Latest On Falcons’ Head Coaching Search
JANUARY 21: While Atlanta still has a ways to go in its search, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones confirms the job is ultimately Belichick’s if he wants it. He adds, however, that the chances of Belichick deciding to take the Falcons posting are currently seen as being “50-50.” The Falcons have yet to satisfy the Rooney Rule by interviewing two external minority candidates in person. Jones notes Blank is not aiming to fast-track other interviews to accelerate the timeline for adding Belichick or another coach. The latter remains the name to watch in Atlanta, however.
JANUARY 20: While Bill Belichick is reportedly the front runner for the Falcons head coaching job, that won’t stop the organization from considering other candidates. Jeff Howe of The Athletic notes that while there’s clear momentum towards a Falcons/Belichick pairing, the franchise is still intending “to conduct a thorough search for their head coaching hire.”
[RELATED: Bill Belichick Viewed As Top Falcons HC Candidate]
Howe adds that the process is ongoing, and while the Falcons may be targeting Belichick, they still intend to conduct additional interviews. Of course, this could simply be the organization hedging their bets in case Belichick decides to take his coaching acumen elsewhere.
We heard yesterday that owner Arthur Blank was “desperately” trying to lure Belichick to Atlanta, and it would ultimately be on the coach to determine if it’s a fit. With that in mind, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport notes that Belichick’s second interview is noteworthy and a clear indication that the iconic head coach is serious about heading to the Falcons.
Since we learned of Belichick’s first interview with the Falcons earlier this week, a number of big names have also emerged in the sweepstakes. The organization is already arranging a second interview with Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, and they’ve reportedly added former Titans coach Mike Vrabel to their list of targets. Indeed, Rapoport notes that the Falcons will meet with Vrabel next week regarding their head coaching vacancy.
Blank and the Falcons have reportedly been big-name hunting in their search for a new head coach, bucking the franchise’s trend of hiring first-year coaches. Of course, the organization is still doing its due diligence with the various head coaching candidates. Besides Belichick, Harbaugh, and Vrabel, the current list of candidates includes:
- Joe Brady, interim offensive coordinator (Bills): Interview requested
- Brian Callahan, offensive coordinator (Bengals): Interviewed 1/13
- Ejiro Evero, defensive coordinator (Panthers): Interviewed 1/14
- Aaron Glenn, defensive coordinator (Lions): Interviewed 1/19
- Ben Johnson, offensive coordinator (Lions): To interview 1/20
- Brian Johnson, offensive coordinator (Eagles): Interviewed 1/18
- Mike Macdonald, defensive coordinator (Ravens): Interviewed 1/12
- Raheem Morris, defensive coordinator (Rams): To interview 1/20
- Bobby Slowik, offensive coordinator (Texans): To interview 1/21
- Anthony Weaver, defensive line coach (Ravens): Interviewed 1/14
- Steve Wilks, defensive coordinator (49ers): Interviewed 1/13
Cowboys Not Expected To Extend HC Mike McCarthy
Mike McCarthy will be sticking around Dallas for the 2024 season, but he’ll do so on an expiring deal. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Cowboys are not expected to extend McCarthy before the start of the 2024 campaign. The Cowboys head coach is heading into the final year of his contract.
[RELATED: Cowboys To Retain HC Mike McCarthy For 2024 Season]
Following another frustrating playoff exit, there were many pundits who speculated that McCarthy would be the scapegoat. Instead, owner Jerry Jones gave his head coach a vote of confidence and definitively stated that McCarthy would be back with the Cowboys in 2024. An extension would have obviously been a much louder affirmation, and while McCarthy will temporarily keep his job, he’ll head into the 2024 season with lame-duck status.
While many head coaches and front offices try to avoid these lame-duck situations, Schefter notes that Jones is thinking differently. The owner believes McCarthy will be “challenged in a different way” with an expiring deal, and he’s hoping the pressure will “bring out the best” in his head coach.
This also isn’t an unprecedented move by the Cowboys organization. Schefter points out that Jones twice had McCarthy’s predecessor, Jason Garrett, coach on the final year of his contract. The first time around, the Cowboys went 12-4 and earned Garrett a new five-year deal. Following the second instance, the Cowboys went 8-8 and Garrett wasn’t re-signed, leading to McCarthy’s hiring.
While McCarthy has made it clear that his contract status won’t be a distraction, sources told Schefter that it could have an impact on the rest of his staff. Since McCarthy’s future in Dallas is uncertain, the head coach may have a tough time filling openings on his staff. Further, some sources questioned how Cowboys players will react to McCarthy’s status if the Cowboys go through a rough stretch in 2024.
The Cowboys have finished with 12 wins in each of the past three seasons, but they only have a single playoff win over that span. The Cowboys haven’t advanced past the divisional round of the playoffs since the last time they won the Super Bowl in 1995.
