Vic Fangio - Pro Football Rumors

Vic Fangio To Return As Bears DC

January 12th, 2018 at 1:31pm CST by Zachary Links

It’s a done deal. On Friday, Vic Fangio agreed to return as the Bears’ defensive coordinator, as Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune writes.

There was some question as to whether Fangio would want to stay in Chicago after the firing of head coach John Fox and the hiring of Matt Nagy. Fangio was sought after by multiple teams, but he opted to stay put under the new administration.

The Packers were pushing hard to sign Fangio, but they instead chose to hire Mike Pettine. That might have something to do with Fangio’s price tag. Last year, he earned more than $2MM, and it’s possible that Chicago has given him an additional bump to stay on board. The Ravens also connected to Fangio and there were rumblings that Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur would recruit him if hired as a head coach.

The Bears ranked just 24th in points allowed last year, but placed 14th in defensive DVOA, so there’s definitely something for Fangio & Co. to build on. The team also has ~$42MM in cap space and the No. 8 overall pick to work with, so the Bears’ D could get even better in 2018.

Bears Expected To Retain DC Vic Fangio

January 9th, 2018 at 8:54pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bears are now expected to retain defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to serve under new head coach Matt Nagy, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Chicago had reportedly to preferred to keep the 59-year-old Fangio (who is 20 years Nagy’s senior) in the fold, but Fangio — who also interviewed for the Bears’ head coaching position earlier this month — drew interest from several clubs around the league. The Bears put on a “full court press” to retain Fangio, tweets Tom Silverstein of the Journal Sentinel, hinting that Green Bay’s decision to hire Mike Pettine may have been a result of Fangio’s reported $2MM price tag.

If he does indeed return to the Bears, Fangio will once again lead a defensive unit that ranked just 24th in points allowed but 14th in defensive DVOA, an indication the club was better on a play-by-play basis than overall. Defenders such as defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, cornerback Kyle Fuller, and safety Adrian Amos posted excellent seasons under Fangio’s leadership, and Chicago could use some its $42MM in cap space and/or the eighth overall selection to bolster the defensive personnel even further.

As PFR’s 2018 NFL Coordinator Tracker indicates, every team that had a defensive coordinator vacancy at the conclusion of the regular season has now either retained its incumbent DC or hired an external candidate.

Coaching Rumors: Fangio, Rams, Broncos

January 9th, 2018 at 7:22pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Free agent coach Vic Fangio is an extremely popular man at the moment — as PFR’s 2018 Coordinator Tracker indicates, Fangio is a candidate to return to the Bears or join the division rival Packers, and he could certainly be linked to more jobs as other head coaching vacancies are filled. But hiring Fangio won’t come cheap, as he was reportedly among the NFL’s highest-paid defensive coordinators last season with a salary in excess of $2MM, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. The average DC, per Biggs, earns closer to $1.5MM annually, so any club that wants to add Fangio will likely need to pony up.

Here’s more from the coaching front:

The Rams have promoted assistant wide receivers coach Zac Taylor to quarterbacks coach, the club announced today. Taylor will replace Greg Olson, who left Los Angeles to become the Raiders’ next offensive coordinator under new head coach Jon Gruden. Taylor has previous play-calling experience, having served as the OC for both the University of Cincinnati and the Dolphins. But he won’t be leading the offense with the Rams, who also employ head coach Sean McVay and offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur. Instead, Taylor will help guide former No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff as he enters his third NFL campaign.
The Broncos have a new special teams coordinator in Tom McMahon, tweets former NFL punter Pat McAfee. McMahon, who’s coached in the NFL for more than a decade, comes to Denver from Indianapolis, where he helped the Colts rank eighth in special teams DVOA. The Broncos, on the other hand, ranked 30th in ST DVOA under former coordinator Brock Olivo.
Cardinals offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin has set up assistant coaching interviews with multiple AFC teams, reports Mike Jurecki of 98.7 FM (Twitter link). While Arizona defensive coordinator James Bettcher was given a head coaching interview after Bruce Arians retired, Goodwin wasn’t afforded the same opportunity. Goodwin has interviewed for four head coaching positions over the past two seasons.
While the final decision to fire former offensive coordinator Mike Shula was ultimately left to Panthers head coach Ron Rivera, Rivera “kept the lines of communication” open with interim general manager Marty Hurney during the process, according to Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).

