HEADLINES

Month: January 2023

Cardinals Interview Frank Reich For HC Job

January 17th, 2023 at 6:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cardinals’ HC search is becoming a bit clearer, though it remains the shortest list on this year’s carousel. Frank Reich is now part of Arizona’s search, according to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, who tweets the team interviewed the ex-Colts HC on Tuesday.

Reich, 61, also met with the Panthers recently, and would prefer to land a second chance as a head coach rather than return to the offensive coordinator level. The Cardinals have some degree of familiarity with Reich, who worked as an assistant with the team for a season (2012).

[RELATED: Cardinals Hire Monti Ossenfort As GM]

Arizona employed Reich as its wide receivers coach during Ken Whisenhunt‘s final season. Once the team fired Whisenhunt after the 2012 campaign, Reich began his climb in earnest. He followed Whisenhunt to San Diego, starting his Chargers career as quarterbacks coach, and took over as the Bolts’ OC when Whisenhunt was hired as the Titans’ head coach in 2014.

Reich’s journey took him from Super Bowl-winning OC in Philadelphia to second-choice HC — after the Josh McDaniels debacle — in Indianapolis soon after. Reich (40-33-1 as Colts HC) guided Indy to two playoff berths, the second of which coming after Andrew Luck‘s sudden retirement, but could not sufficiently fix the team’s quarterback situation following the retirement of a star-level talent. Jim Irsay pulled the plug on Reich midway through this season and later said he only reluctantly extended Reich during the 2021 offseason. That was only a chapter in what devolved into a chaotic Colts year.

The Cardinals are coming off a rather turbulent year themselves, having fired Kliff Kingsbury months after giving him an extension that ran through 2027. The Cards have also been linked to Sean Payton, as every team searching for a coach this year has been, and are set to interview defensive coordinator Vance Joseph on Wednesday. Joseph gained early steam to be promoted, but this search still does not involve too many names. Here are the coaches connected to the Cardinals’ vacancy thus far:

2023 NFL General Manager Search Tracker

January 17th, 2023 at 4:35pm CST by Sam Robinson

So far this offseason, only two NFL presented general manager vacancies. The Cardinals and Titans have now each made their choices. If other teams decide to make GM changes, they’ll be added to this list. Here is the current breakdown:

Updated 1-17-23 (4:27pm CT)

Arizona Cardinals

Tennessee Titans

Jimmy Garoppolo In-Season Return Remains In Play; 49ers Would Slot Him As QB2

January 17th, 2023 at 4:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

When the prospect of Jimmy Garoppolo‘s foot injury not being a season-ending setback surfaced, it looked like the 49ers’ Super Bowl hopes had new life. Several weeks since San Francisco’s former starter went down, he is still aiming to return. Should that happen, it will bolster the 49ers’ depth chart. But the team would change Garoppolo’s role if he can come back.

Garoppolo’s continued push to return for potentially the NFC championship game or Super Bowl LVII — should the team advance to either of those rounds — would not mean he regains his starting job. The 49ers are planning to stick with Brock Purdy as their starter, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports notes (video link).

Garoppolo, 31, is finishing up one of the more complicated years in the history of the quarterback position. A March 2022 shoulder surgery took him from surefire trade candidate to a freefalling stock that did not end up generating much interest by the time training camp rolled around. The 49ers, who had openly discussed plans to trade Garoppolo to greenlight the Trey Lance era, approached their longtime starter about a restructure to stay on as Lance insurance. That agreement became vital, as Lance went down with a season-ending injury in Week 2. After triggering some of his playing time-based incentives, Garoppolo sustained another major injury and has seen a seventh-round rookie bypass him.

Prior to the Dec. 4 injury, the 49ers were interested in another Garoppolo contract. But his latest injury changed San Francisco’s QB trajectory. Purdy has led the team to seven straight wins, counting his early-game relief appearance against the Dolphins, and has thrown 16 touchdown passes compared to four interceptions since taking over. Garoppolo also carries a 16-4 TD-INT ratio, though it came in 11 games.

The 49ers have won 11 straight — their longest win streak since they won 18 in a row between the 1989-90 seasons. Not only has Purdy commandeered the 49ers’ starting job for this season, he may well be set to pass Lance once the former No. 3 overall pick re-enters the equation.

This year’s Mr. Irrelevant should enter San Francisco’s 2023 training camp as the team’s starter, with The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami writing this is the assumed reality the 49ers have backed into thanks to the Iowa State product’s stunning late-season play (subscription required). Entering the NFL as a historically unusual prospect, Lance has only played more than two games in a season in one year (a dominant 2019 at North Dakota State) since graduating high school in 2018. A third overall selection being a backup going into Year 3 is not exactly an ideal plan, but Purdy has looked much readier to take over than Lance did during his stints under center in 2021 and ’22. Lance has since undergone a second surgery on his broken ankle.