Latest On Panthers’ GM Search
11:10am: Giants assistant GM Brandon Brown and Eagles assistant GM Alec Halaby were among the candidates to earn second interviews with the Panthers, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Morgan also remains in contention for the job.
9:05am: The Panthers continue to make progress with their GM search. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the organization has “quietly” started their second round of interviews.
It’s uncertain which candidates have earned second interviews, but Jones points out that assistant GM Dan Morgan entered the interview process as a “strong candidate” for the gig. A first-round pick by the Panthers back in 2001, Morgan returned to the Panthers in 2021, when he was hired as Scott Fitterer‘s assistant GM.
While Fitterer was let go after the 2023 campaign, Morgan was still expected to be a contender for the open job. There were also whispers that the Panthers cold consider pairing Morgan with a football ops-side hire, but it sounds like the executive is a serious candidate for the full-time gig.
After officially ending his playing career in 2009, Morgan pursued front office jobs. He spent eight years in Seattle, working his way up from scouting intern to director of pro personnel. He took on that same role with the Bills in 2018 and spent three seasons in Buffalo.
The new GM will be tasked with turning around a franchise that doesn’t own its first-round pick despite finishing with the NFL’s worst record. With Cowboys vice president of player personnel Will McClay withdrawing from consideration, there are 11 current candidates for the Carolina job:
- Brandon Brown, assistant general manager (Giants): Interview requested
- Mike Disner, chief operating officer (Lions): Interview requested
- Ed Dodds, assistant general manager (Colts): Interviewed 1/14
- Mike Greenberg, assistant general manager (Buccaneers): Interview requested
- Alec Halaby, assistant general manager (Eagles): To interview
- Khai Harley, assistant general manager (Saints): Interview requested
- Champ Kelly, interim general manager (Raiders): Interviewed 1/11
- Nick Matteo, vice president of football administration (Ravens): Interviewed 1/15
- Dan Morgan, assistant general manager (Panthers): To interview
- Samir Suleiman, vice president of football administration (Panther): To interview
- Brandt Tilis, vice president of football operations (Chiefs): Interviewed 1/15
Coaching Notes: Giants, O’Brien, Panthers
We’ve got another candidate for the Giants ST coordinator job. According to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, the Giants interviewed Jets assistant special teams coach Michael Ghobrial for the position.
Ghobrial has been with the Jets since 2021, working alongside Brant Boyer and Leon Washington. Prior to his stint in New York, the coach served as a special teams coordinator in the college ranks, spending time with Washington State, Hawai’i, and Tarleton State.
The Giants have been forced to pivot to assistant ST coordinator to replace Thomas McGaughey. The team was denied interviews with ST coordinators like Marquice Williams (Falcons), Chris Tabor (Panthers), and Ryan Ficken (Chargers), although Dan Duggan of The Athletic notes that the Giants could revisit their pursuit of Williams since Atlanta is no longer blocking interviews.
49ers assistant special teams coach Matt Harper and Bears assistant special teams coach Carlos Polk have reportedly interviewed for the job, while Seahawks special teams coordinator Larry Izzo has also been mentioned as a potential candidate.
More coaching notes from around the NFL…
- Speaking of Thomas McGaughey, the former Giants ST coordinator is interviewing for the same job with the Patriots, according to Raanan. The veteran coach spent the past six seasons as the Giants special teams coordinator, serving on three different coaching staffs. McGaughey previously had stints as the ST coordinator with the Panthers, 49ers, and Jets.
- While the Patriots have and will continue to consider a number of in-house options for both coaching and front office roles, one of their coordinators won’t be sticking around. We heard yesterday that Bill O’Brien was heading to Ohio State as their offensive coordinator, a somewhat surprising development considering the organization’s reliance on continuity in a post-Bill Belichick era. However, as Albert Breer of SI.com writes, the Patriots always intended to conduct a “full search” for a new offensive coordinator. This meant O’Brien wasn’t necessarily eschewing the New England opportunity; rather, he opted for the definitive offer at Ohio State vs. the potential offer with the Patriots.
- As our 2024 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker shows, four of the 12 candidates for the Panthers HC job have defensive backgrounds. While the organization is certainly considering these defensive-minded candidates, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that the Panthers still prefer to hire an offensive-minded coach, per ESPN’s David Newton. The belief is that an offensive coach would be an ideal choice to help with the development of quarterback Bryce Young.
Falcons Interview Jim Harbaugh For HC Job
After meeting with Bill Belichick yesterday regarding their head coaching vacancy, the Falcons have added another major name to the list of candidates. The team announced that they’ve completed an interview with Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh.