Packers Eyeing Vic Fangio For DC

January 9th, 2018 at 10:33am CST by Zachary Links

The Packers are casting a wide net in their search for a new defensive coordinator, but one candidate stands at the top of their wish list. Vic Fangio is considered Green Bay’s top choice for the job, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears.

As of this writing, the Packers have yet to schedule an interview, but they’re pushing to set one up. Meanwhile, new Bears head coach Matt Nagy is working to keep the highly respected coordinator in Chicago. The two NFC North teams may have to slug it out over Fangio and it may result in a bidding war.

Fangio, 60 in August, has NFL coaching experience dating back to 1986 and defensive coordinator experience beginning in 1995. He is a big proponent of the 3-4 defense, making him a natural fit for the Packers.

As shown on PFR’s Defensive Coordinator Tracker, the Packers are also considering former Browns head coach Mike Pettine for the job along with three assistants already on staff Winston Moss, Darren Perry, and Joe Whitt.

Coaching Notes: Wilks, Bears, Chiefs, Cards

January 8th, 2018 at 1:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

Steve Wilks has set up three interviews for this week. The Giants will receive the first opportunity to meet with the Panthers’ DC, with ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson reporting (on Twitter) Wilks will trek to New Jersey to meet with the Dave Gettleman-led group on Tuesday before flying to Arizona to meet with the Cardinals on Wednesday. Following those meetings, the Colts will host Wilks on Thursday, Mike Wells of ESPN.com tweets. These aren’t the only teams interested in securing a sitdown with Wilks. The Lions remain interested in doing so as well, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.

The Giants will complete both Wilks’ and Eric Studesville‘s interviews by Wednesday, with the former Broncos running backs coach set for a Wednesday powwow, per ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan (Twitter link). This duo will mark the fifth and sixth interviews the Giants will have conducted. After these summits, Big Blue management could be ready to make a decision. With the Eagles still in the playoffs and no Jim Schwartz interview conducted, it could put the Giants to a decision: wait on Schwartz and risk losing some of these aforementioned candidates or hire one of them instead.

Here’s the latest from the coaching circuit.

A possible favorite has already emerged to replace Matt Nagy as the Chiefs‘ OC. Running backs coach Eric Bieniemy will be “strongly considered,” Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The 48-year-old Bienemy served as Colorado’s OC from 2011-12 and has coached the Chiefs’ running backs since Andy Reid‘s arrival in 2013. Bienemy could have a clearer path to this job with former K.C. OC Brad Childress planning to retire.
Nagy wants to retain Vic Fangio with the Bears, both Peter Schrager of NFL.com and the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs note (Twitter links). But Fangio has interest elsewhere — from the Bengals and Packers — and could opt to depart Chicago after being passed over for the HC job.
Chicago may also look to retain a few assistants who worked under John Fox. Quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone is a candidate to stay under Nagy despite the new HC making his NFL name by working with QBs. The Bears respected Ragone’s work with Trubisky, Rich Campbell of the Chicago Sun-Times tweets, and adds Nagy and Ragone share an agent. Biggs tweets tight ends coach Frank Smith and defensive line coach Jay Rodgers are candidates to stay put as well.
The Browns‘ interviews with OC candidates Ken Zampese and Sean Ryan will take place this week. Rapoport reports (via Twitter) Zampese will receive the first meeting, which will occur today, with Ryan’s interview scheduled for Wednesday. A second-generation NFL assistant, Zampese spent the past 15 seasons with the Bengals before his second year as OC ended after just two games. A nine-year Giants staffer who is currently the Texans’ QBs coach, Ryan does not have any history with Hue Jackson like Zampese does.
Ron Rivera does not anticipate the Panthers making any staff changes beyond possibly replacing Wilks, David Newton of ESPN.com notes. This would mean OC Mike Shula is in line to return for a sixth season.
Falcons special teams coach Keith Armstrong‘s Cardinals interview is set for Monday in Atlanta, Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com reports. Armstrong is allowed to interview under NFL rules despite the Falcons winning in the wild-card round.