For this season, Garoppolo returning would provide insurance — shaky as it may be, given his injury history — against a Purdy injury or his early surge fizzling. Even though Kyle Shanahan said initially Garoppolo coming back was a long-odds scenario, the prospect is still in play weeks later. The 49ers never put Garoppolo on IR. The team has Josh Johnson, the NFL’s journeyman of the moment who rejoined the team after spending most of the season on the Broncos’ practice squad, as the only healthy passer in place behind Purdy.

Garoppolo would obviously present a massive QB2 upgrade for the 49ers this season. Come March, however, it should be expected the nine-year veteran will hit the market and sign to start elsewhere.

Commanders Interview Pat Shurmur For OC; Darrell Bevell, Charles London On Radar

January 17th, 2023 at 1:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

After a season off, Pat Shurmur is back in the offensive coordinator mix. The veteran assistant/HC is meeting with the Commanders for their OC vacancy Tuesday. The team’s search is starting to come into focus.

In addition to Shurmur, Washington wants to interview Miami quarterbacks coach Darrell Bevell and Atlanta QBs coach Charles London, per CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson and the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala (Twitter links). The team has either interviewed or has requests out to all three options. Commanders QBs coach Ken Zampese is also on the radar to succeed Scott Turner.

[RELATED: Jim Caldwell Turns Down Commanders Interview Request]

Considering what happened after the Broncos did not retain Shurmur, his work during two seasons in Denver looks a bit better. The Broncos finished 23rd in scoring under Shurmur in 2021 but dropped to last in the Nathaniel Hackett–Russell Wilson 2022 one-off. Shurmur, 57, has been an OC for four teams — the Rams, Eagles, Vikings and Broncos — dating back to the late 2000s and enjoyed HC opportunities with both the Browns and Giants.

Although Shurmur went two-and-done as a head coach in Cleveland and New York, his most notable OC run came in Minnesota. The Vikings losing starter Sam Bradford and still going 13-3 — behind a stunning season from Case Keenum, who finished first in quarterback DVOA — in 2017 put Shurmur back on the HC radar. The Broncos won seven games with Teddy Bridgewater as their starter in 2021, before losing each of Drew Lock‘s starts that year. The 2022 season marked Shurmur’s first year out of the NFL since 1998. Landing the Commanders gig would put Shurmur one notch away from the NFC East cycle, as Shurmur was an Andy Reid staffer in Philly for 10 years prior to beginning his run as a play-caller.

Bevell, 53, brings similar experience but is also in the running for the Jets’ OC position. The Jets are planning an interview, and the veteran OC is viewed as a frontrunner for the Gang Green gig. Bevell has not earned any HC opportunities like Shurmur has, but he is a Super Bowl-winning OC who spent this season overseeing a breakthrough from Tua Tagovailoa. The Dolphins saw the former No. 5 overall pick show considerable improvement, throwing 25 touchdown passes despite only finishing 12 starts. Known mostly for his seven-year role in Seattle, Bevell has been in the NFL since 2000. He may well finish this year’s hiring period with his fifth OC chance.

London, 47, does not hold similar experience. The Falcons assistant has not been a coordinator previously and arrived in Atlanta in 2021 after coaching the Texans and Bears’ running backs from 2014-21. The Georgia native has spent the past two seasons working under Arthur Smith and OC Dave Ragone but has generated some coordinator interest recently. The Dolphins and Rams interviewed London for their OC posts last year.

Titans Planning Second GM Interviews With Ran Carthon, Ryan Cowden, Ian Cunningham

January 17th, 2023 at 1:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

After Monti Ossenfort landed the Cardinals’ general manager gig, the other top Jon Robinson lieutenant remains in the race for the Titans’ top front office post. Ryan Cowden is one of three confirmed finalists for the job.

Tennessee is planning second interviews with Cowden, 49ers exec Ran Carthon and Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. The Titans have gone through six GM interviews thus far. Cutting the field in half could well mean this is the finalist contingent to succeed Robinson. Cunningham has already gone through his second interview, per SI.com’s Albert Breer, who notes the meeting occurred Monday (Twitter link).

His ties to Robinson notwithstanding, Cowden’s inclusion as a finalist is unsurprising. The Titans named Cowden as interim GM upon firing Robinson, and he shared personnel responsibilities with Mike Vrabel to close out the season. Cowden has been with the Titans since 2016, coming over from the Panthers shortly after the team hired Robinson, and has received two title bumps during his time with the team.