[RELATED: Latest On Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Negotiations]
Similar to Belichick, Harbaugh was rumored to be a potential head coaching candidate in Atlanta. While these two major names navigated the early portion of the head coaching cycle, the Falcons seemingly operated as if neither would be available, with the team requesting interviews with 10 other candidates. Now, owner Arthur Blank has met with the two biggest names on the market.
Since parting ways with the 49ers after the 2014 campaign, Harbaugh has guided Michigan to an 86-25 record, including a 37-3 mark over the past three years. His efforts culminated in a National Championship win last week, and that performance put him firmly back on the NFL head coaching map. Harbaugh has already interviewed for the Chargers job, and he’s been a rumored candidate in both Las Vegas and Washington.
While the NFL interest is heating up, there’s also been rumors that Harbaugh could ultimately land back in Michigan. We heard earlier today that the coach continues to discuss a new contract with the school, one that could include a clause that would prevent Michigan from firing him as a result of any NCAA sanctions brought about by the ongoing investigations.
On the flip side, some of Harbaugh’s negotiation tactics have also pointed to an NFL return. At the moment, a suitor would need to pay a buyout of $1.5MM to hire Harbaugh away from Michigan. The school has been pushing to raise that number to $4MM, and while Harbaugh hasn’t necessarily denied that notion, he reportedly wants to push back the deadline that hiring fee to February 15, well after this year’s NFL coaching hires have been made.
Harbaugh would certainly make sense for a Falcons organization that’s desperate for a Super Bowl win. The organization has recently opted for first-time head coaches (a grouping that includes Jim Mora Jr., Bobby Petrino, Mike Smith, Dan Quinn, Arthur Smith), leading many to believe that Blank was seeking a more experienced voice. With more than 20 years of coaching experience, Harbaugh would certainly fit the bill.
There are now 12 definitive candidates for the Falcons head coaching vacancy, a grouping that includes:
- Bill Belichick, former head coach (Patriots): Interviewed 1/15
- Brian Callahan, offensive coordinator (Bengals): Interviewed 1/13
- Ejiro Evero, defensive coordinator (Panthers): Interviewed 1/14
- Aaron Glenn, defensive coordinator (Lions): Interview requested
- Ben Johnson, offensive coordinator (Lions): Interview requested
- Mike Macdonald, defensive coordinator (Ravens): Interviewed 1/12
- Raheem Morris, defensive coordinator (Rams): Interview requested
- Antonio Pierce, interim head coach (Raiders): Interview requested
- Bobby Slowik, offensive coordinator (Texans): Interview requested
- Anthony Weaver, defensive line coach (Ravens): Interviewed 1/14
- Steve Wilks, defensive coordinator (49ers): Interviewed 1/13
NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 1/16/24
Here are today’s reserve/futures contracts:
Chicago Bears
- C Doug Kramer, DE Khalid Kareem
Cleveland Browns
- DT Jayden Peevy
Dallas Cowboys
Green Bay Packers
- LB Deslin Alexandre, LB Deandre Johnson, LB Christian Young
Las Vegas Raiders
- OL Ben Brown, S Tyreque Jones, RB Tyreik McAllister
Los Angeles Rams
- TE Miller Forristall, TE Nikola Kalinic, G Grant Miller, WR Xavier Smith
Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 1/16/24
As playoff teams prepare for the second round of the postseason, they continue to tinker with their practice squads:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DB Christian Matthew
- Released: DB Jeremy Lucien
Buffalo Bills
- Released: RB Leonard Fournette
Houston Texans
- Signed: DT McTelvin Agim
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DE Austin Bryant
- Released: RB Jeremy McNichols
Leonard Fournette‘s brief stint with the Bills has come to an end. The veteran running back joined Buffalo’s practice squad in October, but it took him until Week 16 to make his season debut. Fournette ended up getting into a pair of games for the Bills, collecting 40 rushing yards on 12 attempts. He wasn’t active for the team’s playoff opener, and after reverting to the practice squad, he now finds himself a free agent.
Raiders Interview Kris Richard For HC Job
After a year away from coaching, Kris Richard is generating head coaching interest. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Raiders conducted an in-person interview with Richard today.
[RELATED: 2024 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]
Most recently, Richard was the Saints’ defensive backs coach during Sean Payton’s final season in New Orleans, and he earned a promotion to co-defensive coordinator when Payton left in 2022. Following one season in that role, the Saints parted way with the coach last offseason. Richard generated coordinator interviews with the Panthers, Broncos, and Dolphins but ended up sitting out the 2023 campaign.
Richard made a name for himself as defensive backs coach and eventually defensive coordinator in Seattle, where he was credited with forming the iconic Legion of Boom secondary. He won a Super Bowl as a DBs coach, and when he was promoted to coordinator, he guided the team to first-place and third-place finishes in points allowed. However, following a 2017 campaign where the Seahawks ranked 13th in points allowed, Richard was let go. The coach would go on to serve as the Cowboys defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator before heading to New Orleans in 2021.
