NFC East Notes: Redskins, Haskins, Giants
New Redskins coach Ron Rivera has insisted he wants to have a quarterback competition, and that nothing will be handed to second-year incumbent Dwayne Haskins. Haskins doesn’t have any problem with that, and he said as much to reporters during a recent community event. “That’s cool,” Haskins said of Rivera’s remarks, via Peter Hailey of NBC Sports. “I’m just going to have to work hard and eventually take it over. Just do your best to be accountable for what you have to do and be ready to go.” That’s obviously the type of attitude that his new coaching staff will like to hear.
Rivera specifically shouted out Alex Smith recently and indicated he could even be back with the team in 2020, although that still seems pretty unlikely. By all accounts, Haskins will almost certainly be under center for the Redskins in Week 1 even though the staff plans to make him earn it. Haskins took over for Case Keenum midway through last season, and was up and down like most rookies. The Ohio State product struggled early on, but started to play a lot better in his last couple of games.
Here’s more from the NFC East:
- The Giants traded for Leonard Williams at the deadline even though they weren’t headed to the playoffs and he was set to be a free agent, putting a lot of pressure on them to extend him. To that end, the team is “intent” on re-signing him this offseason, according to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. However, he isn’t going to come cheaply. Vacchiano thinks the defensive lineman will be seeking a contract worth around $15MM annually. The sixth overall pick back in 2015, Williams has always been high on talent but a bit underwhelming on the field. He made the Pro Bowl in 2016, but has been more up and down since then. Still only 25, he should still be entering the prime of his career. New York gave up third and fifth round picks for him.
- Speaking of the Giants, new head coach Joe Judge put together an interesting inaugural staff with some notable hires. Speaking recently, Judge dished on his thought process when bringing his staff together, via Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. “To me, it’s a big trust factor with the guys I have on the staff,’’ Judge said. “I have a personal relationship with a lot of these guys, professional relationships with nearly all of them.” There are a number of high profile coaches on the staff, including recently fired Browns and Cowboys head coaches Freddie Kitchens and Jason Garrett. Despite that, the rookie head coach insisted that he didn’t hire them because of their experience leading teams. “I didn’t set out to hire anyone with former head coaching experience,’’ Judge said. “That ended up being a plus of what different guys brought to their area.” On Kitchens specifically he said “what I love about Freddie is he brings an element of toughness and discipline to his room. He brings outside-the-box thinking a lot of times to how he approaches the game from a game-plan perspective.’’
Michigan State Requested To Interview 49ers DC Robert Saleh
Michigan State has a head coaching vacancy after Mark Dantonio abruptly resigned, and they reached out to one high profile NFL assistant to gauge his interest in the job. The Spartans requested to interview 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh for their job, sources told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link). 
Unfortunately for Michigan State, Saleh turned them down, and he’ll be staying in San Francisco for at least one more season. Saleh rose to prominence this season as he coordinated the 49ers’ elite defense. Saleh is a Michigan native and he got his coaching start as a defensive assistant at Michigan State, so their interest makes a lot of sense. After several years in the college ranks, he made the jump to the NFL as an intern with the Texans in 2005.
He most recently served as linebackers coach in Jacksonville before Kyle Shanahan hired him away to be his DC. Saleh received a lot of head coaching buzz this NFL cycle, and he interviewed with the Browns for their job. He was reportedly one of two finalists before Cleveland ended up going with Kevin Stefanski. Not surprisingly, Pelissero’s NFL Network colleague Ian Rapoport tweets that “will be among the top head coaching candidates” in next year’s cycle.
Eagles Hire Darren Sproles, Brent Celek For Personnel Roles
The Eagles added former pass-rusher Connor Barwin to their front office last month, and now they’re adding two other high profile former players. Philadelphia is hiring former running back Darren Sproles and former tight end Brent Celek, according to Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. 
