HEADLINES

Texas T Kelvin Banks Jr. Declares For Draft

January 12th, 2025 at 6:39pm CST by Ely Allen

The 2025 NFL Draft is a strange one in that, unlike most drafts, this one lacks a collection of top-tier offensive linemen. That makes the evaluation of the top tackle prospects this year that much more important. One such prospect, Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., announced his intent to forgo his senior year of college to enter the draft on his Instagram.

As a consensus five-star prospect and the third-ranked tackle recruit in the nation, Banks had all the big offers coming out of Summer Creek HS on the north side of Houston. While he did entertain a visit with Mario Cristobal and company in Oregon, the rest of his five official visits were fairly local, starting with LSU and Oklahoma State before considering the two in-state big dogs, Texas and Texas A&M. Though he took all his visits in the summer, he spent his senior season uncommitted before choosing the Longhorns on the early National Signing Day.

Texas didn’t wait to employ Banks’ services, starting one of the gems of their 2022 class at left tackle for all 13 games of his true freshman season. Banks immediately impressed, garnering second-team All-Big 12 honors while contributing to a line that helped Bijan Robinson secure first-round status. As a sophomore, Banks drew even more attention in national award voting and, for the second straight season, ensured that the top running back taken in the draft would come out of Austin.

Banks’ junior year was a bit of a mixed bag. His first two seasons in the college football warranted speculation that he may end up being the top offensive lineman in the draft, and he did enough to win both the Lombardi Award (best lineman of the year) and the Outland Trophy (best interior lineman in college football). His first season of SEC play, though, was mostly considered underwhelming by scouts, relative to the lofty expectations he had set. Still, with a lack of other top options, Banks is projected as a first-rounder and, likely, a top-10 pick.

The first concern for Banks is size. Listed by the Longhorns as 6-foot-4, 320, plenty of NFL teams will view Banks as a guard at the next level — an argument he can counter by pointing to his three sacks allowed over three seasons of only playing left tackle. His pass protection has been his strength, and it tends to be more consistent than his abilities as a run blocker. That being said, when going up against crafty pass rushers with a wide tool set, he can be caught easily out of position or on the ground.

Regardless, the tools to be a top lineman in the NFL are present. ESPN’s Mel Kiper ranks Banks as the top offensive lineman in the class and the 10th-best overall prospect in the draft. Kiper’s colleagues at ESPN (Matt Miller, Jordan Reid, and Field Yates) all agree with Banks ranking as the top tackle. In his midseason draft rankings, Dane Brugler of The Athletic had dropped Banks a bit, ranking him as the second-best tackle behind LSU’s Will Campbell and the 18th-best overall prospect in the class.

In addition to Banks’ announcement, Texas saw junior running back Jaydon Blue announce his intentions to forgo his senior year of college, as well (per his X account). While Blue broke out in his junior year with career-highs in rushing yards (730), rushing touchdowns (8), and all receiving stats (42 receptions, 368 yards, 6 touchdowns), he played second fiddle to sophomore running back Quintrevion Wisner. With Wisner’s role only set to increase next year, Blue is likely making a business decision here, choosing the draft after a solid year over the transfer portal.

Though he does possess some flash and playmaking ability, Blue is not present on any pre-draft rankings. The 2025 draft is set to be extremely deep with quality running backs, so expect Blue to end up as a mid- to late-round flier, if selected.

Steelers Plan To Retain HC Mike Tomlin

January 12th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Adam La Rose

One year ago, Mike Tomlin‘s future was a talking point. The Steelers had just lost in the wild-card round to the Bills, marking another one-and-done postseason for Pittsburgh.

[RELATED: Russell Wilson Confirms Desire For New Steelers Deal]

The NFL’s longest-tenured head coach made he clear he intended to carry on in his current post, however, and in June his latest extension was in place. Tomlin is under contract through 2027 as a result, and owner Art Rooney II‘s most recent commitment appeared to put to rest doubts about a potential coaching change. In the wake of Tomlin’s postseason drought continuing for another year, though, questions have once again been raised about Pittsburgh making a move on the sidelines. To little surprise, that will likely not be the case.

The Steelers are expected to keep Tomlin in the fold, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Pittsburgh has been led by the 52-year-old since 2007, and in that time the team has never posted a record under .500. Tomlin won a Super Bowl in his second year at the helm and helped lead the Steelers back to the championship game in 2010. Things have taken a notable downturn over the past several years, however. Pittsburgh’s most recent playoff win came in 2016.

