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Falcons’ Kevin Koger Denies OC Interview Request From Saints

February 15th, 2025 at 11:56am CST by Ben Levine

Kellen Moore is starting to fill out his Saints staff, but the process may not be as smooth as the new head coach was hoping for. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, Falcons tight ends coach Kevin Koger has denied a request from the Saints to interview for their offensive coordinator job.

[RELATED: Saints Name Kellen Moore As HC]

After working his way up through the college coaching ranks, Koger got his first NFL gig when he was named as the Packers offensive quality control coach in 2019. He joined the Chargers as their tight ends coach in 2021, with Gerald Everett having his best career seasons under Koger’s tutelage.

After the Chargers cleaned house last offseason, Koger joined the Falcons coaching staff, where he was tasked with getting the most from Kyle Pitts. The tight end still failed to live up to his first-round billing, finishing with 47 catches for 602 yards. Still, his 63.5 catch percentage represented a career-high.

While Koger’s list of accomplishments may not feature big names nor performance, he’s still earned a reputation as a bright offensive mind. Just this offseason, the coach interviewed for the Browns and Cowboys OC jobs.

Considering Moore wasn’t officially hired until after the Super Bowl, the Saints missed out on most of the top coordinator candidates. While Koger’s denial may not be indicative of other candidates’ sentiments about the New Orleans gig, Moore and the Saints may have to overcome a few hurdles as they look to piece together the coaching staff.

Koger is the first definitive candidate for the job in New Orleans. A pair of Eagles coaches have naturally been connected to their former boss, with QBs coach Doug Nussmeier and pass-game coordinator Kevin Patullo mentioned as candidates for the job.

NFC Coaching Notes: Haslett, Saints, Cowboys, Choice, Lions, Giants, Falcons

February 13th, 2025 at 8:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

No Saints–Mike McCarthy reunion is on tap, but the team will go forward with an interesting hire that will bring about a reunion of sorts from that era. The team is hiring Chase Haslett as tight ends coach, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo tweets. Chase Haslett is the son of ex-Saints HC Jim Haslett, who coached the team from 2000-05. Jim Haslett was steering the ship when the Saints won their first playoff game, a wild-card thriller over the Rams in 2000. The Saints gave Jim Haslett his only NFL HC job; they will give his son his first position-coaching role. Mickey Loomis became Saints GM during Jim’s HC tenure and led the search to name Moore as HC this year.

Chase will come over after three Cowboys seasons, the last of which overlapping with new Saints HC Kellen Moore. Chase assisted with Cowboys TEs, helping Dalton Schultz to a productive 2022 before aiding in Jake Ferguson‘s development.

Here is the latest from the NFC coaching ranks:

  • Elsewhere on the Saints’ staff, they are also bringing back a familiar face to oversee the offensive line. Brendan Nugent is coming back to head up this group, per NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill and Mike Triplett. Nugent coached the Saints’ O-line from 2015-21; he will replace John Benton, who is following Klint Kubiak to Seattle. Nugent comes over from Seattle, having been the Seahawks’ assistant OL coach last season. He was the Saints’ assistant OL coach from 2015-20 and their O-line boss in 2021. This hire will bring about familiarity for Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz, who were in place when Nugent was last with New Orleans. More familiarity will be in place at wide receiver, with Underhill adding Keith Williams is staying on as WRs coach. The Saints had hired Williams in 2024.
  • Tashard Choice recently interviewed for the Cowboys’ RBs coach position, but the ex-Dallas running back is heading to Detroit. The Lions are hiring Choice as their backfield coach, CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz tweets. Texas is believed to have offered a significant raise to keep Choice in Austin, but he will join Dan Campbell‘s staff. Choice coached Jahmyr Gibbs at Georgia Tech. The Lions are moving previous RBs coach Scottie Montgomery to wide receivers coach, per the Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett. A former NFL wideout, Montgomery has not coached the position in the NFL since overseeing the likes of Antonio Brown, Mike Wallace and Emmanuel Sanders in Pittsburgh from 2010-12. The former college HC, who will replace Antwaan Randle El (now the Bears’ WRs coach), is also now an assistant head coach in Detroit.
  • The Lions are also hiring Tyler Roehl to coach tight ends, Rogers adds. Previously reported (via Zenitz) to be coming to Detroit as an offensive assistant, Roehl is making the jump after one season as Iowa State’s RBs coach. He is better known for work at Division I-FCS power North Dakota State. Roehl was with the Bison from 2014-23, finishing his tenure with five seasons as OC. This included mentorship during Trey Lance‘s 28-TD, zero-INT 2019 season, one of the program’s many national titles.
  • T.J. Yates is heading into his second season as Falcons QBs coach; the former NFL signal-caller will also serve as Atlanta’s pass-game coordinator in 2025, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones notes. After the Falcons attempted to make the Kirk Cousins–Michael Penix Jr. setup work, Yates will be tasked with developing Penix (after a Cousins release) in 2025.
  • Brian Daboll‘s son will not be part of his father’s 2025 Giants staff. Christian Daboll is leaving to pursue another career path, the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard tweets. Brian hired his son out of college; Christian was part of the past two New York staffs, working as an offensive assistant.
  • UTEP defensive coordinator JJ Clark is joining the Cowboys in a quality control role, Zenitz tweets. Clark coached the Miners’ defense for one season, coming over from Austin Peay in 2024. UTEP ranked 113th in Division I-FBS defensively last season.

NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 2/12/25

February 12th, 2025 at 6:38pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s reserve/futures deals:

Atlanta Falcons

  • OT Kilian Zierer

Kansas City Chiefs

Anthony Firkser brings 78 games of NFL experience. His best run came with the Titans, including a two-year stretch between 2020 and 2021 when he hauled in 73 catches. After starting the 2024 season with the Jets, Firkser spent most of the second half on the Chiefs practice squad.

Falcons QB Kirk Cousins Addresses Health Status, 2025 Outlook

February 10th, 2025 at 2:28pm CST by Adam La Rose

FEBRUARY 10: Cousins and the Falcons have not been in communication since the season ended, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network report. The team could ask Cousins to waive his no-trade clause if a parting ways were to be preferred, although the Michigan State product could request to be released and thus find his next team via free agency. A decision will need to be made by mid-March, and the report notes Atlanta may use most of the time between now and then to make a commitment one way or the other.

FEBRUARY 4: Kirk Cousins came to Atlanta amidst considerable fanfare and expectation last offseason, but his tenure is likely to come to an end soon. The Pro Bowl quarterback faces the prospect of being released by the Falcons shortly, something he addressed along with his health situation.

During an appearance on Good Morning Football: Overtime, Cousins spoke about his uncertain future (video link). The 36-year-old was benched in favor of first-round rookie Michael Penix Jr. late in the year, and the latter is in position to remain atop the depth chart moving forward. As a result, it was reported in December the Falcons are expected to release Cousins this offseason.

“I definitely feel like I have a lot of good football left in me,” the former Viking said when asked about his outlook for 2025 and beyond. “It’s still kind of uncertain. We’ll get to March and know a lot more. But I think the focus for me really is getting healthy. That’s really my focus is I gotta get healthy.”

On that point, Cousins detailed that his Achilles – which ruptured midway through the 2023 campaign – healed well and did not cause a major problem during his debut Falcons season. After a Week 10 hit which injured his right shoulder and elbow, however, he said his efforts to work through the ailment played a role in his regression. Cousins’ last stretch of starts before being benched saw his production drop off considerably with turnovers becoming an issue.

While a release would be understandable given Penix’s presence for the long term, Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot indicated last month the team would be willing to keep Cousins in the fold as a (rather expensive) backup. The latter’s $27.5MM base salary for next season is guaranteed in full, and a $10MM roster bonus for 2026 will vest early in the new league year if he remains in Atlanta. Given the compensation he is owed, a trade allowing Cousins a fresh start would come as a surprise.

For now, it remains to be seen how Atlanta will proceed on the Cousins front. Even if he finds himself a free agent once again in the near future, though, retirement will not be considered based on his comments.

Updated 2025 NFL Draft Order

February 10th, 2025 at 8:58am CST by Adam La Rose

With Super Bowl LIX in the books, the 2024 campaign has come to a close. The final first-round order for April’s draft is now set as a result.

All 32 teams currently own a Day 1 selection, leaving the door open to each one adding a prospect in the first round for the first time since expansion in 2002. Any number of trades will no doubt take place between now and the draft, though, and it will be interesting to see how teams maneuver in the lead-in to the event. Of course, Tennessee in particular will be worth watching closely with a move to sell off the No. 1 pick being seen as a distinct possibility.

A weak quarterback class will leave teams like the Titans, Browns, Giants and Raiders with plenty of key offseason decisions. The free agent and trade markets do not offer many short-term alternatives which are seen as surefire additions, and teams which do not make moves in March will rely on the incoming group of rookies as part of their efforts to find a long-term solution under center. The two prospects seen as the clear-cut top options in 2025, however, are two-way Colorado star Travis Hunter and Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2024 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.

