HEADLINES

Author: Dallas Robinson

Coaching Notes: Giants, Kitchens, Cowboys

January 15th, 2020 at 8:47pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Giants have interviewed both former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett and incumbent offensive coordinator Mike Shula for their vacant OC position, but new head coach Joe Judge may have a few other names in mind, as well. Judge is interested in speaking to ex-Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens and former Dolphins OC Chad O’Shea about positions on his staff, according to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. Kitchens served as the Browns’ offensive play-caller during the latter portion of the 2018 campaign before becoming head coach in 2019, while O’Shea lasted only one year in Miami. Both could presumably also be considered as position coaches on Judge’s staff.

Here’s more from the coaching circuit:

  • The Broncos have formally announced the addition of former Giants head coach Pat Shurmur as their new offensive coordinator, and Shurmur will receive a two-year contract, tweets Mike Klis of 9 News. Shurmur reportedly had other offers on the table, but chose the opportunity in Denver after the Broncos surprisingly fired first-year play-caller Rich Scangarello earlier this week. A longtime NFL OC, Shurmur will bring in his own quarterbacks coach, as incumbent T.C. McCartney has been fired, per Benjamin Allbright (Twitter link).
  • Former Maryland interim head coach Matt Canada has been hired as the Steelers‘ new quarterbacks coach, the club announced. Pittsburgh did not have a formal QBs coach in 2019, as offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner held the role. Canada, who has a long history of coaching in the collegiate ranks, took over as the Terrapins’ interim coach in 2018 after D.J. Durkin was placed on administrative leave.
  • New Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy has hired Skip Peete as running backs coach, reports Lindsey Thiry of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Peete, who previously coached in Dallas from 2007-12, spent the last four seasons with the Rams, and also has experience with the Raiders and Bears. He’ll be replacing Gary Brown, who had taken over for Peete in 2013.
  • The Panthers requested permission to interview Saints assistant offensive line coach Brendan Nugent, but New Orleans rejected the ask because Carolina is a division rival, according to Jeff Duncan of The Athletic (Twitter link), who adds Nugent is a longtime friend of new Panthers offensive coordinator Joe Brady. Nugent previously spent time with the Bears as well as in the collegiate ranks.
  • Michigan linebackers coach Anthony Campanile is joining the Dolphins‘ staff in an as-yet unspecified role, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Campanile recently turned down an opportunity to become the defensive coordinator at Rutgets, per Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (Twitter link).

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/15/20

January 15th, 2020 at 7:58pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s reserve/futures deals:

Baltimore Ravens

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

  • DB DaShaun Amos

Houston Texans

Minnesota Vikings

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Redskins Announce 16 Coaching Hires

January 15th, 2020 at 6:48pm CST by Dallas Robinson

New Redskins head coach Ron Rivera had already brought in new coordinators on both sides of the ball (Scott Turner on offense, Jack Del Rio on defense), and he’s now filled out the rest of his staff. Rivera and Washington announced the following 16 hires earlier today:

  • Pete Hoener, tight ends
  • Jim Hostler, wide receivers
  • Randy Jordan, running backs
  • John Matsko, offensive line
  • Drew Terrell, assistant wide receivers
  • Travelle Wharton, assistant offensive line
  • Ken Zampese, quarterbacks
  • Chris Harris, defensive backs
  • Sam Mills III, defensive line
  • Richard Rodgers, assistant defensive backs
  • Steve Russ, linebackers
  • Brent Vieselmeyer, assistant defensive backs
  • Luke Del Rio, offensive quality control
  • Ben Jacobs, assistant special teams
  • Vincent Rivera, defensive quality control
  • Todd Storm, offensive quality control

Both Hostler and Zampese have both previously served as offensive coordinators. Hostler was the 49ers’ OC for a single season in 2007 under head coach Mike Nolan, but was fired after only one year at the helm. Zampese, meanwhile, was the Bengals’ offensive playcaller in 2016 and part of 2017 before being let go. He’s since coached for the Browns, the AAF’s Atlanta Legends, and the University of Florida.

Unsurprisingly, a number of new Redskins coached worked under Rivera in Carolina, including Hoener, Hostler, Matsko, Terrell, Wharton, Mills, Rodgers, and Russ.

Bears To Hire John DeFilippo As QBs Coach

January 15th, 2020 at 5:36pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bears have hired former Jaguars offensive coordinator John DeFilippo as their new quarterbacks coach, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Incumbent Chicago quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone is being promoted to passing game coordinator.