Bowen adds that they both got the title of personnel consultant. Sproles announced back in December that he’d be retiring after the year. The legendary pass-catching back spent the last six seasons of his career with the Eagles, and finished his career fifth all-time in all-purpose yards. Celek was an Eagle all the way through, spending all 11 seasons of his pro career in Philly from 2007-17. He retired after winning Super Bowl LII with the team.
The Eagles also made some other staffing moves, hiring strength and conditioning coach Ted Rath away from the Rams to be their new director of sports performance. Rath gained some fame as Sean McVay’s ‘get-back’ coach, and was later charged with sexual battery before being acquitted. A source told Bowen that the team did their due diligence, and felt comfortable with Rath’s explanation and acquittal.
Philly also promoted exec Jeremiah Washburn to the role of player personnel director. Interestingly, he’ll also serve in a coaching role as a “senior defensive assistant.” As Bowen points out, it’s a bit of an unusual arrangement for someone to have a scouting and coaching role at the same time. They also rounded out their offensive coaching staff, hiring Aaron Moorehead as receivers coach. He previously had been the receivers coach at Vanderbilt. The Eagles announced yesterday they wouldn’t hire an offensive coordinator.
Antonio Brown On End Of Steelers Tenure, Arrest, Mental Health
To say the past year has been a tumultuous one for Antonio Brown would be a massive understatement. The embattled receiver has been on a very bumpy path, and he recently gave his first interview to local Pittsburgh media since leaving the Steelers to clarify some things. Brown went on 93.7 with hosts Chris Mack and Colin Dunlap, and Adam Bittner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette transcribed his comments.
Throughout the interview Brown struck a much more conciliatory and restrained tone than he often has on social media. He took the time to apologize to the Steelers and even to his former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Yes, you read that right. “I apologize to those guys for the distractions. The unwanted attention I probably caused those guys. To the fans and organization,” Brown said. “So I’m forever grateful and indebted to the organization. Mr. Rooney. Mike Tomlin. Kevin Colbert. Ben Roethlisberger. You know I started my career with those guys. A lot of beautiful moments. A lot of amazing things. So it’s not all bad,” he continued.
Brown was a surprising inactive in Week 17 of 2018, and things rapidly deteriorated from there. There were a lot of reports about what happened for Brown to get benched, including one that he threw a football at Roethlisberger in practice that week. Brown didn’t explain exactly what went down, but he did seem to take issue with the reporting. “For me, the last game, I had some adversity, but it was just time to move on. To do something more positive. I just was emotionally drained and just frustrated about how everything went down. A lot of stuff go down and people don’t know what really happens. People just write about it and make assumptions. But people don’t know the truth of what the emotions and what players really go through.”
Brown also seemed to reveal that the reason he wanted out of Pittsburgh was because he didn’t think they were serious enough about winning a championship. “I just think we had a lot of things that were important to individuals, but it wasn’t really important to do the big thing, which was win the Super Bowl. So for me, I’m getting to the point where I’m older in my career, and the things that were important to me were winning,” he explained. “At the point I was at, I was just felt like ‘Man, guys on the team wasn’t really ready push to go get what was important, so for me it was all about getting that next carry and being able to be a winner.”
Speaking on his recent arrest and court-ordered psychiatric evaluation, Brown downplayed it and said he doesn’t have any mental health issues. “I’m pretty good man. Those guys put me in a crazy check, and I don’t even know why they did that. But I just think mental health is really important.” Brown also suggested that not playing football this season was responsible for most of his erratic behavior. “I don’t really have anger. I just think I’m really bored. You know, football keeps a lot of my focus. And not being able to have that thing that took my energy, that put my focus toward allowed me to be bored and react to things I wouldn’t normally react to.”
The full comments are worth a read, as Brown also talked about his relationship with former teammates like JuJu Smith-Schuster. Brown clearly wants to keep playing football, but obviously he’s got a lot to sort out first.
Garrett Celek Retires From NFL
It looks like Garrett Celek is hanging up his cleats. The 49ers tight end announced his retirement from the NFL in an Instagram post Friday afternoon.
