Vikings’ Chad Greenway Expects To Play In ’16
The Vikings suffered a devastating loss to the Seahawks earlier today, as kicker Blair Walsh missed a chip shot field goal that would have put Minnesota ahead with just seconds remaining in the contest. The defeat was so painful that it appears to have affected the plans of veteran Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway, who spoke about his NFL future after the game.
“I’ve got to play one more year,” Greenway told reporters, including Brian Murphy of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link). “I can’t let it end like this.”
If Greenway makes good on his intentions to return, he’ll be entering his 11th NFL season, all of which have been spent with the Vikings after they selected him in the first round of the 2006 draft. This isn’t the first we’ve heard of Greenway wanting to return for the 2016 campaign (he said as much in late December), but it sounds as though today’s loss has reinforced those wishes.
Of course, the feeling would need to be mutual, as the Vikings also have a decision to make on Greenway. The 32-year-old isn’t signed for next season — he earned a base salary of $3.4MM this season after accepting a pay cut, and he’d likely have to take even less than that to return. With Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr dominating the snaps at linebacker, Greenway only saw the field in base packages, playing in about 58% of Minnesota’s snaps.
Photo courtesy of USA Sports Images.
Bills Extend GM Doug Whaley
4:01pm: The extension will align Whaley’s contract with that of Ryan’s, meaning both men are now locked up though 2019, according to Tyler Dunne of the Buffalo News (Twitter link).
3:25pm: It’s a multi-year extension for Whaley, not a one-year “band-aid,” reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
3:03pm: The Bills have agreed to an extension with general manager Doug Whaley, team owner Kim Pegula announced today (via Twitter). Reports indicated last week that the two sides were working on a deal that would keep Whaley in Buffalo beyond 2016, and it appears that a contract did ultimately come together.
[RELATED: Bills plan to cut Mario Williams in offseason]
Whaley had just one year left on his contract before today’s agreement, and a report last week that owner Terry Pegula had issued an ultimatum to both Whaley and head coach Rex Ryan — win in 2016, or find new employment. That report was later refuted by other scribes and sources, but there’s no doubting that both the front office and coaching staff is under pressure to succeed next season. As PFR’s Luke Adams noted in the post linked above, the Pegulas spent $1.4 billion to purchase the franchise in 2014, so they probably wouldn’t worry about eating a few million dollars to replace a GM and/or head coach.
Whaley, who has been Buffalo’s GM since 2013, will certainly have his hands full during the upcoming offseason. He’ll need to consider extensions for offensive lineman Cordy Glenn and Richie Incognito, and perhaps most importantly, decide if his club will go forward with Tyrod Taylor as its starting quarterback.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Week In Review: 1/3/16 – 1/10/16
The headlines from the past week at PFR:
For all the latest on coaching news, be sure to follow our 2016 Head Coaching Search Tracker.
Coaching:
- The Dolphins have found a new head coach, hiring former Bears OC Adam Gase and signing him to five-year deal.
- After 12 years, the Giants parted ways with head coach Tom Coughlin.
- In a surprising move, the Buccaneers fired head coach Lovie Smith after two seasons.
- The Browns fired head coach Mike Pettine after two years.
- The 49ers fired Jim Tomsula after one season at the helm.
- Sean Payton will return as the Saints‘ head coach in 2016.
- The Bengals plan to retain head coach Marvin Lewis for a 14th season.
- The Colts extended head coach Chuck Pagano through 2019.
- Not wanting a lame duck coach, the Chargers extended Mike McCoy through 2017.
Front Office:
- The Lions hired former Patriots executive Bob Quinn as their new general manager.
- The Dolphins promoted Chris Grier to GM.
- The Browns promoted executive Sashi Brown to EVP of football operations while hiring MLB’s Paul DePodesta as chief strategy officer.
- The Titans parted ways with GM Ruston Webster.
- The Browns fired general manager Ray Farmer.
- The Colts extended general manger Ryan Grigson through 2019.
- The Falcons will retain general manager Thomas Dimitroff.
Extended:
- Chiefs – Demetrius Harris, TE (through 2018)
Signed:
- Washington – Cary Williams (link)
Other:
- Calvin Johnson considering retirement (link)
- Rams, Chargers, Raiders apply for LA relocation (link)
Lions Hire Ernie Accorsi As Special Advisor
After acting as a consultant during the Lions’ search for a new general manager, Ernie Accorsi‘s time with the club won’t be coming to an end just yet, as Detroit has hired the longtime NFL executive as a special advisor to team president Rod Wood, according to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com.