Cunningham advanced to the finals of the Cardinals’ GM search as well. The Bears exec is believed to have finished second for that position, according to veteran NFL reporter Mike Jurecki (on Twitter). Even that illustrates the progress Cunningham has made over the past year. He was one of four Eagles execs who rose to assistant GM positions in 2022, being the first to see one of those promotions. The Bears hired Cunningham to work as Ryan Poles‘ top lieutenant, and he is currently playing a lead role in the team’s rebuild.

The Titans requested GM interviews with both Carthon and fellow 49ers exec Adam Peters, but the latter declined a meeting. With Peters being viewed as the likelier John Lynch successor among the two, Carthon’s best path toward a GM job likely will be with another organization. Carthon, 41, has been the 49ers’ pro personnel director since Lynch’s 2017 arrival but has held high-ranking roles with two teams. Prior to coming to San Francisco, Carthon served as Rams director of player personnel under Les Snead from 2012-16. The son of former Giants fullback Maurice Carthon, Ran has been an NFL staffer since 2008.

Seahawks, Geno Smith Begin Contract Talks

January 17th, 2023 at 11:03am CST by Adam La Rose

The Seahawks enjoyed a surprising level of success this season, with their transition to Geno Smith under center leading to a postseason berth and massively boosting the veteran’s free agent value. Both parties have already begun the process of negotiating a new contract which will keep him in Seattle.

Head coach Pete Carroll confirmed that “preliminary talks” have been held between the Seahawks and Smith. The latter won out the team’s preseason QB competition (something he was not expected to do), and wound up playing every snap of the season en route to a Pro Bowl nod and multiple franchise passing records. His performance in Seattle’s Wild-Card loss to San Francisco – in which he committed two turnovers – did not dissuade the team from attempting to keep him in 2023 and beyond.

“He had an excellent game for us in that game,” Carroll said, via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. “And even though the turnovers happened… he played really well just to show you again that he’s on it and we got our guy. We need to hopefully work things out so he’s with us… There’s business to be done there, of course. But there’s really no lid to what we can do. The sky’s the limit. That, along with returning him with his leadership factor that he had, he’s a big deal to us, and I just couldn’t be more tickled by the way the whole thing turned out and how he handled it. And really as we look to the future, he’s a big part of why we look to the future more promisingly.”

Smith played out the 2022 season on a one-year, $3.5MM contract; incentives allowed him to double his earnings for the year. He will significantly outpace that figure on a new contract of any kind this offseason, though his uninspiring stint as a starter with the Jets, and the years spent strictly as a backup which followed, make the 32-year-old an interesting case study. Seattle also has the option of using the franchise tag to keep in him place on a one-year deal (or at least extend the window to continue negotiations into July).

Talks between the sides come against the backdrop of backup Drew Lock also heading into free agency. The former Broncos second-rounder was expected to win the summer QB competition, but wound up sitting the entire campaign due to Smith’s success. Carroll doubled down on his compliments of Lock, repeating that he hopes to have the 26-year-old back in the Emerald City next year.

By virtue of the Russell Wilson trade, however, Seattle owns the fifth overall pick in the upcoming draft. That could provide the team with an opportunity to land a long-term answer at the position, something which may be less likely now than it would have seemed before the campaign. Carroll nevertheless called this year’s class of passers “extraordinary” and acknowledged the rarity of having the draft capital the team currently does as it relates to drafting franchise QBs.

Regardless of the Seahawks’ plans down the road, their ability to keep Smith under contract for at least 2023 is shaping up to be their top offseason priority. Their success in the negotiations to come will likely dictate their other moves in free agency and the draft.

Chargers Fire OC Joe Lombardi

January 17th, 2023 at 9:44am CST by Adam La Rose

Significant changes have been made to the Chargers’ coaching staff, though not necessarily the one many have been anticipating. Offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi and quarterbacks coach Shane Day have been fired (Twitter links via Tom Pelissero of NFL Network). The team has confirmed the moves.

Lombardi was hired in January 2021 to serve on head coach Brandon Staley‘s staff. The former came to Los Angeles after two different stints with the Saints serving as their QBs coach. His work alongside Drew Brees certainly made him an appealing candidate to help usher in the Justin Herbert era with the Chargers, though his results have been varied.

The Chargers had one of the best offenses in the league in 2021, with the team ranking fourth in yards and fifth in points per game. Herbert and the team’s array of pass catchers accounted for much of that success, as Los Angeles ranked second in the league in yards gained through the air. The team fell short of the postseason after a wild season-finale loss to the Raiders, however, leading to questions regarding their defensive performance and Staley’s in-game management.

