Sean Payton Has Not Decided On Broncos’ 2026 Play-Caller
Davis Webb‘s promotion to Broncos offensive coordinator stirred speculation that he may take over play-calling duties from Sean Payton.
Webb received interest from several teams this cycle for both head coaching and offensive coordinator jobs that would have come with the opportunity to call plays. Since experience as a play-caller has become an increasingly important factor in getting a head coaching job, his decision to stay in Denver suggested he would get a shot at calling the Broncos offense.
However, there is no language in Webb’s contract guaranteeing him that responsibility, according to Luca Evans of the Denver Post, and Payton has yet to make a decision on the matter.
Giving up play-calling duties would be a major departure for Payton, who has been calling plays for his offenses for the last 20 years. But he may have already hinted at such a change, per 9News’ Mike Klis (via DNVR Sports). Payton talked about needing to move quicker as a coach in January, and delegating play-calling duties to Webb may allow him to do that.
“I don’t think Sean [Payton] is ready to announce that, but I’m not going to be surprised if Davis Webb does [call plays],” Klis said.
Payton has voiced his approval of Webb’s play-calling abilities in the past. Webb called the Broncos offense for a preseason game in 2025 and the unit scored 27 points, racked up 562 yards, and averaged 7.8 yards per play.
“I had thrown a couple of call sheets or stat sheets from my first time and highlighted a few things and said, ‘see if you can beat this,’” Payton said (via Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post). “And he did.”
Of course, the regular season is a different story, but who better to mentor Webb in his first year as a play-caller than Payton himself? And if Webb were to falter for any reason, Payton could always step in to right the ship.
Bears To Hire Eric Studesville As RBs Coach
The Bears have found their replacement for Eric Bienemy, their running backs coach in 2025 who returned to Kansas City as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator this offseason. Former Dolphins assistant Eric Studesville will take up the job in 2026, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
Studesville, 58, began his NFL coaching career with the Bears as an offensive quality control coach in 1997. Interestingly, that followed a college career in which he played and coached on the defensive side of the ball. He then served as the wide receivers coach/assistant special teams coach in 1999 and 2000 before he was hired by the Giants to be their running backs coach. He spent three years in New York before taking the same job with the Bills (2004-2009), Broncos (2010-2016), and Dolphins (2017-2025).
In Miami, he also held the titles of run game coordinator (2017-2020), co-offensive coordinator (2021), and associate head coach (2022-2025). He also overlapped with then-Dolphins WRs coach Ben Johnson for two years and will now fill a key role on his staff in Chicago.
Studeville has developed notable star running backs in his career, including De’Von Achane, Tiki Barber, Fred Jackson, Willis McGahee, C.J. Anderson, and Knowshon Moreno. He will now work with D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai, who were an effective one-two punch in 2025.
Andy Reid Recommended Matt Nagy To John Harbaugh
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid let offensive coordinator Matt Nagy leave Kansas City this offseason, but he also helped him get his new job in New York.
Reid recommended Nagy to Giants head coach John Harbaugh (via SNY’s Connor Hughes) during his scramble to find a new offensive coordinator after Todd Monken took the Browns’ head coaching job. Harbaugh had long been planning to bring Monken, his OC in Baltimore, to New York and even tried to talk him out of going to Cleveland.
But Monken could not give up his first opportunity to be an NFL head coach, and Harbaugh had to look elsewhere. He interviewed a number of qualified candidates, though the pool of available talent had been thinned significantly by that point. So when Reid called Harbaugh to personally endorse his longtime assistant, the discussion likely carried a lot of weight in the Giants’ final decision.
Harbaugh went with another assistant hire who is once-removed from his coaching tree in assistant offensive line coach Grant Newsome, per ESPN’s Pete Thamel. Newsome previously worked under Jim Harbaugh as Michigan’s offensive line coach and sent a number of players to the NFL, including current Giants guard Jon Runyan Jr.