Rooney has remained consistent in his praise about Tomlin, whose tenure has produced 11 seasons with double-digit wins. The 2024 campaign appeared to offer considerable promise early on, with quarterback Justin Fields guiding the team to a 4-2 record before Russell Wilson returned to full health. Tomlin inserted the latter into the lineup, a move which was not unanimously backed by his staff. Wilson enjoyed several productive games at first, but toward the end of the campaign Pittsburgh’s offense struggled to score with or without top wideout George Pickens in the lineup. As Dulac notes, the Steelers’ five-game losing streak to close out the campaign included no more than 17 points being scored each time; the team had not managed that feat since 1969.

Dulac writes that changes of some kind being made along the staff could be forthcoming, but Tomlin’s influence on Pittsburgh’s defense in particular means continuity on that side of the ball will be notable provided he is retained. On offense, first-year coordinator Arthur Smith has drawn head coaching interest. He may be on the move shortly as a result, but in Tomlin’s case a 19th season at the helm is on tap.

Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald Endorses New Geno Smith Contract

January 12th, 2025 at 4:11pm CST by Adam La Rose

With the Seahawks’ season over, attention has turned to the team’s most important looming financial decisions. At the top of that list, of course, is a call on how to handle quarterback Geno Smith‘s future.

Smith is under contract for 2025, but he is slated to carry a cap hit of $44.5MM. A new deal will need to be worked out to avoid carrying such a cumbersome figure, and after attempting to kickstart extension talks this past summer Smith’s camp has made it clear he wants a fresh round of commitments from the team. Seattle has a window of opportunity in this situation, with none of his 2025 base salary guaranteed and his roster bonus not due until March 20.

That bonus was set to check in at $10MM, but Smith’s performance in Week 18 changed the situation. The 34-year-old hit three separate contract escalators, bringing the value of his bonus to $16MM (as detailed by ESPN’s Brady Henderson). By the time the new league year begins, though, more clarity will have emerged with respect to whether or not team and player will be willing to continue their relationship. The Seahawks are expected to scan the quarterback market this offseason, something which could provide them with a Smith replacement. Head coach Mike Macdonald would be on board with making a new commitment in the veteran, however.

“I want Geno to be here,” Macdonald said (via Henderson). “I think he’s a heck of a player… I feel like Geno’s the best for the team right now. I’ll be involved with [contract talks]. Ultimately it’s not my decision. It’s a Seahawks decision, but Geno knows how we feels about him and we love him as our starting quarterback, for sure.”

Winning out a competition with Drew Lock to serve as Russell Wilson‘s successor in 2022, Smith exceeded expectations en route to the Comeback Player of the Year award during his first campaign as Seattle’s starter. He followed that up with a second straight Pro Bowl season, but with the Seahawks falling short of the postseason and moving on from Pete Carroll, questions loomed about Smith’s status moving forward. As more of his 2024 compensation became locked in, it became clear the former second-rounder would again handle QB1 duties.

Smith recorded 4,320 passing yards and a 70.4% completion percentage this season; both of those figures represent franchise records he had already set in 2022. Given his age and the fact Seattle again failed to qualify for the playoffs, however, it would be feasible for a reset under center (or at least the addition of a young passer capable of taking over from Smith down the road) to be a top organizational goal In any event, the team’s search for a new offensive coordinator represents a key element in this situation. The Seahawks own the No. 18 selection in April’s draft.

Seattle is among the teams currently slated to be over the cap for the 2025 league year, meaning a number of financial moves will be required over the coming weeks. One which lowers Smith’s cap hit will no doubt be among them, but how the team goes about doing that will make for an interesting storyline.

Ravens, S Marcus Williams Agree To Restructure; Post-June 1 Release On Tap

January 12th, 2025 at 2:45pm CST by Adam La Rose

Marcus Williams‘ third campaign with the Ravens has not gone according to plan. The veteran safety has found himself a healthy scratch for multiple weeks, and he is on track to see his contract terminated in the coming offseason.

[RELATED: Tracking Each Team’s 2025 Cap Carryover]

Williams and the Ravens recently agreed to a restructure, Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap reports. A release taking effect after June 1 was the likely outcome of this situation once Williams fell out of the team’s plans on defense. In the meantime, though, Williams’ cap impact will be lowered. His base salary has been dropped from $12MM to $2.1MM, Fitzgerald notes, creating immediate savings. Players designated as post-June 1 cuts immediately become free agents, but their teams do not see the additional cap space until after that date.