This year, a number of moves made in the offseason — including further additions on the offensive line — led to increased expectations for Lombardi’s unit. The Chargers once again ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in terms of yardage, but their scoring fell to the middle of the pack. Running back Austin Ekeler helped lead the way as a number of injuries weighed down their efficiency through the air, but the team nevertheless seemed well-positioned to win this past week in Herbert’s postseason debut.

The Chargers were well on their way to doing just that when they raced to a 27-0 lead over the Jaguars on Saturday night. During the second half, however, the tide started to turn as Jacksonville worked their way back into contention. Lombardi’s play-calling down the stretch — which saw Ekeler receive only 13 total carries on the night, in spite of his pair of early touchdowns and the team’s large advantage on the scoreboard — drew heavy criticism. Now, Staley has responded by parting ways with the 51-year-old coordinator in a major shake-up to his staff.

Lombardi came to the Chargers with two years of OC experience dating back to his time with the Lions. Detroit put up underwhelming totals during his tenure there, something which, coupled with this unceremonious exit from Los Angeles, will hurt his chances of landing another OC role in the future. Day, meanwhile, has also had his two-year stint come to an end. He served as the Chargers’ passing game coordinator in addition to his duties coaching Herbert and the team’s other signal-callers. The 48-year-old position coach has been an offensive assistant with six different NFL teams, and will now look for his next opportunity on the sidelines.

Today’s move means there are now six offensive coordinator vacancies around the NFL. This one is likely to be the most coveted, considering the presence of Herbert, Ekeler, a high-end pairing of wideouts in Keenan Allen and Mike Williams, and a rebuilt offensive front. While the search for Lombardi’s successor will be a key storyline for the Chargers, this news also strongly points to Staley’s job being safe, something which the team’s players advocated for in the wake of the weekend’s defeat.

Browns To Hire Jim Schwartz As DC

January 17th, 2023 at 8:36am CST by Adam La Rose

The Browns have made the first hire in this season’s coordinator cycle. Cleveland is set to add Jim Schwartz as their new defensive coordinator, reports ESPN’s Dianna Russini (Twitter link).

Schwartz, 56, was quickly named as a candidate for the position. The veteran coach brings significant experience to the role, having spent a total of 14 years as a defensive coordinator in the NFL. His most recent tenure under that title came with the Eagles from 2016-20. Given his time there, he brings Super Bowl pedigree to a Browns team searching for consistency on their coaching staff.

Joe Woods was thought to be on the hot seat as Cleveland’s DC during the season, after his unit failed to live up to expectations. Performances improved later in the campaign, but it still came as little surprise when he was fired last week. That kicked off the team’s search for his successor, which included Sean Desai, Dennard Wilson, and Brian Flores being considered in addition to Schwartz. Patriots LBs coach Jerod Mayo declined to meet with the Browns for the position, but Cleveland will still land a highly-regarded staffer as a result of this hire.

Prior to his time with the Eagles, Schwartz had a five-year tenure as head coach of the Lions. Aside from a 10-6 campaign in 2011, Detroit posted a losing record in each of his seasons at the helm. That obviously hurt his chances of landing another HC post in the future, but his Philadelphia success (which began after a single season in Buffalo) rebuilt his stock with respect to his abilities as a coordinator. Schwartz also had an eight-year stint as the Titans’ DC from 2001-08.

It was with the Browns that Schwartz began his time in the NFL. In 1993, Cleveland hired him as a personnel scout, a role he remained in for three seasons. He stayed with the franchise for another three years after it moved to Baltimore, though his time with the Ravens consisted of work as a defensive assistant. That launched his career as a staffer on that side of the ball, and has led to plenty of success which his original employer will now hope he can replicate.

The Browns put up underwhelming numbers in most defensive categories in 2022, with their secondary standing out as a notable exception. The team’s front seven is likely to be a focal point in the offseason, after surrendering an average of 135 yards per game on the ground and recording only 34 sacks. A plethora of injuries at the middle linebacker position in particular contributed in part to those figures, but a new voice on the sidelines will likely be a welcomed sight.

With such an experienced DC coming onboard, head coach Kevin Stefanski will have a veteran staffer to lean on as the team looks to clean up issues such as discipline which were a talking point in the season. This hire could further point to Stefanski retaining offensive play-calling duties, something which has been called into question with calls for him to take on a more general role overseeing team as a whole. His staff now has a veteran voice on hand to steer the team towards a rebound in 2023.