[RELATED: Lions hire Bob Quinn as GM]
Accorsi, who also consulted with the Bears during their GM hunt last offseason, will bring a wealth of experience to the table as he works alongside Wood and first-time general manager Bob Quinn. The 74-year-old Accorsi has worked in the NFL since 1970, but his most memorable time came with the Giants, with whom he was employed from 1994-2007 (acting as GM from 1998 onward).
The move to bring in Accorsi could have wide-ranging implications for the Lions as a whole, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link), who says that Accorsi’s hiring should indicate that head coach Jim Caldwell is likely safe, as Accorsi has been very pragmatic regarding head coaches in the past. However, Accorsi himself told reporters, including Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com (Twitter link), that he will have nothing to do with Caldwell’s fate, as that decision will be left entirely to Quinn.
In other Lions news, Quinn will be officially be introduced as the club’s next general manger at a 2pm ET press conference tomorrow afternoon, tweets Twentyman.
Bengals Plan To Retain Marvin Lewis
Despite falling to 0-7 in the playoffs with a loss to the Steelers in the Wild Card round last night, Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis is likely to return for a 14th season in 2016, as Adam Schefter of ESPN reports (Twitter link). Per Schefter, Cincinnati has no plans to make a coaching change at this time, and Lewis’ future with the club “really isn’t much of an issue.”
[RELATED: 2016 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]
Reports this morning indicated that Lewis could be on the proverbial hot seat following last night’s loss. Not only did the defeat leave the coach still winless in the postseason, but the nature in which the Bengals lost was particularly embarrassing, with personal fouls in the final seconds of the contest ultimately costing Cincinnati a chance to move forward in the tournament.
Still, for a team that has preached continuity above all else, today’s report shouldn’t be particularly surprising. Under owner/GM Mike Brown, the Bengals aren’t a team to make reactionary decisions, as evidenced by Lewis being the second-longest tenured NFL head coach. It’s not as if Lewis hasn’t had success in the Queen City — he’s posted a career record of 112-92 — but until his team finally wins in the postseason, calls for him to be replaced aren’t likely to die down.
Cincinnati’s coaching staff is expected to undergo wholesale changes, however, at least on the assistant side of things. Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson is interviewing today with the Browns and the 49ers, and is said to be the leading candidate for the San Francisco job. Defensive coordinator Paul Guenther has drawn interest from both the Eagles and the Browns, while defensive backs coach Vance Joseph appears likely to become the Dolphins’ DC.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Latest On Dolphins’ Head Coaching Search
10:03pm: Gase continues to look like the clear favorite, as he’s already met with both Ryan Tannehill and Ndamukong Suh, according to Jeff Darlington of NFL.com (Twitter link).
9:02pm: The Dolphins were scheduled to meet with Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson on Sunday, but that meeting has been canceled, a source tells Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. 
[RELATED: Hue Jackson the favorite for 49ers head coaching job]
It’s unclear based on the report who exactly canceled the interview: Jackson or the Dolphins. Jackson, who is set to meet with the Browns and 49ers on Sunday, may have requested to terminate the meeting because he prefers other jobs. But it’s more likely that Miami canceled the interview, probably due to their overwhelming interest in Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase.
The Dolphins are said to be making a “strong push” for Gase, and have scheduled a second interview with him for Saturday. He’s the only candidate to have yet been invited back for a second go-round, indicating a level of seriousness from Miami. Indeed, in the article linked above, Salguero writes that “all signs point” to Gase landing in South Beach, noting that Gase was owner Stephen Ross‘ preferred candidate from the start of the search process.
In related news, if Gase is made the Dolphins’ head coach, Bengals defensive backs coach Vance Joseph will be a strong contender for Miami’s defensive coordinator gig, according to Alex Marvez of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Joseph was a candidate for both the Broncos and 49ers DC positions last year, but Cincinnati blocked him from leaving for either opportunity. That won’t happen this year, says Marvez, because Joseph’s contract is expiring.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Extra Points: Lions, Colts, Broncos, J. Smith
Now that the Lions have hired Bob Quinn as their new general manager, Detroit coaches are wondering if they still have a job, as Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press writes. Obviously, there will be some turnover as a new regime takes over, but two Lions coaches told Birkett they have not been updated as to the status of their employment.
However, the club’s head coach, Jim Caldwell, might be one of the lucky ones, as a Patriots insider tells Mike O’Hara of Lions.com that Quinn is likely to retain Caldwell for 2016. Detroit’s upper management has been adamant that the new GM would get to decide Caldwell’s fate, and while we’ll have to wait for official word, at least one source thinks Caldwell will get to stay.
Meanwhile, while interim GM Sheldon White was thanked in a team statement, there’s been no indication as to whether he’ll revert back to his old position of director of player personnel, tweets Paula Pasche of the Oakland Press.
