Mike Shanahan Open To Coaching Again
Mike Shanahan has been out of coaching since he was fired by Washington in December 2013 and it sounds like he’s getting that itch again. In the “right situation,” Shanahan says he would return to the sidelines, as Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post writes.
“You go 18 hours a day for 40-something years, and then you got a year and a half to two years where you feel like you got the time to do whatever you want to do,” Shanahan said. “I still study the heck out of football. I actually have more time. I study more football now than I actually did before. It’d have to be the right situation, for both sides — ownership and myself.”
Shanahan, who still lives in the Denver area, believes that coach Gary Kubiak is the right man for the Broncos, but the 62-year-old sounds eager to possibly coach opposite of him. The veteran coach led Washington to a 3-13 in his final season as a head coach, but he owns a 170-138 record dating back to 1988. Shanahan won back-to-back Super Bowls with the Broncos in 1997 and 1998. Since then, he took four different Broncos teams to the playoffs and led Washington to one playoff appearance.
West Notes: Chiefs, Smith, Cardinals
The Chiefs have an interesting class of rookies at their three-day minicamp, as Dave Skretta of The Associated Press. Kansas City’s group includes a Star Wars expert, the son of wrestling superstar Sting, and a player who beat cancer. While you get to know the newest prospective members of the Chiefs, here’s a glance at the AFC and NFC West..
- On Thursday, 49ers GM Trent Baalke said that he hoped to get a better grasp on Justin Smith‘s future on Friday. That didn’t exactly happen, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes. “As of right now, there’s not [any additional clarity on his situation],” coach Jim Tomsula said. “[Friday] morning, we were working and meeting and doing our thing. The guys were lifting. Then we came out here. So, no, I haven’t seen or talked to him.” Tomsula added he has not scheduled a meeting with the 14-year NFL veteran.
- Rookie quarterback Dylan Thompson went undrafted two weeks ago, but he stands as the third quarterback on the 49ers‘ roster. Tomsula sees a bright future for the young signal caller, Maiocco writes. “He’s a collected individual. He’s got those, you talk to him, there’s the intangibles. Then you watch the tape. This guy can throw a football around. He spins it. We’re excited about him. We really are.”
- Cardinals coach Bruce Arians sees an outstanding future for third-round running back David Johnson. “Very, very bright,” Arians said of Johnson, according to Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic. “The kid can do anything as far as a wide receiver, running back, fullback. He will find a niche quick because he can learn so much.”
Eagles Said No To Broncos’ Draft Day Offer
After weeks of rumors and rumblings about teams that could potentially swing draft day deals, Day 1 of the 2015 draft wound up being rather uneventful. One of the would-be trades would have seen the Broncos move up from No. 23 to the Eagles’ No. 20 pick, but Denver was rebuffed, according to Gil Brandt of NFL.com (Twitter links).
Instead of adding draft picks, the Eagles opted to stay put and grab USC wide receiver Nelson Agholor. Of course, adding a wide receiver was a top priority for Chip Kelly & Co. after losing Jeremy Maclin, who signed with the Chiefs in March. Agholor joins Jordan Matthews, Riley Cooper, Miles Austin, as a part of the Eagles receiving corps. Agholor figures to get a good amount of burn in 2015, provided that he is as NFL-ready as the Eagles think he is.
It’s not immediately clear who the Broncos might have been targeting at No. 20. The Broncos wound up taking Shane Ray at No. 23 and it’s conceivable that he was their target in trying to move up. Ray was projected by some to be a fringe top ten pick before a flunked drug test hurt his stock.
AFC East Notes: Bills, Manuel, Patriots
With his parents in and out of prison, Jets rookie Lorenzo Mauldin spent much of his adolescence in foster homes. That difficult experience helped mold the Louisville product into the player that he is today, Seth Walder of the Daily News writes.
“Going through the hard times that I’ve been through, I’m proud of myself to be able to say I stuck out and was able to succeed in life,” Mauldin said. “I’m here to say that I’ve persisted. I’m an overcomer.” Here’s more from the AFC East..
- Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News thinks that coach Rex Ryan and offensive coordinator Greg Roman are open-minded about having E.J. Manuel as the Bills‘ starting quarterback, but he also doesn’t see him sticking around if he doesn’t. Carucci envisions Buffalo trading Manuel if Matt Cassel or Tyrod Taylor wind up winning the starting job. Manuel lost the starting job after four games last season and he’s looking to prove himself again this summer.