Cardinals Hire Monti Ossenfort As GM

January 16th, 2023 at 10:21pm CST by Adam La Rose

Not long after confirming that Steve Keim would no longer be involved in the organization, the Cardinals have found his replacement. Arizona is hiring Monti Ossenfort as their new general manager, reports Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link). The move has been confirmed by a team announcement.

Ossenfort has two decades of experience in NFL front offices, including his most recent stint as the Titans’ director of player personnel. His work over that span made him a highly regarded candidate for GM openings either in Tennessee or elsewhere over several years, and he is now set to take over Arizona’s front office.

Ossenfort has a long background in scouting dating back to his time with the Patriots. He had an extended stay in New England beginning in 2006, and had worked his way up to the role of college scouting director by the time he moved on to the Titans. When the latter organization made the surprising move of firing Jon Robinson, he quickly became a name to watch with respect to potential successors, along with interim GM Ryan Cowden.

Indeed, both Ossenfort and Cowden were among the early interviewees for the full-time position in Nashville. For a time, that vacancy was the only one in the league, but Keim’s midseason leave of absence led to widespread speculation that Arizona would be in need of a new GM this offseason as well. In the immediate aftermath of head coach Kliff Kingsbury‘s firing, it was announced that Keim would also not be in the desert in 2023.

The Cardinals interviewed Ossenfort after meeting with a pair of internal candidates for the position, but owner Michael Bidwill will now turn outside the organization to lead its next chapter. Former Giants GM Jerry Reese was also in consideration for the job, but Ossenfort will now be tasked with leading an NFL front office for the first time in his career.

His first major task, of course, will be finding a successor to Kingsbury. Bidwill had made it clear that his preference was to find a GM before a new bench boss, so he and Ossenfort can turn their attention towards the HC search process. That will entail input from a number of high-profile players on the team, including quarterback Kyler Murray. Finding a candidate who feels well-suited to meshing with the dual-threat’s skillset will be pivotal, given the organization’s commitment to him this past summer.

“It was critically important for us to find the right person to lead us as general manager and there is no doubt in my mind that we have that in Monti Ossenfort,” Bidwill said in a statement. “He possesses every attribute of a successful GM – passion, leadership, intelligence, work ethic – and his extensive experience has clearly prepared him for this role. We could not be more thrilled to have Monti and his family joining the Cardinals.”

The Cardinals finished well below expectations in 2022, and currently hold the No. 3 pick in the upcoming draft. Long before that event begins, however, the team will need to address a number of roster decisions in free agency, while implementing significant changes both in the front office and on the sidelines. The first step in the process has now taken place.

Lions OC Ben Johnson In Lead For Panthers HC Job?

January 16th, 2023 at 9:34pm CST by Ben Levine

It sounds like Ben Johnson is now the favorite to land the Panthers’ head coaching gig. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports (Twitter link), the Lions offensive coordinator “has the lead” for the position. Joseph Person of The Athletic shares a similar sentiment, noting that “it still feels like there’s momentum” for a Johnson hiring.

[RELATED: Patriots’ Jerod Mayo Declines Panthers HC Interview]

After serving on Matt Patricia’s staff in Detroit, Johnson was kept around following Dan Campbell’s hiring. Johnson ended up impressing the new coach enough to earn a promotion from tight ends coach to offensive coordinator. During Johnson’s first season at the helm, the Lions ended up finishing 9-8 despite sporting the NFL’s worst scoring defense. Jared Goff finished the year with 29 passing touchdowns (his highest total since 2018), while running back Jamaal Williams broke Barry Sanders‘ franchise record for rushing touchdowns in a season with 17.

Thanks to the Lions’ resurgence, Johnson has turned into a popular name on the head coaching circuit. Besides the position in Carolina, Johnson has also been connected to head coaching jobs with the Texans and Colts. Even if Johnson doesn’t get the job with the Panthers, he could still be a target for the organization, with Person suggesting pairing the offensive mind with an experienced head coach candidate like Sean Payton.

Elsewhere on the coaching front, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets that the Panthers have requested permission to interview Saints defensive backs coach Kris Richard for “a possible” defensive coordinator job. The Panthers will probably provide their new head coach with some say in a defensive coordinator hire, although Rapoport notes that the organization is conducting interviews for both gigs concurrently.

Richard made a name for himself in Seattle, where he played an important role in the formation of the Legion of Boom. The coach was relieved of his duty as defensive coordinator in 2017 and later caught on with the Cowboys. He joined the Saints as their defensive backs coach in 2021 before earning a promotion to co-defensive coordinator (with Ryan Nielsen) in 2022. Thanks in part to New Orleans’ performance this past season, Richards “likely will get offers” for full DC opportunities, per Rapoport.

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