Celek entered the league back in 2012, and spent all eight years of his career with San Francisco. One of the longest-tenured members of the organization, he became a fan favorite and was a leader in the locker room. He inked a four-year deal worth $10.20MM back in 2016, which just expired after the Super Bowl. An undrafted free agent from Michigan State, he made the 53-man roster as a fourth tight end his rookie year and steadily earned more playing time. He never had a massive role as a receiver but was always a key contributor as a blocker, and he did have some decent pass-catching years.
In 2016 and 2017 he had at least 336 yards. His best season as a receiver was in 2016, when he reeled in 29 passes for 350 yards and three touchdowns. He missed some significant time due to injuries throughout the course of his career, and was placed on injured reserve after appearing in only five games this season. The younger brother of former Eagles tight end Brent Celek, he carved out a heck of a career for an UDFA. All of us here at PFR wish him the best in retirement.
49ers To Prioritize Extension For George Kittle
The 2019 NFL season is officially in the books. The 49ers just lost the Super Bowl in heartbreaking fashion, but they have to shake it off quickly and turn their attention to the offseason. Star tight end George Kittle is set to enter the final year of his rookie deal in 2020, and it sounds like San Francisco isn’t going to let him get anywhere close to free agency.
The 49ers are going to prioritize an extension for the Iowa product, and negotiations will begin “as soon as after the game,” sources told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter video link). Garafolo thinks Kittle will “blow the lid off” the top of the tight end market, and that $13MM annually is the floor of what he can expect to get on his new contract. As Garafolo points out the current top of the market is around $9-10MM for guys like Travis Kelce, so it sounds like the market is truly going to be reset.
Given the numbers Kittle has put up during his brief time in the league, those figures aren’t shocking. A fifth-round pick in 2017, Kittle has performed well beyond anyone’s wildest expectations. In 2018 he set the single-season record for receiving yards by a tight end with 1,377, and he’s been an All-Pro in back to back years.
In addition to his receiving prowess he’s also one of the best blockers in the league, and he’s the engine of San Francisco’s NFC championship winning offense. As Garafolo’s NFL Network colleague Ian Rapoport pointed out in the same video, the 49ers have adopted an organizational philosophy of locking guys up early and rewarding their own, so it should only be a matter of time before Kittle gets paid. It should help the sting of the Super Bowl loss. The 26-year-old recently revealed that he’s been playing with a torn labrum, but that he doesn’t plan on getting surgery.
Chargers May Tag Philip Rivers, Colts And Retirement Also Options
Philip Rivers‘ future is very much up in the air. There have been indications that Rivers could be headed for a split with the Chargers, although that certainly isn’t definite. To that end, Los Angeles hasn’t “firmly decided” what they’re going to do with Rivers, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter video link). 
Rapoport reports that the Chargers are still mulling using their franchise tag on Rivers. If they do decide to move on, Rapoport says not to be surprised if the Colts emerge as a landing spot. Rivers has plenty of connections to Indy, as head coach Frank Reich used to be his offensive coordinator in San Diego and he also played under Colts OC Nick Sirianni. We’ve also heard that Bruce Arians and the Buccaneers could be interested in Rivers’ services.
Interestingly, Rapoport says that retirement is still an option for Rivers if his market isn’t too hot, which is new. Rivers said immediately after the season ended that he had no plans to retire. Rapoport’s NFL Network colleague Mike Garafolo said in the same clip that he had also heard retirement is still on the table.
Rivers had a down 2019 due to a lot of turnovers, but the year before he was one of the best passers in the league. He led the Chargers to a 12-4 record that year while tossing 32 touchdowns and only 12 interceptions, averaging a robust 8.5 yards per attempt.
Drew Brees Expected To Return To Saints
There’s been a lot of uncertainty surrounding the Saints’ quarterback situation recently. The consensus seems to be that New Orleans envisions Taysom Hill taking over as their starter in 2021, but that they’d like Drew Brees back for a bridge year.
