Coaching Notes: Jags, Culley, Nagy
Things have not gone well for the Jaguars this year. Urban Meyer failed to make it through his first year as an NFL head coach, No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence has the second-worst QB rating among qualified passers, and the club has mustered just two wins against 11 losses. The good news, as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes, is that the Jacksonville head coaching job is considered a desirable one, and many candidates who are expected to be hot commodities in the upcoming coaching cycle are anxious to secure an interview with owner Shad Khan.
That is largely because of Lawrence, who is still considered a generational talent despite his rookie struggles. Former Eagles HC Doug Pederson is reportedly interested in the post, and Patriots OC Josh McDaniels and Bills OC Brian Daboll might also be attractive options for Khan given their recent work with young signal-callers. One way or another, Khan should not have any difficulty luring a top candidate to Duval, though he obviously needs to get this hire right.
Here are several other coaching-related items:
- Jaguars interim HC Darrell Bevell will have a chance to have the interim tag removed and interview for the permanent head coaching gig. He does have Lawrence’s support, but his candidacy will depend on how the team’s offense performs down the stretch. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com expects Ravens DC Don Martindale — the architect of the Jags’ Joe Cullen-led defense — to be in the mix as well (Twitter link).
- We recently heard that the Texans are expected to retain head coach David Culley for 2022, but GM Nick Caserio is at least considering his options, per La Canfora. Culley, a 66-year-old coach who had spent his entire career as an assistant, was the most surprising hire of the 2021 cycle, but as Houston was (and is) in the midst of a complete rebuild, the club was perhaps looking for more of a caretaker than anything else. Caserio is rumored to have his eye on one unnamed candidate for the next phase of the rebuild, and it’s not difficult to connect the dots to McDaniels. The Houston HC job may not attract many in-demand candidates for 2022, which means that Culley could get one more year at the helm. However, if McDaniels does not land his own head coaching post in the coming months, he and Caserio could reunite in Texas in 2023.
- No surprises here, but La Canfora, in the same Culley piece linked above, says many assistants on Bears HC Matt Nagy‘s staff are operating under the assumption that they will need to find new employment at season’s end. It has been assumed that Nagy will be terminated after the season is over, though La Canfora leaves open the possibility that Nagy could get his walking papers before then so that Chicago can get a head start on the interview process.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/19/21
Given the recent surge of COVID-19 cases throughout the league, we expected to see more roster churning today than we typically would on a December Sunday. Here are today’s minor (and not so minor) moves. This page will, of course, be updated throughout the day:
Baltimore Ravens
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Jimmy Smith
- Promoted: DB Mazzi Wilkins
Buffalo Bills
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: G Jon Feliciano
- Promoted: OL Jacob Capra
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on reserve/COVID-19 list: DE Jadeveon Clowney (story)
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: G Wyatt Teller
- Promoted: OT Alex Taylor
Philadelphia Eagles
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: RB Jason Huntley, WR Quez Watkins
Washington Football Team
- Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: WR Cam Sims, DT Daniel Wise
Eagles Secure First-Round Pick From Carson Wentz Trade
It has felt like a foregone conclusion for a few weeks now, but the Eagles have officially secured the Colts’ 2022 first-round pick under the terms of the Carson Wentz trade that the two clubs consummated back in February. In exchange for Wentz, Indianapolis gave up a 2021 third-rounder and a conditional 2022 second-rounder that would turn into a first-round choice if Wentz played 75% of the Colts’ offensive snaps this year (or if he played in 70% of the snaps and Indy qualified for the postseason).
After last night’s victory over the Patriots, Wentz has now played enough snaps to ensure that, even if he were to miss the next three games for some reason, he will not fall below the 75% threshold (h/t Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk). As such, Philadelphia will now be armed with three first-round selections in the 2022 draft (the Colts’, the Dolphins’, and their own).
Unfortunately for the Eagles, the Indy and Miami picks are not looking as valuable as they were a few weeks ago. The ‘Fins are in the midst of a five-game winning streak (and are favored to defeat the Jets today), and after a 1-3 start, the Colts have improved to 8-6 on the season.
Even if Philadelphia doesn’t end up with any top-10 selections, having three first-round choices in any draft is an enviable scenario. Of course, the big question is whether the Eagles will try to package those picks to trade for a veteran quarterback or to move up the draft board to secure a top collegiate passer.