The Giants are still adding former Ravens assistants, though, including outside linebackers coach Matt Robinson, per CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz. He will move back to an assistant defensive line coach role, which was his title in Baltimore in 2024. He played a key role in developing Ravens outside linebacker Tavius Robinson and defensive tackles Nnamdi Madubuike and Travis Jones.
Vikings Add Matt Thomas To Front Office
The Vikings are currently the NFL’s only team without a general manager. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah‘s firing has left Rob Brzezinski in place atop the front office until after the draft.
Brzezinski will have some assistance during his interim GM stint. The Vikings are hiring Matt Thomas to serve as a football administration consultant through to April’s draft, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network report. Thomas (whose arrival is now official) worked as the Seahawks’ VP of football operations from 2013-24 before retiring. This short-term gig will give Minnesota a veteran voice in the front office.
Thomas and Brzezinski worked together when they were both with the Dolphins for the 1998 and ’99 seasons (h/t ESPN’s Kevin Seifert). This reunion will last through free agency and the draft, and it will see Thomas take on a key role relating to the salary cap. He will work alongside Emily Badis in that capacity and by doing so allow Brzezinski to focus on other matters during his brief tenure as general manager.
The timing of Adofo-Mensah’s dismissal caught many by surprise. By parting ways as late in the hiring cycle as the Vikings did, they left themselves short on replacement options. Jon-Eric Sullivan (Dolphins) and Ian Cunningham (Falcons) are no longer candidates for Minnesota since they accepted GM offers elsewhere. Minnesota’s spring search will make for an interesting team storyline late in the offseason, and the team’s new full-time general manager will inherit a roster shaped in no small part by Brzezinski over the coming months.
The Vikings are one of several teams currently projected to be over the cap for 2026; Over the Cap has them in the red by more than $40MM. A number of cuts, extensions and restructures will be required over the coming weeks as a result. Thomas’ presence could prove to be key as Minnesota’s financial setup for 2026 takes shape.
Ex-Eagles OL Coach Jeff Stoutland Will Not Coach In 2026
On Wednesday, the NFL world found out that legendary Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland would not be coaching in Philadelphia next season. We now know (via ESPN’s Tim McManus) that he does not intend to coach at all in 2026.
The Eagles wanted to keep Stoutland in place under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion
, but he declined their offer. If he was interested in other jobs, he would have become the hottest commodity on the coaching market. While most teams already have their offensive line coach for 2026 in place, Stoutland could have easily become a senior offensive assistant or run game coordinator on any number of staffs.
Instead, he will take a year away from coaching after more than four decades with various college and NFL teams that featured two Super Bowl rings and two BCS National Championships.
Stoutland is leaving Philadelphia after a rocky 2025 season for the Eagles offense. After three straight years as a top-10 unit, they fell back to 19th in points and 24th in yards. Head coach Nick Sirianni and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo worked to diversify the run game, but did so in such a manner that encroached on Stoutland’s role as run game coordinator.
Then, after firing Patullo, the Eagles hired Sean Mannion as their new offensive coordinator. He spent time under both Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay and will bring their schemes to Philadelphia. Stoutland does not have as much experience with those systems.
Those factors contributed to Stoutland’s growing discomfort in Philadelphia and eventual departure. However, he does not plan to retire and could becoming one of the most sought-after assistants in the NFL next hiring cycle.
Vikings FB C.J. Ham Retires
C.J. Ham‘s NFL career has come to an end. The longtime Vikings fullback took to Instagram on Thursday to announce his retirement. 
Ham went undrafted in 2016, but the Duluth, Minnesota native signed with his hometown team. That marked the beginning of a lengthy career spent entirely with the Vikings. Ham took on fullback duties in 2017 and continued in that capacity for a total of nine seasons.
During that span, the Augustana product emerged as one of the league’s top fullbacks. In an era where full-time players at the position have become few and far between, Ham managed to remain a rotational presence on offense throughout his Vikings tenure. He was a Pro Bowler in 2019 and again in 2023 based largely on his strong special teams play, something which stayed consistent through this past season.