Now, as a result of the restructure, Baltimore will have $9.9MM in space which would not have otherwise been available during the early portion of the offseason. The team will free up the remaining $2.1MM once Williams’ contract is officially off the books on June 2. This move will result in $6.72MM in dead money charges in 2025 and ’26.

Following a five-year run in New Orleans, Williams was one of the top free agents in 2022. He inked a five-year, $70MM deal with the Ravens and as such faced high expectations upon arrival. The former second-rounder matched his career high with four interceptions in his first Baltimore campaign, one which was limited to 10 games due to injury. Last year, Williams only made 11 appearances while spending much of the year at less than full strength. His starting spot was not in jeopardy early in the current campaign, but part of the team’s midseason defensive adjustments was the decision to bench him.

Through the closing stages of the regular season and into last night’s wild-card game, Baltimore has used Kyle Hamilton and Ar’Darius Washington as safety starters. That setup is set to continue the rest of the way, and Williams will no doubt welcome a fresh start this spring (although his market has obviously taken a major hit). The 28-year-old’s next contract will surely fall well short of the $15MM annual average value he secured from the Ravens. With Williams set to depart, meanwhile, safety will be a position to watch during the offseason for the team this offseason.

Jets, Saints Remain Top Suitors For Lions DC Aaron Glenn

January 12th, 2025 at 1:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

To no surprise, Aaron Glenn is among the most popular candidates in this year’s head coaching cycle. With the top-seeded Lions on the bye this week, the team’s defensive coordinator was busy taking interviews with each of his numerous suitors.

[RELATED: Head Coaching Search Tracker]

Glenn spoke with five teams in recent days, taking every interview with an interested party except for the Patriots. New England has since become the first team to fill its HC vacancy, making the expected move of hiring Mike Vrabel. Now that the first domino has fallen, Glenn’s name in particular will be worth watching closely.

The 52-year-old “crushed” each of his interviews, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones reports (video link). As a result, Glenn could very well find himself involved in follow-up meetings with at least a few teams as their searches heat up. To no surprise, Jones notes the Jets and Saints remain potential landing spots provided Glenn does indeed land a head coaching position for the first time in his career.

During the course of his 15-year tenure as a player, Glenn spent eight seasons in New York. It was with the Jets that he earned two of his three Pro Bowl nods, and his success on the field (not to mention the degree to which his stock as a coaching candidate has increased in recent years) helped make him one of the team’s first recipients of an interview request. Indeed, ESPN’s Dan Graziano writes the three names mentioned most frequently in connection to the Jets are Glenn, Vrabel and Vikings DC Brian Flores.

Having moved on from Robert Saleh after three-plus seasons, the Jets are a candidate to change approaches on the sidelines by looking to a coach with an offensive background. Graziano’s colleague Rich Cimini notes some observers agree that is the route the team will take, although others point to Glenn as the “best fit” for their current vacancy. He has been an NFL staffer since 2014, including four years in his current post as the leader of Detroit’s defense.

Of course, Glenn’s first coordinator gig was preceded by a five-year run in the Saints’ organization. He worked as New Orleans’ defensive backs coach during that span, and a return to the city to replace Dennis Allen remains a possibility to watch for. A recent report suggest Glenn could be the leading candidate for the Saints, one of the teams which has kept an eye out for the potential of Mike McCarthy reaching the open market.

McCarthy and the Cowboys are negotiating a new deal, though, and it remains to be seen if his existing contract will expire without a new agreement being in place (or at least imminent). Provide McCarthy winds up being unavailable, the Saints could move quickly in arranging a second interview with Glenn. The Jets will also be worth watching on that front.

Deion Sanders Eyeing Raiders’ HC Job; Team Has “Zero Interest”

January 12th, 2025 at 12:59pm CST by Ben Levine

JANUARY 12: The Raiders reportedly have “zero interest” in Sanders, who is only using the club for leverage, a source tells Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed of The Athletic (subscription required).

JANUARY 11: While Deion Sanders has continually committed to sticking with the Colorado Buffaloes, it sounds like the fast-rising head coach and NFL Hall of Fame cornerback has indeed been sniffing around at some NFL gigs. According to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Sanders “has his eye” on the Raiders head coaching job.

[RELATED: Deion Sanders Not Talking NFL Future]

One source described Sanders as having “very strong interest” in the opening. In fact, the coach’s “NFL-connected associates” actually reached out to the Raiders to relay the message. Bonsignore cautions that it’s uncertain if the interest has been reciprocated.