Jalen Hurts‘ recent run of quality play led to some chatter that the club was comfortable enough with him under center to use its draft capital on other areas of need, but Hurts’ terrible showing against the Giants in Week 12 and reports about an organizational divide on his long-term viability have reopened the conversation about the Eagles’ quarterback plans.
Jets Unlikely To Extend Quinnen Williams In 2022?
When the 2021 season concludes, Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams will have three years of service time under his belt, thereby making him eligible for an extension. Despite how good Williams has been, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com expects the team to wait until 2023 to seriously consider a new contract for the budding star.
After all, the Alabama product will earn $10.6MM in 2022, the final year of his rookie contract. The Jets can keep him under club control through 2023 via the fifth-year option to his rookie deal, and at present, that option is worth $10.9MM. That number would jump to $16MM if Williams earns a Pro Bowl nod this year, but even if that happens, a two-year commitment for a total of $26.6MM is quite reasonable for a player of Williams’ caliber.
Plus, the franchise tag value for DTs is usually not too exorbitant, so if New York elects to tag Williams for the 2024 campaign, it will have secured his services from 2022-24 for no more than $45MM. Considering Williams would probably land a $20MM+ AAV contract if he were to hit the open market today, it’s easy to see why the Jets would be willing to wait on a bank-breaking extension, at least until the cap spikes again in 2023.
On the other hand, the club has developed a reputation of not rewarding its best players, so GM Joe Douglas could be tempted to reverse that trend with a player who not only looks like the anchor of the front seven for years to come, but who also is the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award. Taking a proactive approach certainly couldn’t hurt team morale and the outside perception of how the front office treats its top performers.
Pro Football Focus pegs Williams as a good defender this year, but not an elite one; his 65.3 overall score positions him as the 43rd-best interior defender out of 126 qualifiers. But this appears to be an instance where the advanced metrics do not quite mesh with the on-field production, as Williams has certainly been as much of a force as most of his top peers this season.
The fact that he excels as a pass rusher will only enhance his value. His 13 sacks over the past two seasons is second only to Aaron Donald‘s 16 among interior linemen.
Antonio Brown, Mike Edwards To Rejoin Buccaneers
Like country singer Vince Gill in 1993, Antonio Brown is getting one more last chance. When the Buccaneers receiver joined the team last season, head coach Bruce Arians told him that “there will be no second chances,” so Brown’s recent suspension for misrepresenting his vaccination status theoretically put his roster spot in jeopardy.
Indeed, Arians said earlier this month that no decision had been made with respect to Brown’s future with the team. However, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that Brown will rejoin the Bucs on Monday (the club’s contest against the Saints tonight marks the final game of his three-game ban).
Suspended players are allowed to attend meetings and work out in their team’s facility, and Brown has been doing just that. Arians’ comments notwithstanding, it would have been surprising to see Tampa Bay cut Brown given how productive he has been while on the field — 29 catches for 418 yards and four TDs through five games in 2021 — though it was at least somewhat possible that the Bucs would refrain from activating him as soon as he was eligible. We previously heard that the club wanted to ensure that Brown is focused on football and adhering to the league’s rules prior to activation, and apparently Arians has been satisfied with Brown’s behavior over the last several weeks.
The seven-time Pro Bowler was also dealing with an ankle injury that had been keeping him on the sidelines even before the suspension, but Rapoport says that the rehab has gone well and that Brown is ready to play. His next opportunity to do so will be against the Panthers next Sunday.
Safety Mike Edwards, who was suspended three games for his own COVID-19 protocol violations, will also rejoin the team on Monday.
Latest On COVID-19 Protocols
The NFL is continuing to modify its protocols in an effort to combat the COVID-19 outbreaks that have threatened to derail the final few weeks of the regular season. On Thursday, the league issued a statement advising that it was requiring masking regardless of vaccination status; mandating remote or outdoor meetings; eliminating in-person meals; and prohibiting outside visitors while on team travel.
However, per PFT, those additional protections will be removed after this weekend’s slate of games (Twitter link). Going forward, only teams with outbreaks will need to abide by those requirements.
That decision jibes with another modification, which is that fully vaccinated, asymptomatic players and staff will no longer be subject to weekly testing (Twitter link via Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network). As Dr. Allen Sills noted, the healthcare industry is not routinely testing medical providers, and is instead testing in a more “targeted” fashion (Twitter link via Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network).
Targeted testing for the NFL means that vaccinated individuals will be tested only if they are symptomatic. Unvaccinated individuals, meanwhile, will still be tested daily.