In all, Ham played roughly 2,300 snaps on both offense and special teams. He totaled triple-digit scrimmage yards each season from 2019-21, the stretch which also included his heaviest usage rates on offense. Over the past few years, Ham saw his role and playing time decline. That likely would have continued into the future had the pending free agent inked another deal with the Vikings.
Instead, Ham will turn his attention to his post-playing days at the age of 32. In all, he played 147 combined regular and postseason games during his Vikings tenure. Ham totaled roughly $19.5MM in career earnings while playing out four different Minnesota contracts.
Rams GM Les Snead Addresses Pending Puka Nacua Extension Talks
The 2026 could prove to be a rather busy one for the Rams. Clarity on the Matthew Stafford situation will be critical, while members of the team’s 2023 draft class are now eligible for extensions. 
That group includes star wideout Puka Nacua. As things stand, Nacua is on track to enter the 2026 campaign as a pending free agent. Working out an extension to prevent a potential departure has been seen as a priority for some time now, and general manager Les Snead recently spoke about the pending negotiations on a new deal in Nacua’s case.
“He’s evolved into one of the best,” Snead said (via Gary Klein of the L.A. Times). “It seems like, ‘OK, that’s a pretty simple contract because it’s pretty self-explanatory where you fall in the ecosystem and the hierarchy.’ But there’s also so many variables… So again similar to a few players that we’ve had in the past… that have been at that level in the ecosystem, you’ve got to begin communication and begin working through it to come up with a win-win solution.”
It would come as no surprise if Nacua and his camp pushed for a market-topping deal this spring. Ja’Marr Chase worked out a Bengals extension averaging $40.25MM per year last offseason. The NFL’s salary cap was set at just over $279MM for 2025. It will exceed $300MM in 2026, something which will no doubt continue the inflation of certain position’s markets. Nacua is of course a strong candidate to benefit from the upward movement in the cap ceiling.
The former fifth-round pick broke out with a stellar rookie season, collecting second-team All-Pro honors along the way. Nacua was limited to 11 games in 2024, but he remained healthy this year en route to another hugely productive campaign. The BYU product led the NFL in receptions (129) and yards per game (107.2); that helped earn him a first-team All-Pro nod along with a second Pro Bowl invitation. Any long-term pact worked out in Nacua’s case will surely move him near the top of the financial pecking order amongst receivers at a minimum.
The Rams have fellow WR Davante Adams on the books for 2026. He is expected to remain in place at a cap charge of $28MM, although Nacua inking a monster extension would lessen the chances of Adams being retained in the future. Los Angeles has several other ascending players to consider extending, such as defensive tackle Kobie Turner, guard Steve Avila and edge rusher Byron Young. Finding room for them, as well as Nacua, will prove to be challenging.
Snead, like head coach Sean McVay, recently signed a Rams extension. He will be tasked with keeping the team’s core intact for as long as possible, and efforts on that front will include a push to extend Nacua over the coming weeks or months.
Steelers Hire Joe Whitt
Joe Whitt‘s time in the nation’s capital came to an end one month ago. The veteran staffer has now found his next coaching opportunity. 
The Steelers have added Whitt to their staff, as first reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The move has since been confirmed by a team announcement. Whitt spent the past two seasons as the Commanders’ defensive coordinator, but after being stripped of play-calling duties midway through the 2025 campaign his dismissal came as no surprise. In Pittsburgh, he will hold the title of assistant head coach while also working with the team’s secondary.
[RELATED: Steelers Hire Brian Angelichio As OC]
Whitt’s showing in Washington left plenty to be desired, but he has a deep level of familiarity with new Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy. The two worked together in Green Bay from 2008-18. Whitt also joined McCarthy’s Cowboys staff and spent three seasons as Dallas’ defensive pass-game coordinator (a role he had experience with during his Packers stint as well).
An NFL coach dating back to 2007, Whitt has served in a number of capacities over the years. The 47-year-old’s first defensive coordinator gig came about when he followed Dan Quinn from Dallas to Washington. The fact things did not go according to plan with the Commanders will likely limit his future DC opportunities. Still, Whitt will look to rebuild his stock by working with a Steelers group which ranked 29th against the pass in 2025.
