Eagles Adjust Contracts Of Alshon Jeffery, Malik Jackson, Both On Way Out
The Eagles’ disastrous 2020 campaign has come to an end, and to say they’ve got a pivotal offseason ahead of them would be a massive understatement. Obviously the team has to figure out their quarterback situation, but that’s far from the only issue that needs to be addressed.
They took one step forward on Monday as the team has adjusted the contracts of receiver Alshon Jeffery and defensive tackle Malik Jackson, sources told Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Before these moves Philly had the worst cap situation in the league, with a projected $70MM deficit against the 2021 cap. The move reduced the base salaries for both to give some immediate flexibility, but the agreed upon arrangement will force the Eagles to either cut the players or negotiate new deals with them.
As Mike Garafolo of NFL Network tweeted, the expectation is that Philly will move on from both players, so they aren’t actually going to play 2021 at these reduced salaries and the restructure is more of a procedural move. It’s a win for the Eagles and also lets the players know their futures sooner so they can plan accordingly and hit free agency with everybody else instead of being left looking for a new team closer to the start of next season.
The Eagles signed Jackson to a three-year, $30MM pact in March of 2019, and it was immediately derailed when he suffered a foot injury in the first game of that season that knocked him out for the entire year. He returned to play in 15 games this year, but only played around half the defensive snaps and not at a high enough level to warrant his hefty salary. The 2012 fifth-round pick of the Broncos had a few really good years with the Jaguars and is still only 30, so there will be interest.
Jeffery is wrapping up a four-year stint in Philadelphia and will always have a large place in franchise history for his contributions to the 2017 team that won Super Bowl LII. Jeffery started all 16 games that year, racking up 789 yards and nine touchdowns. He had another very solid 2018 campaign but his play fell off a cliff last year as he dealt with injuries that limited him to ten games.
This past season he appeared in only seven contests due to injury, catching only six passes for 115 yards. The 2012 second-round pick from South Carolina turned into a star during his early career with the Bears, and is still only 30 as well, although he does have significant health question marks. It’ll be very interesting to see what his market looks like.
Vikings OC Gary Kubiak To Retire
We just got word of one offensive coordinator vacancy as the Dolphins fired Chan Gailey, and now it looks like we’ve got another. Vikings offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak plans to retire, a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com.
Kubiak joined Minnesota in an advisory role in 2019, then took over as offensive coordinator this season after Kevin Stefanski left to take the Browns’ head coaching job. Kubiak is an incredibly accomplished coach, winning three Super Bowls as an assistant with the Broncos and 49ers before winning another won as head coach of Denver in Super Bowl 50. He also was the Texans’ head coach from 2006-13, and the Ravens’ offensive coordinator in 2014 before getting hired by the Broncos.
The Vikings were a disappointment this season, but that was mostly because of their defense, so it’s unlikely that he’s being squeezed out and this is probably entirely his call.There were a lot of positives to take away from this Minnesota offense, like Dalvin Cook rushing for 1,557 yards and 16 touchdowns in 14 games or rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson emerging to look like a star in the making.
Now at the age of 59, Kubiak has dealt with a couple of health scares in recent years, which was what caused him to step down as coach of the Broncos after a 9-7 2016 season. That initial retirement lasted only a couple of seasons though, so it’s entirely possible we haven’t seen the last of him on an NFL sideline even with this second retirement.
It’s unclear what the Vikings will do to replace him, but if they choose to promote from within like Mike Zimmer often likes to do, one logical candidate is Kubiak’s own son Klint Kubiak, who was the quarterbacks coach this past season.
Urban Meyer Wants $12MM+ To Coach In NFL?
Coaching searches around the league are only just getting started, and the only place where there’s a clear favorite right now is Jacksonville with Urban Meyer. By all accounts, the job appears to be his to lose if he wants it. But if the legendary college coach is going to make the jump to the NFL, he has a baseline amount of compensation he’s seeking.
Meyer is apparently asking for $12MM annually on any deal, a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com. That might sound like a lot for a coach but as Florio points out, it’s not that out of sync with the current market. He writes that Matt Rhule got nearly $9MM annually from the Panthers despite being relatively unproven.
In a subsequent tweet discussing his piece, Florio said that Pete Carroll is believed to make over $15MM per year from the Seahawks, that the Saints’ Sean Payton is somewhere around there, and that Bill Belichick is believed to get over $20MM annually from the Patriots.