Even the Thursday statement that set forth what turned out to be temporarily enhanced protocols provided that a vaccinated and asymptomatic player will be eligible to return as soon as the day after one positive test (instead of having to test negative on back-to-back days). So the league has apparently decided that, at least during this period of rampant outbreaks, it doesn’t make sense to spend time and resources on players who have been vaccinated and who are not exhibiting any symptoms.
Interestingly, Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that a majority of players want to do away with COVID-19 protocols entirely. In other words, they want to eliminate all testing, all quarantine requirements, and operate just as they did in 2019. While one can certainly understand those sentiments, Pelissero says that union leadership does not feel that way and actually is still pushing for daily testing.
It is also worth noting, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes, that players will not be required to get a booster shot in order to maintain “fully vaccinated” status. However, all other Tier 1 personnel — coaches, trainers, etc. — are required to get a booster by December 27. The same goes for Tier 2 personnel (GMs, football operations staffers, etc.).
Grambling State Hires Hue Jackson As HC
Hue Jackson once again finds himself as a head coach. Hired as Tennessee State’s offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach back in April, Jackson has agreed to a four-year contract to become HC of Grambling State, as Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reports (via Twitter).
The 56-year-old worked under head coach Eddie George at Tennessee State. Though the FCS squad finished the 2021 season with a 5-6 record, Grambling State — one of the country’s highest-profile HBCU programs — is willing to take a chance on a man who has NFL head coaching experience and who was at one time considered one of the game’s sharpest offensive minds.
Of course, Jackson’s most recent HC gig in the NFL didn’t exactly go according to plan. Over two-and-a-half seasons as the Browns’ sideline general, he posted a 3-36-1 record, though he later claimed that the organization set him up for failure. Regardless of the veracity of that claim, Jackson now has a good opportunity for some measure of redemption.
He was not, however, Grambling State’s first choice. As Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes, the school first offered the position to Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed, who has worked on the Bills’ coaching staff and who is presently serving as the chief of staff for the University of Miami football program.
Given Miami’s recent upheaval — the Hurricanes just hired a new head coach and athletic director, a process that Reed was obviously deeply involved in — Reed declined the offer. La Canfora’s report also indicated that the timing was not right for Reed and his family, but Reed did seriously consider the proposal and is interested in a head coaching post down the road.
49ers DT D.J. Jones On Future
49ers defensive tackle D.J. Jones, a 2017 sixth-rounder who agreed to remain with San Francisco on a one-year, $3.5MM pact back in March, is enjoying a breakout campaign. He has positioned himself well for a lucrative, multi-year contract this offseason, and he knows it.
As Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, Jones did not give a canned, cliched answer when recently asked if he was thinking about his upcoming payday. “The way I’m playing, yes sir,” Jones said. “I’d be lying to you if I didn’t say that. … I want to retire my father and mother from the barbecue business. I want to make sure my sisters don’t have to do another thing, as long they invest the money that I provide correctly. I completely understand the situation I’m in. I’m not going to say that’s why I’m balling. I’m doing my job for my team. Those are rewards.”
Jones offers a rare combination of strength and speed, and through 12 games in 2021, he has already matched or set career highs in tackles (42) and tackles for loss (seven). He has just one sack, and Pro Football Focus’ metrics paint him as a so-so pass rusher, but his high scores as a run stopper help to counterbalance any deficiencies in that regard. His overall score of 75.7 positions him as the 15th-best interior defender in the league out of 127 qualifiers.
Despite his modest draft status, Jones has developed a reputation as one of the game’s most difficult-to-move D-linemen, a reputation that he credits to his weight room efforts.
“Not bragging, not boasting, but I’ve always been the strongest guy wherever I’ve been,” Jones said. “I feel like that strength comes from endless hours in the weight room. And dedicating myself.”
Branch expects that the 49ers will prioritize a Jones re-up this offseason, and Jones is certainly amenable to continuing his career in the Bay Area. “I would love to stay here,” he said. “I would love to be a 49er for the rest of my career. It’s as simple as that. But we’ll cross that bridge when it comes time.”
WFT’s Jonathan Allen, Jones’ draftmate, has generated higher sack totals and did not take as long as Jones to come into his own. However, the four-year $72MM extension ($35.6MM guaranteed) that Allen signed in July could provide a reasonable benchmark for Jones, even if he doesn’t quite hit those numbers.