- If the Bills end up dangling Manuel for a late-round pick in August, keep an eye on the Eagles as a potential trade partner, Chris Wesseling of NFL.com writes. After recruiting Manuel at Oregon, Chip Kelly told NFL Network in the lead-up to the 2013 Draft that the QB was a player he “didn’t get a chance to coach but would like a chance to coach.” Soon after, Manuel said that the Eagles “want me pretty bad.” Meanwhile, Wesseling feels that Taylor has a very real chance to win the starting job given Ryan’s affinity for him. The coach recently said that he tried to trade for Taylor when he was with the Jets.
- Michael Felger of CSNNE.com feels that it would behoove both the Patriots and the NFL to agree on some kind of compromise. However, both sides have dug themselves in to deep and he feels that such a deal is unlikely to happen.
Ravens Notes: Pitta, Allen, Arrington
Dennis Pitta, who has suffered two serious hip injuries, believes that he’ll be back on the field in 2015. “I’m optimistic,” the Ravens tight end said, according to Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com. “I feel good. But obviously it’s a process. I have an idea in mind of where I’d like to be in a couple months, but at the same time you don’t know. I know what it felt like to do this one time. I’ve never known what it felt like to do it twice.” Recently, coach John Harbaugh said that Pitta has a chance to play this season, depending on how his surgically-repaired hip holds up. More on the Ravens..
- It’s too early in the offseason to know anything for sure, but Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com took a stab at projecting the Ravens’ 53 man roster. At wide receiver, Hensley can see sixth-round pick Darren Waller getting bumped in favor of DeAndre Carter if he wins the team’s kick returner job. Meanwhile, former second-round pick Arthur Brown could be on the bubble with four talented inside linebackers ahead of him.
- Hensley feels that Ravens rookie Buck Allen has the potential to be a starting running back in the NFL. The USC product has the ability to catch the ball as well as run it and that’s key in Marc Trestman’s offense.
- Clifton Brown of CSNBaltimore.com looked at the Ravens‘ cornerback situation following the addition of Kyle Arrington.
NFC South Notes: Winston, Newton, Coffman
In today’s mailbag, a reader asks ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas if he feels the Buccaneers will bring in a veteran quarterback to support Jameis Winston. Of course, Mike Glennon is also on hand, and every indication Yasinskas has received is that the Bucs are content to roll with him as the backup to Winston. They also believe that he’s enough of a team player to embrace a backup role. Here’s today’s look at the NFC South..
- Now that all the Panthers draft picks have signed, David Newton of ESPN.com says the team’s focus will move to locking Cam Newton up on a long-term deal. Restructuring the deal of defensive end Charles Johnson, who is set to count for $20MM against the cap this season, is also on the docket, but the ESPN scribe doesn’t see that as being a top priority since he didn’t restructure the past two seasons until September. Ditto for getting a new deal done with linebacker Thomas Davis since there is strong mutual interest there.
- In addition to former Buccaneers second-round defensive end Da’Quan Bowers, the Saints will also be trying out former Bengals third-round tight end Chase Coffman this weekend, as Katherine Terrell of The Times-Picayune writes.
- D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution asked a panel of experts if they think the Falcons can rebound in 2015 under new head coach Dan Quinn.
NFC East Notes: Eagles, Moss, Hardy
Malcolm Bunche started the first nine games of UCLA’s 2014 season before being benched, and missed the Alamo Bowl for academic reasons. Now, as a UDFA with the Eagles, the offensive lineman says that he’s ready to start a new chapter of his career, Tucker Bagley of Philadelphia Magazine writes. “It was disappointing, obviously, but like I said, things happen,” Bunche said when explaining his problems at UCLA. “You can’t just pout, you can’t get under the bus, you can’t blame anybody but yourself and that’s what I did. I did some things, I messed up and I dealt with it, but I have an opportunity here and I’m going to run with it.” More from the NFC East..
- Santana Moss has played 14 NFL seasons and he wants to go for 15, the wide receiver tells 247Sports.com. “I’m a free agent right now, you know how they do us old guys,” Moss said. “I’m going on my 15th year. Right now my agent is talking with some teams to see what’s going to be my best scenario. Right now I’m just chilling, just enjoying life, and enjoying this off time.” Things have been quiet for Moss, who is coming off a season in which he caught just 10 passes for 116 yards in ten games for Washington.
- Lawyers for Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy asked NFL appeals officer Harold Henderson to recuse himself from the May 28th hearing on Hardy and he declined, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (via Twitter).