In other Steelers staffing news, longtime NFL defensive tackle Domata Peko has been hired. He will be Pittsburgh’s defensive line coach in 2026. Peko began his coaching career on McCarthy’s Cowboys staff in 2024. Last season, he coached Colorado’s defensive line but a reunion with McCarthy will bring about a return to the pro ranks for the coming campaign.
The Steelers have also announced the hiring of Patrick Reilly. He will serve as the team’s defensive quality control coach. Reilly worked as an offensive assistant with the Texans in 2025, but he was recently let go. Prior to his one-and-done Houston stint, Reilly worked on the defensive side of the ball during a four-year run in Jacksonville. This Pittsburgh hire will see him return to a familiar role.
Cardinals To Hire Nathaniel Hackett As OC
Nathaniel Hackett was believed to be heading to Miami to become the Dolphins’ quarterbacks coach. But he is now on track to move back onto the coordinator tier.
The Cardinals are hiring Hackett as their OC under Mike LaFleur, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports. Hackett was LaFleur’s successor as Jets OC; the duo will now head up the offense in Arizona.
A report last week had Hackett committing to the Dolphins to become their QBs coach under Jeff Hafley, but a better offer has come up that will force Miami to keep looking. This will be a non-play-calling position, with LaFleur set to hold the play sheet in the desert. That will be familiar territory for Hackett, who served as Matt LaFleur‘s non-play-calling OC with the Packers from 2019-21. That stay boosted Hackett’s stock; the next three seasons tanked it.
Considering Hackett’s three-year stretch from 2022-24, a move back to the coordinator tier represents a risky decision on the Cardinals’ part. The Broncos fired Hackett 15 games into his HC tenure, and the Jets demoted him from play-calling duties in 2024 — after an offseason effort to strip his power failed. Hackett ended up back in Green Bay as a defensive analyst last season, and his relationship with the LaFleurs appears to be strong enough for what will be a fifth chance as an NFL OC.
Prior to Hackett’s Green Bay stay, he served in that capacity in Buffalo and Jacksonville. Fired during a disappointing Jaguars 2018 season, Hackett landed on his feet weeks later as Matt LaFleur’s OC. The Packers then secured three playoff byes in Hackett’s three years in that role, with Aaron Rodgers earning MVP acclaim in 2020 and ’21. Rodgers has consistently vouched for Hackett, to the point he is believed to have interceded with a Jets effort to fire him after the 2023 season. But Hackett has enjoyed memorable failures with and without the star QB outside of Wisconsin.
The Broncos named Hackett as head coach in January 2022; in early March, they completed a blockbuster Russell Wilson trade. This move took place shortly after Rodgers recommitted to the Packers on a three-year extension. The Broncos were connected to Rodgers for a while, and although they insisted their Wilson trade was not connected to the then-reigning MVP’s Packers decision, the Hackett-Wilson partnership was a historic bust.
Giving Wilson’s camp considerable influence in the building and having the perennial Seahawks Pro Bowler partially dictate how the offense was structured, Hackett proved to be a poor HC fit. Hackett game management gaffes that September led to the Broncos bringing in an assistant (Jerry Rosburg) to run that department, and the embattled HC then removed himself from play-calling duties, giving the play sheet to QBs coach Klint Kubiak. The Broncos canned Hackett after a blowout loss to the Rams, with Rosburg finishing the season as interim HC. Despite Denver’s disjointed offense ranking last in 2022, Hackett landed the New York OC job in 2023.
After LaFleur saw Zach Wilson‘s struggles lead to his ouster, Hackett was soon forced to work with the QB bust after Rodgers’ Week 1 Achilles tear. The Jets ranked 29th in scoring in 2022 and ’23, though Hackett’s attack was worse in yardage (31st) and EPA per play (32nd). Robert Saleh sought to strip power from Hackett during the 2024 offseason, but a stealth search for a de facto OC failed. Saleh was planning to demote Hackett early that season, but the Jets fired their head coach. The team removed Hackett from play-calling duty anyway, giving the play sheet to QBs coach Todd Downing.