Latest On Seahawks QB Russell Wilson
We already expected the Russell Wilson trade rumors to swirl in the upcoming offseason, just as they did earlier this year, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com is helping to fan those flames before the calendar flips to 2022. Earlier this week, independent reporter Jordan Schultz said that the Seahawks’ franchise QB would consider waiving his no-trade clause for the Broncos, Giants, and Saints (Twitter link), and Rapoport’s sources have confirmed that report.
Underscoring the trade chatter that began in earnest in February was the fact that Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers, told the Seahawks that, if the team were to consider a trade, Wilson would be open to the Cowboys, Saints, Raiders, or Bears. The Cowboys and Bears have since addressed their QB situations, and while it’s unclear what direction the Raiders will go in 2022, the Saints clearly still need quarterback help. Meanwhile, the Broncos and Giants profile as clubs that could seek an upgrade in the coming months, so it stands to reason that Wilson would add those outfits to his list.
As Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports recently pointed out, the Giants — who are presently slated to have two top-10 picks in the 2022 draft — have the resources to get a deal done, and the New York lifestyle is one that would appeal to Wilson and his celebrity wife, Ciara. Big Blue is likely to move on from GM Dave Gettleman, ownership is starting to get impatient with the Giants’ poor performance in recent years, and a Wilson trade could immediately propel the team back into contention.
The Broncos, of course, have been connected to both Aaron Rodgers and Deshaun Watson, so GM George Paton would have to think long and hard about Wilson if the seven-time Pro Bowler is indeed open to a move to Denver. However, neither the Broncos nor the Saints presently have the draft capital that the Giants possess.
The latest reporting on the Seahawks’ mindset suggested that the club may be more amenable to moving Wilson in 2022 than it was in 2021, though as Rapoport writes, Seattle is still largely in control of the situation. Wilson is under contract through 2023, and the ‘Hawks could deploy the franchise tag after that if necessary.
On the other hand, Wilson could make life difficult for the team if he decides he wants to leave, and when asked about the Schultz report, he did not offer a denial of any kind. He said simply, “I’m focused on what we’re doing here. Obviously I love Seattle. This is a place I’ve loved every day, every moment.”
The 4-8 Seahawks will attempt to keep their slim playoff hopes alive by taking down the 2-10 Texans this afternoon.
Bears Considering Trace Armstrong For Top Exec Post?
9:53am: Armstrong has taken to Twitter to deny having contact with the Bears about this position: “I have the utmost respect for the Chicago Bears organization, the McCaskey family and Ted Phillips,” he said. “However, any assertion that I have engaged in conversations with them about joining the club in any capacity is simply not true.”
9:12am: Major changes could be afoot in the Windy City. Bears head coach Matt Nagy is almost certainly going to be axed at season’s end, GM Ryan Pace‘s hold on his position seems tenuous as well, and as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes, Chicago is mulling an overhaul of its entire power structure.
La Canfora says that team ownership has discussed a top management position with Trace Armstrong, a longtime NFL player and a prolific coaching agent who also represents broadcasting talent and current NFL execs. Such a position would see Armstrong at the top of the football operations department, with the head coach and GM reporting directly to him.
One of Armstrong’s top clients is Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, who has led the Buckeyes to a 33-4 record since taking charge of the program in 2019. Day, 42, has served as the QB coach for the Eagles and 49ers and has also been connected to the Titans’ OC job and the Jaguars’ head coaching post in recent years. Armstrong believes that Day can be a winning head coach in the NFL, and it would be sorely tempting to reunite him with Justin Fields, his former OSU pupil.
While it would of course be difficult to leave his agent practice, Armstrong is serious about this position, and he is held in high esteem by the McCaskey family and team president Ted Phillips. The Bears selected Armstrong in the first round of the 1989 draft, and he spent the first six years of his pro career in Chicago. He racked up 42 sacks in that time, and he ended his career with 106 sacks, including a 2000 Pro Bowl campaign with the Dolphins that saw him pile up 16.5 QB takedowns. From 1996 through the end of his playing career in 2003, Armstrong worked as the NFLPA president.
Another prominent client of Armstrong’s is Raiders director of pro scouting Dwayne Joseph, who may join the Bears’ front office if this scenario materializes. Joseph, who served as a Chicago staffer from 1998-03 and again from 2012-15, was recently named as a top minority candidate for a GM job.
This is all still in the preliminary stages, of course, but a shake-up like this one might not be the worst idea for a franchise that has qualified for the playoffs just three times since its Super Bowl XLI loss to the Colts at the end of the 2006 season and that has been stuck in neutral for awhile.