- If the Cowboys trade for a running back, they should focus on a certain set of players, Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News opines. Machota suggest that Dallas should focus on guys that are going to be free agents next season such as Matt Forte, Lamar Miller, and Doug Martin.
Latest On Tom Brady, DeflateGate
The NFL plans to change guidelines regarding the way footballs are handled before games, a person familiar with the situation tells Rob Maaddi of The Associated Press. Any change made wouldn’t require a vote from owners and would be decided solely by the league office. Current rules state that footballs are sent directly to teams and one has to imagine that a new set of rules would see a centralized authority overseeing the game balls. Here’s more on Tom Brady, the Patriots, and DeflateGate..
- No surprise here, but commissioner Roger Goodell is “very unlikely” to recuse himself from presiding over Tom Brady’s appeal, a source tells Ed Werder of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- In the case of Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, the federal lawsuit against the league came after his suspension was upheld. In Brady’s case, you can expect the lawsuit to come before Goodell resolves the appeal, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. The NFLPA’s appeal letter to Troy Vincent also makes it sound like legal action could be around the corner. “If the Commissioner does not appoint such a neutral arbitrator, the NFLPA and Mr. Brady will seek recusal and pursue all available relief to obtain an arbitrator who is not evidently partial,” the letter states.
- In a separate piece, Florio says that it’s unlikely that we’ll see John Jastremski or Jim McNally do media interviews. Chances are that both men signed documents upon being hired by the Patriots preventing them from making public comments about their work with the team.
- The NFL had no choice but to go hard after one of it’s top stars, Gene Frenette of The Florida Times-Union opines.
Poll: Will Tom Brady Get His Suspension Reduced?
After being slapped with a four-game suspension, Tom Brady is digging in his heels and he’s bringing serious firepower with him. Brady, as we learned earlier this week, will enlist the help of the NFLPA, despite his previously tenuous relationship with them. He’s also bringing Jeffrey Kessler, a man who has been termed as the “arch nemesis” of the NFL. Kessler ran point on Adrian Peterson‘s recent appeal and is also widely credited with helping to forge free agency in football after winning the Freeman McNeil case and settling the Reggie White case.
However, the deck seems to be pretty stacked against him. The 2011 CBA affords commissioner Roger Goodell the right to hear any appeal and, despite the very vocal protests from the union, he’ll be exercising that right. The statement released by the league office seemed to be pushing the notion that Goodell will be an unbiased arbiter, claiming that NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent was the one who determined the punishment with Goodell being the one to “authorize” it. It all seems pretty unfair. That is, if you can ever say life for a four-time Super Bowl winning quarterback who is married to one of the world’s most renowned supermodels is unfair.
The Patriots are still undecided as to whether they’ll fight the penalties handed down to them, but both Brady and Goodell are preparing for battle. The quarterback may be coming in with a Dream Team legal defense, but Goodell plans to interview indefinitely suspended Patriots employees John Jastremski and Jim McNally as witnesses for Brady’s appeal. Brady, meanwhile, is expected to file suit against the NFL to have Goodell replaced with a neutral arbitrator. It is certain that things will get ugly, but the outcome is anything but certain. When all is said and done, do you think Brady will be able to get his suspension slashed from four games?
Latest On Seahawks, Russell Wilson
Reports that the Seahawks and Russell Wilson are extremely far apart on terms are inaccurate, according to “a league source who knows exactly what’s going on” with the quarterback’s contract talks, Greg Bell of The News Tribune writes. In fact, the source went so far as to say that the report from Friday afternoon is almost entirely fictitious. Of course, when it comes to sensitive matters and reports backed up by anonymous sources, it’s sometimes hard to parcel out the truth and the smoke screens.
The source explained to Bell that the talks, which began in earnest following the Super Bowl, are a work in progress. Because it’s a process that will take time, the source says that talk of an insurmountable gulf is not accurate. Head coach Pete Carroll called the talks “slow” earlier this month, and that seems to be supported by the claims of the source close to the negotiations.
Earlier today, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report said that Wilson would likely have to wait until after the 2015 season to land a new deal. According to Cole, Wilson is seeking a contract worth at least $20MM annually, while the Seahawks aren’t willing to go that high.
The Seahawks and Wilson still have more than two months before training camp begins and it’s hard to say where the two sides stand given today’s conflicting reports. Whether there’s a large gulf between the two sides or simply slow moving talks, it sounds like a lot has to come together for an agreement to be reached prior to the 2015 season.