Following his success at Jackson State and his 2024 run at Colorado, Sanders has been mentioned as a potential option for HC-needy teams, although the iconic player has yet to garner any official interviews. It was previously reported that Sanders’ name hadn’t been making itself around NFL circles, and vacancies in Chicago, New Orleans, or New York were described as unnatural fits.

However, a logical landing spot could be Las Vegas. Tom Brady is helping to spearhead the team’s search for a new head coach, and Bonsignore notes that the iconic QB-turned-part owner and the Sanders family “have a long relationship.” Brady has mentored Shedeur Sanders over the past few years, and TB12 eventually signed the prospect to an NIL deal. Armed with the sixth-overall pick, the Raiders might fall just outside of the range for the Colorado QB, although the team could be positioned to move up if they identify Sanders as their guy.

Deion Sanders recently said he’d only consider a move to the NFL if he could coach his son (via Bonsignore), and Las Vegas would represent one of the lone spots for that to happen. Of course, it’s a two-way street, and after dealing with a carousel of head coaches in recent years, the Raiders may not be looking to take as much of a risk with their next move.

As our 2025 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker shows, the following candidates have been connected to the Raiders:

Bears Want To Interview Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman

January 12th, 2025 at 12:32pm CST by Rory Parks

Back in November, we heard that Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman was generating HC buzz in NFL circles, and subsequent reporting indicated that Freeman could be a dark horse candidate for the Bears’ top job. Per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Chicago indeed wants to interview Freeman (video link).

Part of Freeman’s appeal is that he has led the Fighting Irish to the CFP National Championship Game, which will be played on January 20. As Pelissero notes, it is unlikely that Freeman will want to take an NFL interview prior to that game, so Chicago – which reportedly pushed hard for Mike Vrabel before he accepted the Patriots’ head coaching gig today – could slow play the process if it truly wants a shot at Freeman.

Of course, it is eminently possible that Freeman does not want to leave South Bend at all. He recently agreed to a four-year extension with Notre Dame, a deal that will keep him in place for another six seasons. It is unclear what the buyout structure on his contract with the Fighting Irish looks like, but it sounds as if the Bears are at least entertaining the idea of buying him out.

Freeman, 39, has been Notre Dame’s HC since 2022, and he has led the team to an overall record of 33-8. The Bears actually selected him in the fifth round of the 2009 draft, though he never suited up for a regular season game at the NFL level.

Per Pelissero, Chicago has done extensive research on Freeman over the past several months as part of its wide-ranging search. Courtesy of our head coaching tracker, here is what that search looks like as of the time of this writing:

Giants Likely To Retain DC Shane Bowen

January 12th, 2025 at 12:01pm CST by Rory Parks

Brian Daboll will remain in place as the Giants’ head coach in 2025, and both of his top lieutenants could stay with him. Despite rumors that offensive coordinator Mike Kafka could be dismissed if team ownership elected to retain Daboll, that has not happened yet. So unless Kafka lands a head coaching gig, it looks like he is on track to see out his thru-2025 contract with Big Blue.

Likewise, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reports that defensive coordinator Shane Bowen appears likely to stay on Daboll’s staff for the 2025 campaign (video link). Bowen’s job security was called into question by the harsh evaluation that owner John Mara recently gave of his club’s defense, and the fact that the Patriots just hired Mike Vrabel as their head coach immediately created some speculation that Bowen could join him in Foxborough.

Bowen, 38, worked with Vrabel on the Texans’ defensive staff over the 2016-17 seasons, and when Vrabel took the Titans’ head coaching job in 2018, Bowen followed him to Tennessee to become the club’s linebackers coach. Bowen was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2021, a role he held for three seasons.

His first year on the job was his best, as the Titans finished 12th in total defense and sixth in scoring defense in 2021 en route to an AFC South title and an appearance in the divisional round of the playoffs. Thanks in part to injury troubles, Bowen’s unit was unable to replicate that performance over the next two seasons, and after Vrabel was dismissed last January, Bowen took an interview with the Giants (who had just parted ways with former DC Wink Martindale in the wake of highly-publicized friction between Martindale and Daboll). 