Packers, Bengals Interested In Vic Fangio

January 7th, 2018 at 10:17am CST by Rory Parks

Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is receiving head coaching consideration from Chicago — he interviewed for that position on January 3 — and he is also drawing plenty of interest as a defensive coordinator elsewhere. Per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, at least the Bengals and the Packers wants to talk to Fangio about their DC vacancies.

Biggs reports that Chicago recently denied the Bengals’ request to interview Fangio, but as of Tuesday, Fangio will be able to meet with whomever he wants, as both his three-year contract with the Bears and the end-of-season grace period that prevents coaches from bolting immediately without permission will have expired.

We learned yesterday that John DeFilippo would be open to retaining Fangio if DeFilippo is hired to become the next Bears head coach, and Biggs suggests that the Bears would like to keep Fangio as DC regardless of whom they hire as a head coach. Nonetheless, Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune tweets that there are “significant doubts” as to whether Fangio would want to stay in Chicago under such a scenario.

The Bears have already interviewed a number of head coaching candidates and are interviewing Chiefs OC Matt Nagy today (see our up-to-date head coaching tracker here). But even if Fangio is open to remaining with the Bears as a DC, it could be difficult for Chicago to keep him if their head coaching search stretches on too long, as he is likely to have opportunities to accept or decline in the near future. Nagy, though, is the last-known candidate for the Bears to interview, as it does not appear as if they will get a shot at the highly-coveted Steve Wilks.

Coaching Rumors: Cardinals, Bears, Bengals

January 6th, 2018 at 6:59pm CST by Zachary Links

After the Titans’ exciting victory over the Chiefs, one has to imagine that coach Mike Mularkey is off the hot seat. Still, there are a number of head coaching vacancies left around the league.

Here are the latest coaching rumors from around the NFL:

Mike Munchak‘s interview with the Cardinals will take place on Sunday, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter).
If hired by the Bears, John DeFilippo would be be willing to retain Vic Fangio as defensive coordinator, Peter Schrager of NFL Network (on Twitter) hears. The Bears want Fangio back, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter) adds, but other teams and head coaching candidates are interested in bringing him on staff.
Linebackers coach Jim Haslett will remain on the Bengals‘ defensive staff, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer (on Twitter). However, Jacob Burney (defensive line) will not be returning, Alex Marvez of The Sporting News tweets.

Bears Interview Vic Fangio For HC Job

January 3rd, 2018 at 2:02pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bears announced that they have interviewed defensive coordinator Vic Fangio for their vacant head coaching position today. The interview was conducted by GM Ryan Pace.

Fangio could have a leg-up on the competition as an in-house candidate. This obviously wasn’t a banner year for the Bears, but Fangio’s defense did manage to finish 14th in league DVOA in 2017, according to Football Outsiders. That’s rather impressive considering the so-so talent that he had to work with and injuries to linebackers Leonard Floyd, Willie Young, and Pernell McPhee.

Fangio joins Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo, Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, and Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks as known candidates for the job. Fangio could have the inside track, though the team may prefer an offensive-minded coach to work with young quarterback Mitch Trubisky.

Coach Notes: Jackson, Patricia, Coordinators

December 25th, 2017 at 10:01am CST by GregGoldstein

Hue Jackson has accumulated a stunningly poor 1-30 record in almost two seasons as the head coach of the Browns. However, despite his poor performance, he looks to be safe for next season. Other factors such as a lack of talent and a disfunctional front office certainly play a big role in the team’s failures, but basic logic must win out in determining his coaching future, opines Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.

La Canfora notes that while Jackson appears to be “immune to review” at the moment, the team should be thinking about moving on from their second-year head coach. It’s not ideal for a franchise that has shuffled through many coaches in the past, but La Canfora argues that the job is more attractive then some may think when just observing this season.

New general manager John Dorsey has a track record of success and the team could be bringing in a young franchise QB with the number one pick, even though Josh Rosen has reportedly had some reservations about going to Cleveland.