More from around the league…
- Though the Colts retained some level of stability by keeping both GM Ryan Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano, the club’s roster figures to see an overhaul, per Mike Chappell of CBS4, who singles out Andre Johnson and Trent Cole as players who are likely to be cut this offseason.
- By being selected second-team All-Pro instead of first-team, Broncos corner Chris Harris missed out on an extra $500K, according to Mike Klis of 9News. First-team recognition would have bumped up Harris’ 2016 salary from $6.9MM to $7.4MM.
- Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith‘s surgery to repair a torn ACL and MCL “went about as well as it possibly could have,” a source tells Brian Hamilton of Sports Illustrated. Smith was expected to a be top-10 selection in this year’s draft, but that stock will obviously be affected by this major injury.
- Had Hue Jackson been offered the opportunity to return as Raiders head coach for a second season in 2012, he planned to make a change at defensive coordinator. His No. 1 choice? Jack Del Rio, who is now ironically Oakland’s head coach himself. “I had him locked in and everything,” Jackson told Mike Silver of NFL.com. “I think we would have worked really well together.”
Giants’ Jon Beason Contemplating Retirement
Giants linebacker Jon Beason will require offseason knee surgery which could place his career in jeopardy, reports Alex Marvez of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Beason indicates that he will attempt to return to the NFL in 2016, but if his knee does not respond to rehab treatments, he could retire.
[RELATED: Giants to interview Lions DC Teryl Austin]
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of Beason’s career possibly ending prematurely due to injury. When Beason, 30, was originally placed on injured reserve back in November, reports indicated that his NFL tenure was likely finished. Injuries are nothing new for Beason, whom the Giants from the Panthers in 2007. While he was extremely durable during his first four years in the league (he didn’t miss a single game), Beason played in just 29 out of a possible 80 games from 2011-15, including only nine games during the past two seasons with New York.
Beason and the Giants agreed to a three-year, $14MM contract prior to the 2014 season, but the two sides restructured that deal before the 2015 campaign, slashing Beason’s base salary by nearly half. Beason would have been able to make up much of that loss via playing time incentives, but he presumably will be unable to reach those goals now. If he does end up retiring, Beason will count for about $1.47MM on the Giants’ cap in 2016.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NFL Workouts/Visits: 1/8/16
As teams look ahead to formulating their offseason rosters, they’ve begun to bring in free agents for both workouts and visits. Let’s look at the latest:
Workouts
Chargers (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
- Freddie Bishop, DL
- Euclid Cummings, DE
- Cleyon Laing, DL
Chiefs (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Michael Buchanan, DE
- Jordan Kovacs, S
- Eze Obiora, DE
- Alameda Ta’amu, DT
Jaguars (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Brandon Fields, P
- Marvin Kloss, K
- Spencer Lanning, P
Ravens (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Jeff Fuller, WR
- Eric Rogers, WR (Twitter link via Adam Caplan of ESPN)
- Terrell Sinkfield, WR
Steelers (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Freddie Bishop, DL
- Dexter McCoil, LB
- Eric Rogers, WR
- Dustin Vaughan, QB
Washington (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Cleyon Laing, DL
- Eric Rogers, WR
Visits
Cardinals (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Toby Johnson, DT (prior to signing with Vikings’ practice squad)
Chiefs (Twitter links via Wilson)
- Kenny Cook, WR
- Adrian Hubbard, LB
Giants (Twitter link via Wilson)
- Jake Bequette, DE
Steelers (Twitter link via Wilson)
Titans To Interview Chris Ballard For GM
The Titans are scheduled to interview Chiefs director of football operations Chris Ballard for their general manager vacancy on Monday, reports Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). We learned yesterday that Tennessee had requested and received permission to interview Ballard.
[RELATED: Patriots OC Josh McDaniels interested in Titans’ head coaching job]
Ballard, who just completed his third season with Kansas City, has been an NFL personnel man for 15 years, and was considered a strong candidate for the Bears GM job at this time last year. He’s one of several candidates for the Titans position, joining former Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist, Giants exec Marc Ross, and former Lions GM Martin Mayhew. The club also confirmed today that it had interviewed Jaguars director of player personnel Chris Polian and Buccaneers director of player personnel Jon Robinson.
As the Titans seek to replace Ruston Webster, there’s a question as to how their GM search will affect their hunt for new head coach. As Alex Marvez of FOX Sports notes (via Twitter), it’s a little surprising that Tennessee got such a late start; while the Dolphins, for example, have already completed seven head coaching interviews, the Titans have completed zero, as our head coaching search tracker shows.