It is not known which external minority candidate the Cardinals interviewed; teams must interview one external minority before filling OC or DC posts. Regardless, Hackett (46) will receive yet another chance. He will provide an experienced voice for Mike LaFleur, 38, but his Denver and New York work brings obvious concerns.
Hackett was at the controls for a surprisingly effective 2017 Jaguars offense — one that reached the Super Bowl LII precipice — but he is mostly known for recent failures. He will presumably have a say in how the Cardinals proceed at quarterback, as Kyler Murray is far from certain to enter an eighth season as the team’s QB.
Jets Hire Frank Reich As OC
After the Jets parted ways with offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand last week, Frank Reich quickly became the favorite to replace him. The Jets will indeed hire Reich as their offensive coordinator, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
The 64-year-old Reich, who conducted his second interview with the Jets on Tuesday, beat out fellow veteran coaches Greg Roman and Darrell Bevell for the job. He’ll now return to the NFL after serving as the interim head coach at Stanford in 2025.
An NFL quarterback from 1985-1998, Reich spent the ’96 season with the Jets. Former defensive back and current Jets head coach Aaron Glenn was Reich’s teammate in New York. Thirty years later, Glenn is bringing in Reich to boost an offense that finished 29th in both points and yards this past season.
“Frank has a rare combination of experience, creativity, and calm under pressure,” Glenn said in a team-issued statement. “He’s lived this game from every angle — as a quarterback in this league and as a coach who’s led offenses at the highest level. He is unique in his ability to see the game for what it is right now and adapt when appropriate. Frank understands offense and how to utilize the strengths of players. I am looking forward to how he will help this team have success.”
Reich, who began his coaching career as an intern with the Colts in 2006, later worked as the Chargers’ offensive coordinator from 2014-15 and the Eagles’ OC between 2016-17. After winning a Super Bowl with backup QB Nick Foles in his last year in Philadelphia, Reich returned to Indianapolis in 2018 as its head coach.
In four-plus years with the Colts, Reich combined for a 40-33-1 record and two playoff berths despite instability under center. Andrew Luck was the Colts’ starter in Reich’s first year, but after his out-of-nowhere retirement in August 2019, Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers and Carson Wentz each held the role in the ensuing three seasons. There was more upheaval at the position in 2022, when Matt Ryan succeeded Wentz. The Ryan-led Colts got off to 3-5-1 start that year, leading to Reich’s ouster.
Reich immediately received a second chance as Carolina’s head coach in 2023, former No. 1 pick Bryce Young‘s rookie year, but it was a disastrous stint. With the Panthers off to a 1-10 start, they pulled the plug on Reich. He spent 2024 out of football before reuniting with Luck, Stanford’s general manager, for a year.
In his return to the pros, Reich will once again enter into a less-than-ideal QB situation. The Jets, who easily finished last in passing in 2025, don’t have an in-house answer at the position. They could re-sign journeyman Tyrod Taylor, but he’s better off in a backup role.
While Justin Fields inked a two-year deal with $30MM in guarantees last March, the Jets are likely to release him after a rough season in which Glenn benched him for Taylor. Brady Cook made four starts as an undrafted rookie, but he didn’t look like any kind of solution during that stretch.
With the league’s fourth-most spending space (around $83.57MM, per Over the Cap), a pair of first-round picks and four selections in the top 44, the Jets are in position to upgrade at QB this offseason. That would help Reich’s cause, as would re-signing soon-to-be free agent running back Breece Hall. As of now, though, there’s little high-end offensive talent on hand outside of wide receiver Garrett Wilson, tight end Mason Taylor, and tackles Olu Fashanu and Armand Membou.
Glenn made it known during his OC search that he wanted Engstrand’s replacement to work as the “head coach of the offense.” With the experienced Reich now running the unit, Glenn will take on a bigger role on the defensive side in 2026. Glenn, who hired first-time D-coordinator Brian Duker last week, will call the defensive plays next season.