DeFilippo didn’t last long in the free agent coaching ranks after being let go by Jacksonville earlier this week. The 41-year-old spent only a single season with the Jaguars, leading an offense which ranked 24th in offensive DVOA and 26th in scoring.

In Jacksonville, DeFilippo was dealt an early blow when free agent addition Nick Foles went down in Week 1, but he was able to coax a reasonable performance out of sixth-round rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew. The Jaguars represented DeFilippo’s third OC job, and neither of his first two gigs (with the Browns and the Vikings) lasted more than one year, either.

In Chicago, DeFilippo will work alongside Ragone and new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor in an effort to right the Mitchell Trubisky ship. Head coach Matt Nagy will retain play-calling duty, but DeFilippo, Ragone, and Lazor will surely all have a hand in not only Trubisky’s continued development, but the Bears’ weekly game-planning.

AFC West Notes: Chiefs, McCoy, Raiders

December 5th, 2019 at 9:32pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Let’s take a quick spin around the AFC West:

  • Chiefs running back LeSean McCoy has settled a lawsuit with his former girlfriend in which she accused him of orchestrating an attack against her in 2018, according to a report from the Associated Press. Delicia Gordon claimed McCoy failed to protect her from being robbed, bloodied, and beaten in a July incident, and later revised her lawsuit to allege McCoy abused her and organized the assault. McCoy, for his part, has denied the allegations, never been charged with a crime, and was never suspended or placed on the commissioner’s exempt list by the NFL.
  • The Raiders could potentially be without one of their best offensive players when they face the Titans on Sunday. Rookie running back Josh Jacobs recently indicated on Snapchat that he’s been playing through a fractured shoulder, and he’s now missed consecutive practices, per Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com (Twitter link). With Oakland’s postseason odds dwindling (11%, per FiveThirtyEight), the Raiders could opt to hold Jacobs out. Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington would be in line for more work if Jacobs missed Week 14.
  • In case you missed it, the Chiefs placed running back Darrell Williams on injured reserve this week and replaced him by signing old friend Spencer Ware.
  • Broncos edge rusher Von Miller may miss another game while nursing a hamstring strain. Miller previously hadn’t been sidelined for a contest since tearing his ACL in 2013.

NFC East Notes: Cowboys, Garrett, Redskins

December 5th, 2019 at 8:01pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cowboys aren’t planning to fire head coach Jason Garrett during the season, but some reports have indicated needs to lead Dallas to a Super Bowl victory in order to keep his job. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has offered his fair share of criticism of Garrett this year, and earlier this week, he made a peculiar comment sure to draw the eye of observers. “In my opinion, Jason Garrett will be coaching in the NFL next year,” Jones said this week on 105.3 The Fan (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News). Notably, Jones didn’t say exactly where he thinks Garrett will coaching in 2020.

Here’s more from the NFC East:

  • Don’t expect Trent Williams to mend fences with the Redskins any time soon. Williams, who didn’t play this season while holding out, holds a great deal of animus against the Washington organization for how it handled a cancerous tumor that appeared on his head. “I don’t see how it can be reconciled,” Williams told Les Carpenter of the Washington Post. “At the end of the day I’m a human being, I ain’t like a dog and you can slap s— out of me and I’m going to come back the next morning with my tail wagging. This was a conscious decision, they didn’t burn the bridge by accident. This was something they felt comfortable doing, so I got to feel comfortable with moving on, too.”
  • Most of Williams’ ire is directed towards Redskins president Bruce Allen, per Carpenter. Williams claims Allen ignored calls and texts from Williams and his agent while the club was searching for a helmet that would accommodate Williams’ pain. Williams believes Allen did so that the Redskins can argue Williams still has two years left on his contract, which could raise his trade value this offseason. Allen, for his part, calls the allegations “comical.”
  • Group Giants owner Steve Tisch with those who think Colin Kaepernick‘s workout session in Atlanta last month was botched by the NFL. “I just felt, you know, what happened in Atlanta was unfortunate,” Tisch told Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic. “It didn’t seem to be very well organized. And I just, I don’t know how it all sort of fell apart.” Tisch also said he hopes the issue is brought up during next week’s league meetings.

Poll: Who Will Get The No. 1 Overall Pick In 2020?