La Canfora notes that finding a better replacement to Jackson shouldn’t be hard, even if the team is unlikely to do so given most of the reports coming from Browns ownership.

Here’s more notes from around the coaching carousel:

The Lions have stood behind head coach Jim Caldwell for the past four seasons, despite not winning a playoff game. However, it may be time for the franchise to move on after the team lost to the Bengals on Sunday. Patriots defense coordinator Matt Patricia may be a prime candidate if the job opens up because of his relationship with current Lions general manager Bob Quinn, according to Alex Marvez of Sporting News (Twitter link). The two men worked together in New England when Quinn was a high level decision maker in the Patriots front office, so the hire would be a natural fit.
The Redskins missed the playoffs for the second straight season, but could still lose their quarterback coach Kevin O’Connell to another opportunity. O’Connell is reported to be a “top target” for the UCLA offensive coordinator post, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). New Bruins head coach Chip Kelly is looking for another offensive mind to add to his staff and the offensive coordinator job would be a difficult position to turn down if O’Connell was offered, according to Rapoport. Under O’Connell’s guidance, Kirk Cousins has continued to produce solid numbers in 2017, which has certainly helped make him more sought after for promotions at the collegiate level.
There’s a number of attractive coordinators who will be free agents this offseason. Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com run down a list that includes defensive coordinators: Gus Bradley, Paul Guenther, Vic Fangio and George Edwards. They mention that Bradley in particular is an odd situation because he signed just a one-year deal with the Chargers last offseason and has a great track record as a defensive coordinator with the Seahawks as well. At the moment, the Chargers have the third ranked scoring defense in the league, which should help make him in high demand for open defensive coordinator jobs after this season is over. Guenther on the other hand has been mentioned has a potential replacement for longtime Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis, although he would be free to look at other opportunities should the team opt to go in a different direction. The article also makes note that popular Eagles quarterback coach John DeFilippo and Cowboys passing game coordinator Matt Eberflus would bring widespread interest as well if they move on from their current teams.

NFC North Notes: Vikings, Keenum, Packers

December 24th, 2017 at 3:40pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Vikings still have not opened extension talks with pending free agent quarterback Case Keenum, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Previous reports have indicated general manager Rick Spielman & Co. won’t discuss contracts with any of their free agent signal-callers until the season concludes, and that stance has not changed, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Indeed, Keenum may require a franchise or transition tag in order to not hit the open market, several executives tell La Canfora. Keenum, Teddy Bridgewater, and Sam Bradford are all scheduled to become unrestricted free agents next spring, meaning the Vikings will have several decisions to make over the coming months.

Here’s more from the NFC North:

While the Packers have certainly struggled without quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the club isn’t expected to make wholesale changes during the offseason, reports Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. However, defensive coordinator Dom Capers could take the fall after leading a defense that ranks just 19th in DVOA. If Capers is fired, one candidate to take over Green Bay’s defense may be current Bears DC Vic Fangio, per Pelissero. Fangio, whose contract expires after the 2017 season, has Chicago’s defense at 14th in DVOA (with arguably less talent than the Packers possess).
Capers isn’t the only Packers staffer who could leave the team this offseason, as director of football operations Eliot Wolf is once again drawing general manager interest. While Wolf has long been viewed as an in-house replacement for current GM Ted Thompson, Wolf is reportedly growing impatient and is ready to “branch out,” sources tell Matt Miller of Bleacher Report. Wolf, who was tied to the 49ers and Colts general manager vacancies a year ago, was most recently linked to the Giants GM gig.
Although Vikings long snapper Kevin McDermott‘s dislocated shoulder is likely to sideline him for the final game of the regular season, he’s expected to be available for the playoffs, per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (Twitter links). McDermott, who will not require surgery, had his shoulder popped back in place last night. Meanwhile, Minnesota will need a long snapper for their Week 17 contest against the Bears, and the club plans to audition free agent Justin Drescher on Tuesday, per Tomasson. Drescher has appeared in 110 career games, including eight with the Cardinals earlier this year.