coughlin

December 24th, 2016 at 12:29pm CST by Ben Levine

We’ve been hearing whispers of a Tom Coughlin/Jaguars reunion even before the team fired head coach Gus Bradley earlier this week. Well, it’s sounding like those whispers could soon be a reality. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports that the Jaguars will be interviewing the former head coach this week (via NFL.com’s Conor Orr). It’s uncertain whether Coughlin will be interviewing for the head coaching gig or “some type of “football czar” position overseeing operations.”

Coughlin would be a natural fit for Jacksonville, especially since it was the organization that gave him his first NFL head coaching gig. The 70-year-old also has a house and family in the area, two factors that would reportedly be a “big draw” to the long-time coach. If the organization is indeed pursuing Coughlin as their next head coach, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise. General manager Dave Caldwell previously acknowledged that the veteran coach would be a candidate for the opening.

In eight seasons with the Jaguars, Coughlin led the squad to a 68-60 record and four playoff appearances. The long-time coach had a bit more success when he joined the Giants, compiling a 102-90 record. Of course, Coughlin also led New York to five playoff appearances and two Super Bowl championships. Coughlin resigned as head coach of the Giants following the 2015 season, although he did admit in October that he still has interest in coaching.

Coughlin would seemingly be less of a fit for the front office, although our own Dallas Robinson noted that the coach was essentially building his team’s roster during his previous tenure with the organization. Of course, if the team does add Coughlin in a non-coaching role, it could mean the end of Caldwell’s tenure in Jacksonville.

Rapoport notes that other potential candidates for the Jaguars head coach opening are interim head coach Doug Marrone, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.

Sean Payton Has “Sincere Interest” In Rams’ Head Coaching Vacancy

December 24th, 2016 at 10:14am CST by Ben Levine

Another day, another big name being mentioned as a potential candidate for the Rams’ head coach opening. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports that Saints head coach Sean Payton is monitoring the Rams’ vacancy with “sincere interest.” The reporter clarifies that a potential Rams/Saints trade is neither “imminent” nor “likely,” but a deal is “possible.” For the Rams to pull off such a move, Payton would have to be the organization’s “overwhelming No. 1” favorite for the position.

As Rapoport writes, Payton has openly expressed interest in coaching on the West Coast, especially since his daughter lives in California. The head coach had previously shown some interst in the former 49ers and Chargers openings. Payton ultimately signed a five-year extension with the Saints that will pay him around $10MM a year. After he announced the new contract, Payton said that he couldn’t envision himself coaching elsewhere.

Of course, the extension doesn’t mean that Payton is guaranteed to stick around New Orleans. The 52-year-old hasn’t led the Saints to the playoffs since 2013, and Rapoport reports that some within the organization are starting to tire of Payton’s unwillingness to commit to his current gig longterm. In fact, we heard last week that the Saints could look to trade their long-time coach. If the coach decides that he wants out of New Orleans, the front office won’t hold him “hostage,” according to Rapoport.

Payton does have an impressive head coaching record of 92-64 during his 11 seasons in New Orleans (he was suspended for the 2012 campaign), and he led the team to a Super Bowl championship in 2009.

Despite the Payton news, Rapoport tweets that the Rams aren’t necessarily looking to “make a splash” with the hiring. The last time they hired a big-name coach, they signed Jeff Fisher… and we all know how that turned out.

Meanwhile, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter echoes that the Rams aren’t necessarily looking at high-profile names for their head coaching vacancy. According to the report, the Rams are eyeing Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, Bills offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn,
Patriots offensive coordinators Josh McDaniels, and Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. We learned earlier this week that the Rams (along with the Jaguars) would have interest in Shanahan.

Rapoport throws another name into the ring (via Twitter): Panthers coach Ron Rivera. The writer notes that Rivera would be a natural fit considering the Rams’ young roster and Los Angeles’ Hispanic population. Of course, Rapoport admits that a Rams/Panthers trade would be rather complicated to pull off.

Other names that have been mentioned for the opening are Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh and ESPN analyst Jon Gruden. Both of those potential candidates denied having any interest in the gig.

East Notes: Jets, Fins, Jones, Cowboys, Cousins

May 7th, 2016 at 4:48pm CST by Sam Robinson

Until Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Jets can come to terms, Geno Smith is the most experienced quarterback on the roster. But Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News doesn’t view Mike Maccagnan‘s repeated endorsements of the underwhelming 2013 second-rounder as comments to be taken at face value.

While the Jets and Fitzpatrick play hardball, other executives around the league are wondering what exactly the team is planning at quarterback. Should Fitzpatrick sign to play a second season in New York, Maccagnan has tossed around the idea of carrying four quarterbacks, with Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty residing in the developmental wing of the meeting room.

The Jets as an organization have discussed using the 2000 Patriots as a model for the four-QB setup. The Pats that year housed starter Drew Bledsoe, veteran backup John Friesz and developmental prospects Tom Brady and Michael Bishop. Hackenberg or Petty would theoretically be cast as Brady in the Jets’ scenario.

One NFL executive told Mehta the Jets considering carrying four passers “doesn’t make sense.” Smith and Petty would seemingly be jostling for a roster spot if the Jets were planning to employ the usual three. Mehta writes the Patriots’ thinking in 2000 was an aberration and merely hanging onto an extra signal-caller one season — at the expense of a key backup elsewhere — doesn’t equate to a franchise passer emerging from the group.

Here’s the latest from the Eastern divisions on rookie minicamp Saturday.

New Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph guesses Cameron Wake will be ready to play come Week 1, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports. Wake is recovering from a ruptured Achilles’ tendon and entering his age-34 season. The four-time Pro Bowler registered seven sacks in seven games last season before going down with the Achilles injury in October.
Identifying second-rounder Xavien Howard as a “six-foot guy with 5-10 corner movement skills,” Joseph said the rookie corner will vie for a Dolphins starting job with Byron Maxwell and Tony Lippett, per Salguero.
Rex Ryan categorized Cardale Jones as a player with “a long way to go,” per an Associated Press report. “He’s got the physical gifts you look for, there’s no question about that,” Ryan said of the former Ohio State starter. “But you also notice that he’s just going through everything like, it’s spinning right now. He’s throwing behind guys. He doesn’t know where he’s going right now with it.” The Bills have Tyrod Taylor and EJ Manuel venturing into their contract seasons in 2016, leaving the franchise’s future unsettled. Jones was considered a potential first-round pick thanks to the tools he showed as a sophomore in the inaugural College Football Playoff, but being benched as a junior damaged his stock and relegated him into the fourth round.
The Cowboys are relocating Keith Smith and Rod Smith to fullback from their respective linebacker and running back positions to provide the them a better chance at making the 53-man roster, Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes. Dallas’ fullback from 2013-15, Tyler Clutts remains a free agent. Keith Smith has played in 15 games the past two seasons as mostly a special teams cog, and Rod Smith joined the Cowboys last season after the Seahawks cut him.
Washington may be somewhat reluctant to invest long-term, franchise quarterback-level money in Kirk Cousins after he’d shown to be a proficient passer in just one season. But given the team’s recent deals for 2015 breakout players Josh Norman and Jordan Reed, Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com notes Cousins’ career arc doesn’t differentiate itself much from the now-extremely well-compensated cornerback and tight end. Cousins is currently attached to the $19.953MM non-exclusive franchise tag, which he’s signed.