Here is a final look at the first-round order:

  1. Tennessee Titans (3-14)
  2. Cleveland Browns (3-14)
  3. New York Giants (3-14)
  4. New England Patriots (4-13)
  5. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13)
  6. Las Vegas Raiders (4-13)
  7. New York Jets (5-12)
  8. Carolina Panthers (5-12)
  9. New Orleans Saints (5-12)
  10. Chicago Bears (5-12)
  11. San Francisco 49ers (6-11)
  12. Dallas Cowboys (7-10)
  13. Miami Dolphins (8-9)
  14. Indianapolis Colts (8-9)
  15. Atlanta Falcons (8-9)
  16. Arizona Cardinals (8-9)
  17. Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)
  18. Seattle Seahawks (10-7)
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
  20. Denver Broncos (10-7)
  21. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
  22. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
  23. Green Bay Packers (11-6)
  24. Minnesota Vikings (14-3)
  25. Houston Texans (10-7)
  26. Los Angeles Rams (10-7)
  27. Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
  28. Detroit Lions (15-2)
  29. Washington Commanders (12-5)
  30. Buffalo Bills (13-4)
  31. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)
  32. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/28/25

January 28th, 2025 at 6:44pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s reserve/futures contracts:

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

Washington Commanders

NFC Coaching Rumors: Bucs, Bowles, Kafka, Martindale, Lions, Falcons, Cardinals

January 27th, 2025 at 9:46pm CST by Sam Robinson

Liam Coen‘s Buccaneers divorce has become one of the most memorable staff separations in recent years. In addition to the Bucs’ OC search, multiple additional fallout items have emerged from Coen backtracking on an extension agreement to accept the Jaguars’ HC offer. Some around the league are now wondering how willing coordinator candidates will be to join up with Todd Bowles, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones writes. Bowles has evaded firing rumors for multiple seasons, though it was quieter on that front in 2024. While it is a bit odd that he continues to win division titles (3-for-3 in that regard), the rumors about the veteran HC’s murky status in Tampa persist.

On that note, Jones adds the Bucs should not be expected to let any coaches out of their contracts to follow Coen to Jacksonville. Bowles, Jason Licht and assistant GM Mike Greenberg attempted to reach Coen on Thursday, when he was supposed to sign his Bucs extension. Coen had already delayed the signing. The one-and-done Tampa Bay OC had even fibbed about a personal matter to continue his Jags negotiations, with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter indicated during a Pat McAfee Show appearance the Bucs were plenty irked about his exit process.

Here is the latest from the NFC side of the coaching carousel:

  • The Bucs have completed four interviews with outside candidates, but an internal Coen replacement option has surfaced as well. Pass-game coordinator Josh Grizzard is on the radar to be promoted, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo notes. Grizzard, 34, has been in the NFL since 2017 and joined Bowles’ staff to work under Coen. The Bucs thought they had avoided a scenario in which they use a fourth OC in four seasons, via the Coen agreement, and Mayfield will now have a sixth play-caller since the 2021 campaign. An internal promotion would help ensure some familiarity.
  • Mike Kafka is still in the running for the Saints‘ HC job, though Kellen Moore and Mike McCarthy may be more likely to land the job. If the Giants’ OC were to pull an upset and jump from a 3-14 team to another club’s top coaching job, ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan notes he would be expected to bring Wink Martindale with him as DC. Kafka and Martindale worked together in New York for two seasons, before the latter’s explosive 2024 exit. Martindale, who spent the 2024 season as Michigan’s DC, interviewed for the Colts and Falcons’ DC jobs this month.
  • Acting swiftly to fill the void created when Kelvin Sheppard made the jump to replace Aaron Glenn, the Lions are elevating another recent NFL linebacker. Detroit will promote Shaun Dion Hamilton to its LBs coaching post, 247Sports.com’s Matt Zenitz tweets. Hamilton attempted to make the Lions’ active roster in 2022 but instead found a job on their coaching staff. Dan Campbell hired Hamilton, an ex-Washington defender, as an assistant. He moved up to assistant LBs coach in 2023, and at 29, is climbing the ladder again.
  • The Falcons are making two hires for Jeff Ulbrich‘s defensive staff. They added Mike Rutenberg as pass-game coordinator and Nate Ollie as D-line coach. Rutenberg will follow Ulbrich from the Jets, having coached their linebackers for four seasons. The Robert Saleh hire oversaw the development of Quincy Williams from waiver claim to All-Pro, while Ollie was also on Saleh’s first Jets staff. The Colts hired him as D-line coach in 2022, and he landed with the Texans as assistant D-line coach last year.
  • The Cardinals are losing their linebackers coach to a college coordinator role. Virginia Tech hired Sam Siefkes to be its next DC. Jonathan Gannon had hired Siefkes after two years as a Vikings assistant. Prior to that, he had served in the college ranks, heading up Wofford’s defense. Additionally in Arizona, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes the team is not bringing back D-line coach Derrick LeBlanc. On the Dolphins’ staff before heading to Arizona in 2023, LeBlanc had spent nearly two decades at the college level.