Given that Brees is facing the possibility of splitting more snaps with Hill and recent comments that he made indicating he’s seriously considering retirement, it seemed very much up in the air whether or not he’d return. That being said, the tide seems to be turning back toward him coming back for one more run at another Super Bowl. Brees is expected by people around him and the team to play in 2020, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter video link).
Garafolo cautions that it’s not 100 percent, but that it’s the “educated guess” of everybody around the situation. Head coach Sean Payton recently admitted it was “unrealistic” to bring back Teddy Bridgewater with Brees and Hill, which could indicate he expects to have his 41-year-old passer.
His numbers were still very solid in 2019, but seemingly everyone has acknowledged that the end is near. He’s said he won’t play anywhere other than New Orleans, so it sounds like 2020 will definitely be his last season if he does play. Brees was sidelined for an extended period due to injury for the first time since 2003 this past season, as he missed five games due to a torn ligament in his thumb.
49ers Extend Passing Game Coordinator Mike LaFleur
Mike LaFleur is coaching in the Super Bowl Sunday, and no matter what happens he’ll be back in San Francisco next year. The 49ers have extended their passing game coordinator, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
LaFleur had been on an expiring contract, and he won’t be hitting the open market now. He’s the younger brother of Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, and Schefter writes that his brother had wanted him to join his staff in Green Bay. He bested his brother in the NFC Championship game, and now the LaFleurs won’t be joining forces. The younger LaFleur was also apparently a candidate to become Cleveland’s offensive coordinator.
He got his coaching start in the college ranks, and then jumped to the NFL to serve under Kyle Shanahan in Atlanta before following him to San Francisco. Several Shanahan assistants drew interest from other teams this offseason, including LaFleur, running game coordinator Mike McDaniel, and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. With all the success Shanahan has been having, he likely won’t be able to keep his staff together much longer.
Extra Points: Dolphins, Tua, 49ers, Vikings
There’s been a lot of buzz about former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa going to the Dolphins in the draft. We heard recently that the southpaw’s family wanted Miami to nab him, and there’s been a connection there for a while. Tagovailoa is obviously dealing with a serious hip injury, and it’s clearly a concern for the Dolphins. Miami’s owner Stephen Ross spoke to reporters earlier today and said “he’s a great player. I just worry about his health,” per Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (Twitter link). That would seem to indicate Tagovailoa to the ‘Phins is far from a done deal. We heard a couple of weeks ago that Miami wanted Joe Burrow, and that they were willing trade up to go get him. Of course, this all could be some gamesmanship from Ross to throw other teams off the scent. Despite the injury, Tagovailoa will reportedly throw for scouts in a private workout at some point before the draft. That workout will go a long way toward determining where he goes in the draft.
Here’s more from the football world as the Super Bowl approaches:
- We heard earlier today that the 49ers were considering former Seahawks defensive coordinator Kris Richard to fill the secondary coach role that is about to become vacant when Joe Woods officially becomes Cleveland’s next defensive coordinator. Richard apparently isn’t the only candidate though, and San Francisco is also considering former Miami secondary coach Tony Oden for the position, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). Oden has also coached DBs for the Saints, Jaguars, Buccaneers, and Lions in recent years.
- Vikings guard Pat Elflein is getting a big raise. His base salary for 2020 was set to be $960K, but that will be bumped all the way up to $2.147MM now due to the NFL’s proven performance escalator, per Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). The program is for players drafted in the 3rd-7th round that are headed into the final year of their rookie contracts, who have received a lot of playing time during their first three years. That certainly is the case for Elflein, who has started at least 13 games in each of his first three seasons. A third-round pick from Ohio State, he was Minnesota’s starting center in 2017-18 before kicking over to left guard last year after the team drafted Garrett Bradbury.
- In case you missed it, Sammy Watkins isn’t ruling out taking a pay-cut.