Bowen’s first Giants defense finished in the bottom-10 in terms of yardage and just outside the bottom-10 in terms of points allowed, so he did not necessarily make a compelling case to stick around (to say nothing of the fact that he was not the Giants’ top choice to serve as Martindale’s successor in the first place). However, like the rest of New York’s top staffers, it appears he will be given a mulligan and will return in 2025, though Garafolo does leave open the possibility that the Giants could allow Bowen to leave the club and reunite with Vrabel if he wants to.

Patriots Hire Mike Vrabel As Head Coach

January 12th, 2025 at 9:23am CST by Rory Parks

To no surprise, the Patriots have named Mike Vrabel as their next head coach. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com was the first to report that the hire was imminent.

Just yesterday, we learned that New England and Vrabel were engaged in contract discussions, a clear sign that a deal was forthcoming. Now, just over a year after he was dismissed as head coach of the Titans, Vrabel is back in the HC ranks at the helm of the team with which he won three Super Bowls as a player.

Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Vrabel is the seventh person to become the head coach of a team that he once helped win a Super Bowl as a player. The sixth person on that list, Jerod Mayo, was fired by New England last week after just one season in the top job.

Mayo was owner Robert Kraft‘s hand-picked successor to Bill Belichick, and for a long time, it appeared that Mayo would be given at least another year in charge. After all, he inherited a team that was clearly in the early stages of a rebuild, and despite a few public missteps, it would have been easy to justify allowing him to return for 2025.

Last week, however, it was reported that those public “gaffes” — in conjunction with a locker room culture that may not have been as strong as some players portrayed it to be and an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Chargers in Week 17 — were conspiring to drive Mayo out of Foxborough. He was canned later that same day, shortly after the Pats’ regular season finale.

Speculatively, Vrabel’s availability may well have clinched Kraft’s decision to hand Mayo his walking papers. During his time as the Titans’ head coach, Vrabel established himself as one of the league’s better bench bosses, and he is highly-regarded for his game management and his ability to develop a strong culture predicated on accountability. The Titans posted a winning record in each of Vrabel’s first four seasons in Nashville, which included three playoff appearances and a trip to the AFC title game. He earned Coach of the Year honors following the 2021 campaign, but things took a turn for the worse over the 2022-23 seasons.

A seven-game losing streak to close out the 2022 season left Tennessee with a 7-10 record after a division title seemed to be in the cards, and the team slipped to a 6-11 mark in 2023. During that 2023 campaign, Ran Carthon‘s first as Titans GM following Jon Robinson‘s surprising firing, there was reportedly tension between Vrabel and Carthon (a situation that may have been exacerbated by the fact that the Titans hired Carthon instead of Ryan Cowden, who was Vrabel’s preferred Robinson successor).

Vrabel may have also wanted more input in personnel matters in Tennessee, a situation that will bear monitoring in New England. The Pats have already announced that they will retain executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf and top front office executive Alonzo Highsmith, though as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com wrote this morning, the roles of those two men are to be determined. Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports reports that Cowden, who is currently serving as a personnel advisor for the Giants, will likely be added to the Patriots’ personnel department in a non-GM capacity, though he believes Wolf will retain final authority.

Another situation worth monitoring will be whom Vrabel chooses as his offensive coordinator. Josh McDaniels, a familiar face for Patriots fans, has been named as an obvious choice, and the defensive-minded Vrabel will need to get that hire right in order to maximize the potential of young quarterback Drake Maye. Maye, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 draft, showed flashes as a rookie and is one of the reasons why the New England HC job was generally seen as a desirable one, and his continued development will be a top priority.

Indeed, as Reiss points out, Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson — one of the most respected offensive minds in the game — was New England’s second choice. If they had offered Johnson the job, and if Johnson had accepted, the Pats would have had an ideal coach-QB pairing, but unlike Vrabel, Johnson has never had to create his own team culture. Vrabel, on the other hand, does have that experience, and the Pats are banking on his ability to properly fill out his staff.

As our head coaching search tracker shows, Vrabel was connected to each of the six teams in need of a new HC this year, further underscoring the strength of his candidacy. Per Dianna Russini of The Athletic, the Bears and Jets made “consistent and late pushes” to land him, and Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic believes New York had a real shot at him until the Patriots’ job became available. Meanwhile, Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports that, despite the Raiders‘ (and minority owner Tom Brady‘s) interest in Vrabel, Brady’s former teammate declined a Las Vegas interview because he knew he would be accepting the New England gig (video link).

Despite the Patriots’ 4-13 record in 2024, the presence of Maye, the hiring of Vrabel, and the prospect of the most salary cap space in the league will surely create plenty of excitement in New England in the coming months.

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