This would be a bit of a homecoming for Richard. The 2002 third-round pick had a brief stint with the Raiders organization, spending a part of the 2007 campaign with the squad.
The search for Josh McDaniels‘ full-time replacement in Las Vegas has been slow going. Interim HC Antonio Pierce sounds like the favorite for the job, and there’s been rumors of a Bill Belichick and Jim Harbaugh pursuit. The only definitive candidate is former Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, who interviewed with the organization today. With the organization having interviewed Richard and Frazier, the organization has satisfied Rooney Rule obligations and can hire a coach as soon as they want, per ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez.
Giants Coaching Notes: RBs Coach, ST Coordinator, Daboll, Kafka
The Giants have added two coaches to their staff. The team announced that they’ve hired Joel Thomas as their new running backs coach and Aaron Wellman as their executive director of player performance.
Following a long stint in college coaching, Thomas was named the Saints running backs coach in 2015. Since then, the Saints are tied for second in the NFL with 161 rushing touchdowns, with Alvin Kamara earning five Pro Bowl selections over that span. Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Saints didn’t block the interview despite the lateral move, with the organization “not wanting to hold a coach back.”
Thomas is set to replace Jeff Nixon, who left his role with the Giants after one season to become Syracuse’s offensive coordinator.
Wellman was previously the Giants’ strength and conditioning coach on both Ben McAdoo and Pat Shurmur’s staffs. He’s spent the past four years as Indiana University’s senior assistant athletic director for football performance.
More Giants coaching notes:
- Thomas McGaughey was fired after six seasons as the Giants special teams coordinator, and the organization has started to look for his replacement. According to Rapoport, the Giants interviewed Matt Harper last weekend for the coordinator job. Harper has been with the 49ers organization since 2021, serving as the team’s assistant special teams coordinator.
- Meanwhile, ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports that Carlos Polk is also expected to be a candidate for the special teams job. The veteran coach spent the past two seasons as the Bears assistant special teams coach, and he previously held that same role with the Jaguars, Cowboys, Buccaneers, and Chargers.
- There’s more fallout from the sudden Giants/Don Martindale divorce, with much of it focused on head coach Brian Daboll and his handling of the coaching staff. According to Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News, the coaching staff’s finger pointing got so bad that GM Joe Schoen ended up tuning in to the coach’s headsets during games. This decision may have stemmed from the opinion of some coaches that Daboll’s sideline behavior was “destructive,” with Leonard noting that the coach’s input “was never proactive, always reactionary.”
- While the Daboll/Martindale argument grabbed headlines, Daboll also didn’t have the rosiest relationship with Mike Kafka. The offensive coordinator “received the brunt of Daboll’s fury” and was constantly second-guessed. This latter point was clear in Daboll’s handling of play-calling duties, as Kafka’s in-game responsibilities were constantly changing
Eagles’ Lane Johnson, Brandon Graham Intend To Play In 2024
Following last night’s disappointing playoff loss, we learned that at least one Eagles star was calling it career. Fortunately for the organization, a pair of veterans made it clear that they’ll be sticking around for 2024. Defensive end Brandon Graham and offensive lineman Lane Johnson told reporters that they intend to play next season, per Zach Berman of PHLY.
[RELATED: Eagles C Jason Kelce To Retire]
After spending the past 14 years in Philly, it was unclear if 2023 would be the final season of Graham’s career. While the 35-year-old didn’t come close to replicating his 11-sack campaign from 2022, he still finished the season having compiled 16 tackles, three sacks, and six QB hits. While the counting stats were down, Pro Football Focus ranked Graham 17th among 118 qualifying edge defenders.
Graham has continued to re-sign with the Eagles on short-term deals, and it sounds like he intends to stick around for at least one more season.
“I still feel like I got a little bit of juice,” Graham told reporters (h/t SPORTSRADIO 94WIP on X). “I really just want to have this one be [season No.] 15, farewell tour, call it a day, and move up in the organization and go upstairs and do that part on serving the guys. Keep building this thing.”
Johnson earned his third-straight All-Pro nod in 2023, and he managed to get into 16 games for the first time since the 2015 season. Despite the 2023 campaign marking his age-33 season, Johnson still managed to rank 11th among 83 qualifying offensive tackles, per Pro Football Focus. While Graham hinted at one more year, it sounds like Johnson could be sticking around the NFL for a few more years.
“I plan on finishing my career strong,” Johnson said (via Berman). “I think I have a few good years left and I’m going to take it to the limit.”
We learned this morning that center Jason Kelce was calling it career. As Berman notes, it’s uncertain whether long-time Eagles defensive tackle Fletcher Cox will be back for the 2024 campaign.