With the Jags clinching the first overall pick in the draft a couple weeks ago, that job obviously became a lot more attractive. Meyer has reportedly begun lining up a staff for a potential jump, and it now seems more likely than not to happen. Assuming Jaguars owner Shad Khan is willing to meet his financial demands, it wouldn’t be surprising if something came together quickly here.
GM Interviews: Lions, Falcons, Panthers
It’s been a very busy Monday after Week 17 so far, and it’s not slowing down anytime soon. There are a number of GM openings around the league, and interview requests for execs are flying in. Let’s get you caught up on all the latest:
- Saints VP/assistant GM for pro personnel Terry Fontenot is scheduled to interview for the Lions GM job on Tuesday and the Falcons GM job on Wednesday, Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. The Falcons have also requested a GM interview with Rams college scouting director Brad Holmes (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero). Along with Rick Smith, these were the top names expected to be in the mix in Atlanta. Fontenot isn’t the only Saints exec in the mix, as New Orleans assistant GM Jeff Ireland has been requested by the Panthers and Lions, Pelissero tweets.
- Finally (for now), the Lions are also going to interview Vikings assistant GM George Paton, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets. Rapsheet says both Paton and Fontenot are “very strong candidates” for the Detroit job. Paton has drawn interest before, and has been in Minnesota’s front office since the 2007 season.
- The Panthers are casting a wide net, and they’re also requesting to interview Chiefs assistant director of player personnel Ryan Poles for the vacancy created by Marty Hurney’s firing, Rapoport tweets. One more, as Carolina has officially requested to interview 49ers VP of Player Personnel Adam Peters, Rapoport tweets. We had heard they might have some interest in Peters, and Rapoport notes that he spent time with head coach Matt Rhule at UCLA and is “one to watch” here.
- The Falcons have requested Colts college scouting director Morocco Brown, Pelissero tweets. Indy’s GM Chris Ballard is very highly regarded, so it’s not surprising that teams are digging into some of his deputies. Brown previously had personnel roles with Cleveland (2014-15) and Washington (2008-13).
Jets To Either Trade Sam Darnold Or No. 2 Pick?
The Jets closed the books on their disastrous 2020 season with a loss to the Patriots to finish at 2-14. They made a little bit of noise down the stretch by winning two of their last three, but not enough to stave off the major questions facing the franchise.
Adam Gase is now out of a job, and the attention will soon toward what to do at quarterback moving forward. It seems up in the air as to whether or not Sam Darnold will be back under center in 2021, but one thing already appears to be decided. The Jets will either trade Darnold, or trade the second overall pick in the draft to a team looking for a quarterback, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
That would seemingly mean New York has no plans of drafting a non-quarterback, like Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell, at number two. They also clearly don’t intend on having Darnold and a highly drafted passer on the roster together. Needless to say, first-year Jets GM Joe Douglas has a massive decision ahead of him that will determine his own future.
Darnold, of course, was the second overall pick back in 2018. He started 13 games his first two seasons (the first of which was under Todd Bowles), then 12 this past year. New York went 6-2 down the stretch last year to inspire a little bit of hope entering 2020, but things went off the rails pretty quickly.
He finished this season averaging 6.1 yards per attempt with only nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Of course he’s only 23 years old, and if the Jets are ready to throw in the towel on him there will likely be significant trade interest due to his perceived upside.
This is considered a strong quarterback draft class, and whether it’s the Jets or another team on the clock at number two guys like Ohio State’s Justin Fields, BYU’s Zach Wilson, and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance will be available. Assuming Trevor Lawrence still goes first to the Jaguars. Buckle up.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/3/21
Practice squad moves from the past day:
Detroit Lions
- Activated off reserve/COVID-19 list: LB Anthony Pittman
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: DL Anthony Rush
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: P Drew Kaser
- Cut: OL Aaron Neary
Minor NFL Transactions: 1/3/21
Catching up on the minor moves from the past day or so:
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DL Teair Tart
Philadelphia Eagles
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list (positive test): CB Nickell Robey-Coleman
Jets Fire Adam Gase
Well, it’s official. The Jets have fired head coach Adam Gase, the team announced in a statement Sunday evening.
“This evening, I informed Adam Gase he will no longer serve as the Head Coach of the Jets. During his time here, I had the pleasure to get to know Adam and his wonderful family and wish them nothing but the best moving forward. While my sincere intentions are to have stability in our organization – especially in our leadership positions – it is clear the best decision for the Jets is to move in a different direction. We knew there was a lot of work that needed to be done when Adam joined us in 2019. Our strong finish last year was encouraging, but unfortunately, we did not sustain that positive momentum or see the progress we all expected this season,” Jets chairman and CEO Christopher Johnson said in the release.