December 5th, 2019 at 7:04pm CST by Dallas Robinson

With only four weeks left in the 2019 regular season, a number of non-contending NFL teams have already started to look ahead to the impending offseason, and specifically, the 2020 draft. Four teams — the Bengals, Giants, Dolphins, and Redskins — still have a realistic chance of securing the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s draft, according to Football Outsiders’ odds.

Let’s take a look at each of those teams and assess the likelihood that they’ll be picking first overall next April:

Cincinnati Bengals

  • Record: 1-11
  • 59.6% chance of securing No. 1 overall pick per FO
  • Remaining schedule: Browns, Patriots, Dolphins, Browns

The Bengals didn’t exactly head into the 2019 campaign with the intention of tanking, but that’s what’s happened, as Cincinnati didn’t secure its first victory until last week. With Andy Dalton now back under center, the Bengals certainly stand a better chance of winning another game or two than they would have under rookie three-game starter Ryan Finley. But there’s still a very real — and perhaps even likely scenario — in which Cincinnati finished 1-15 en route to selecting LSU quarterback Joe Burrow first overall.

New York Giants

  • Record: 2-10
  • 22.7% chance of securing No. 1 overall pick
  • Remaining schedule: Eagles, Dolphins, Redskins, Eagles

Like the Bengals, the Giants are also turning back to their old starter, albeit involuntarily. With Daniel Jones nursing an ankle sprain, Eli Manning could potentially start Big Blue’s four remaining games. They’ll get to face the reeling Eagles twice over the next four weeks, and will also go up against two other clubs — Miami and Washington — which are also vying for the No. 1 pick. With Jones already in tow, New York isn’t going to draft another quarterback, so it could either trade down (not a favorite tactic of general manager Dave Gettleman) or select a generational defender like Ohio State’s Chase Young with the first overall pick.

Miami Dolphins

  • Record: 3-9
  • 8.5% chance of securing No. 1 overall pick
  • Remaining schedule: Jets, Giants, Bengals, Patriots

The Dolphins’ tanking efforts haven’t exactly gone according to plan, but that’s okay, as Miami’s players have continued to go hard for first-year head coach Brian Flores, with the club winning three of its last five games. While it doesn’t appear the Dolphins are going to secure the top pick in next year’s draft, they do still have an outside shot at doing so, especially given that they’ll play both the Giants and Bengals over the next month.

Washington Redskins

  • Record: 3-9
  • 7.9% chance of securing No. 1 overall pick
  • Remaining schedule: Packers, Eagles, Giants, Cowboys

The only team on this list that will definitively have a new head coach in 2020, the Redskins probably lost any chance they had at the No. 1 pick by surprisingly defeating the Panthers in Week 13 (and may have gotten Carolina head coach Ron Rivera fired in the process). Of all the teams vying for the first overall pick, Washington faces arguably the most difficult schedule, as they’ll square off with three teams that are still contending for the postseason.

So what do you think? Which of these teams will be first at the podium when the 2020 draft rolls? Vote below (link for app users):

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/5/19

December 5th, 2019 at 6:04pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s minor moves:

Carolina Panthers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

Free Agent RB Alex Collins Now Healthy, No Longer Suspended

November 21st, 2019 at 9:51pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Free agent running back Alex Collins has recovered from a broken leg he suffered earlier this year and is now available to work out for teams, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Not only has Collins regained his health, but his three-game suspension has officially concluded, per Rapoport. The 25-year-old was handed the ban earlier this month pleading guilty to two misdemeanor charges for possession of a handgun and possession of marijuana.

A fifth-round pick of the Seahawks in 2016, Collins broke out the following season after making his way onto the Ravens’ active roster. In 15 games (12 starts), Collins posted 973 yards and six touchdowns on 212 carries, good for 4.6 yards per attempt. He also finished eighth in Football Outsiders‘ success rate, which measures how well a running back helps move the sticks.

It’s unclear if any NFL clubs will have interest in Collins as the end of the regular season approaches. While teams will surely be wary of Collins’ off-field problems and health question marks, his age and past production will likely garner him a few workouts.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/21/19

November 21st, 2019 at 8:46pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s practice squad updates:

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Los Angeles Rams

New England Patriots

New York Jets

  • Signed: OL Ryan Crozier

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: C J.C. Hassenauer
  • Released: TE Kevin Rader

Washington Redskins

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