Cowboys Request OC Interview With Kevin Koger, DC Interview With Ryan Crow

January 27th, 2025 at 8:58am CST by Adam La Rose

Brian Schottenheimer was promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach of the Cowboys last week. The process of finding his OC is underway.

Dallas has requested an interview with Kevin Koger, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. Koger worked as the Falcons’ tight ends coach in 2024, his sixth season in the NFL. Prior to his Atlanta tenure, he held the title of offensive quality control coach with the Packers in 2019 and ’20.

That period was followed by three years as the Chargers’ TE coach, so Koger has experience as a positional staffer. The 35-year-old has never worked as a coordinator at the NFL level, nor as an OC dating back to his time on the sidelines in the college game. He has drawn interest in the past, though, meeting with the Broncos and Packers in 2022 as well as the Browns during this year’s hiring cycle.

On the other side of the ball, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports the Cowboys have submitted an interview request for Ryan Crow. After working under Mike Vrabel in Tennessee, Crow was fired following the 2023 season. He took on the outside linebackers gig with the Dolphins for 2024, and his work in that role has garnered attention. Crow interviewed with Vrabel and the Patriots last week, and now he is set to speak with the Cowboys for their coordinator vacancy.

With that said, former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus is seen as the frontrunner for Dallas’ DC posting. The latest update on that front confirmed Eberflus remains the name to watch, although the Cowboys have also interviewed Bears safeties coach Andre Curtis. A colleague of Eberflus’ given their time together in Chicago, Curtis could land a role of some kind in Dallas provided the Eberflus hire goes through. In the meantime, Dallas will continue adding to the list of outside candidates.

The Cowboys are also on the lookout for a new special teams coordinator, and a pair of known interviews have taken place for that role. Broncos assistant ST coordinator Chris Banjo has met with Dallas, per Pelissero’s colleague Mike Garafolo. A candidate to be promoted to the role in Denver, Banjo has also drawn interest around the league. In addition, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports Bears assistant special teams coordinator Carlos Polk has received a look. Especially if Eberflus lands the DC gig, it would come as no surprise if a familiar face in the form of Polk – who has been in his current position since 2022 – were to be brought in. In any event, Dallas will remain a team to watch closely as the coordinator landscape becomes clearer over the coming days.

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/21/25

January 21st, 2025 at 7:13pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s reserve/futures contracts:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Detroit Lions

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • DB Cameron McCutcheon

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Updated 2025 NFL Draft Order

January 19th, 2025 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Two weekends of playoff football have come and gone, providing us with 10 more draft slots cemented into position as NFL teams continue to be eliminated from the playoffs. The top 18 picks were already divvied up at the conclusion of the regular season to the teams who failed to make the playoffs, while picks 19-28 have been determined over the past two weeks.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order has been determined by the inverted 2024 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. The playoff squads are being slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular-season record.

The league’s Super Wild Card weekend resulted in the elimination of Chargers, Steelers, Broncos, Packers, Buccaneers, and Vikings after their respective losses. Tampa Bay benefitted from the three-way tie in record with Denver and Pittsburgh, just as the Chargers did over the Packers.

The divisional round of the playoffs resulted in the elimination of the Texans, Rams, Ravens, and Lions. This time, Houston held the tiebreaker over Los Angeles, gifting it higher draft priority.

We are still at a place that, for the first time since the league expanded to 32 teams in 2002, there is a chance that every team drafts in the first round, as no first-round picks have yet been traded. It’s extremely unlikely that this will remain the case, as draft-day trades are a very common occurrence, but it’s still an interesting concept to note this close to the draft.

Here is how the draft order looks following two weeks of playoff football:

  1. Tennessee Titans (3-14)
  2. Cleveland Browns (3-14)
  3. New York Giants (3-14)
  4. New England Patriots (4-13)
  5. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13)
  6. Las Vegas Raiders (4-13)
  7. New York Jets (5-12)
  8. Carolina Panthers (5-12)
  9. New Orleans Saints (5-12)
  10. Chicago Bears (5-12)
  11. San Francisco (6-11)
  12. Dallas Cowboys (7-10)
  13. Miami Dolphins (8-9)
  14. Indianapolis Colts (8-9)
  15. Atlanta Falcons (8-9)
  16. Arizona Cardinals (8-9)
  17. Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)
  18. Seattle Seahawks (10-7)
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7)
  20. Denver Broncos (10-7)
  21. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
  22. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
  23. Green Bay Packers (11-6)
  24. Minnesota Vikings (14-3)
  25. Houston Texans (10-7)
  26. Los Angeles Rams (10-7)
  27. Baltimore Ravens (12-5)
  28. Detroit Lions (15-2)
  29. Washington Commanders (12-5)
  30. Buffalo Bills (13-4)
  31. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3)
  32. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2)
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