We heard yesterday that this move was expected as soon as Week 17 concluded, and it certainly isn’t surprising. New York rattled off two wins in their final three games, but obviously it wasn’t enough to save Gase’s job. He’ll finish his two-year stint with a 9-23 record. As Johnson’s statement alluded to the team went 6-2 down the stretch last year, but that didn’t result in any momentum.
Things were a disaster right from the start in 2020 as the team lost each of their last six games. In that same report from yesterday we heard they were going to consider a lengthy list of candidates including NFL assistants like Eric Bieniemy (Chiefs OC), Matt Eberflus (Colts DC), Don Martindale (Ravens DC), Arthur Smith (Titans OC) and Brandon Staley (Rams DC), as well as college coaches like Jim Harbaugh (Michigan), Matt Campbell (Iowa State) and Dan Mullen (Florida).
It sounds like GM Joe Douglas is planning an exhaustive search. Even when he settles on a candidate there will still be plenty of unanswered questions, including what to do with Sam Darnold and whether or not to draft a quarterback with the second overall pick.
Gase, 44, first earned national recognition for his role as Peyton Manning’s offensive coordinator in Denver from 2013-14. He was head coach of the Dolphins from 2016-18, and was initially praised for his work in Miami before things spiraled. After being fired by the Dolphins he was very quickly picked up by the Jets. Bill Belichick has spoken very highly of him in recent days, but due to how polarizing he became during his time in New York, it’s unlikely he lands another head coaching gig anytime soon.
Falcons To Interview Robert Saleh And Eric Bieniemy For HC Vacancy Monday
The 49ers’ season just ended with a loss to the Seahawks, but things are just getting started for defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. Saleh is expected to be a hot heat coaching candidate this cycle, and it sounds like he’s got his first move lined up. Saleh will interview with the Falcons over zoom for their job on Monday, San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan revealed during his post-game press conference.
Atlanta won’t stop there, as they’re also going to interview Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy on Monday, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). They clearly aren’t honing in on anything specific, interviewing coaches with defensive and offensive backgrounds. Saleh is a highly regarded leader who always has his defenses playing with high intensity, and when they were healthy the 49ers had one of the league’s best defenses last year.
Bieniemy has a ringing endorsement from Andy Reid, which obviously goes a long way these days. He’s been in Kansas City with Reid since 2013, previously as his running backs coach. Bieniemy is widely considered to be one of the frontrunners for the Texans’ job.
The Falcons won’t be the only team interested in Saleh, and Shanahan even said that he would have several more interviews in the coming days. Saleh is from Michigan, and has also been linked to the Lions’ job. Get ready, the coaching carousel is just starting to heat up.
Latest On Chargers, Anthony Lynn
As the regular season winds down, we’ve got a pretty good sense of what’s going to happen with all the coaching decisions. One of the only things still truly up in the air is the status of Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn. Apparently no decision has been made, and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network says that’ll be the case until Los Angeles brass gets together on Monday (Twitter video link).
To that end, Lynn is the “biggest wild card” of the coaching carousel, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Fowler adds that people he’s talked to around the league believe it’s 50/50 as to whether Lynn gets brought back for a fifth season. There are apparently slight differences of opinion here, as Jay Glazer of FOX Sports said during a Sunday morning TV hit that he believes Lynn will likely be a goner after Monday’s meeting (Twitter video link).
Lynn went 9-7 his first year and then 12-4 the following season, winning a playoff game, but things collapsed quickly after that. The Chargers went just 5-11 last season and 7-9 in 2020, losing a mind-boggling amount of close games both times. It looked in the middle of the season like Lynn was a lame-duck as he made a series of in-game blunders and the Chargers stood at 3-9.
But the team rallied right after getting eliminated from playoff contention, winning four straight and potentially saving Lynn’s job in the process. Justin Herbert has been a revelation in his rookie season, but the coaching has often been questionable to put it kindly.
If the gig were to open up it would look very attractive on paper, as Herbert looks like a star in the making while there’s a ton of talent at the skill positions and on defense. All-Pro safety Derwin James missed the entire 2020 campaign but should be returning to play at an elite level in 2021. We’ll know more about Lynn’s fate tomorrow.