HEADLINES

Author: Zachary Links

Broncos Hire Justin Outten As OC

February 2nd, 2022 at 10:26am CST by Zachary Links

The Broncos are set to hire Packers tight ends coach Justin Outten as their new offensive coordinator (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). He’s now set to guide the offense for the new regime and take over where Pat Shurmur left off. 

[RELATED: Broncos Hire Nathaniel Hackett As Head Coach]

The Broncos were also said to be considering Klint Kubiak for the OC job, but he’s likely to wind up as the team’s quarterbacks coach. Kubiak just helped Kirk Cousins turn in one of his best seasons in Minnesota, so he figures to be a huge asset to new head coach Nathaniel Hackett.

Outten has been with the Packers since 2019. The Packers were the first team to employ him as a position coach, so this move to OC in Denver marks a huge step up. Before that, he was an intern under Kyle Shanahan with the Falcons and a high school assistant coach.

Interestingly, the Broncos’ first OC target was Packers offensive line coach Adam Stenavich, but the Packers installed him as their own OC. After that, they eyed Green Bay wide receivers coach Jason Vrable, but Packers head coach Matt LaFleur blocked the request. Chargers tight ends coach Kevin Koger was also in the running for Denver, but it sounds like Outten has edged him out.

Even with Outten on board, Hackett is expected to call the plays for his West Coast offense.

Latest On Bengals’ C.J. Uzomah

January 30th, 2022 at 5:41pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals are headed to the Super Bowl. Still, it remains to be seen whether they’ll have tight end C.J. Uzomah on the field when they arrive.

[RELATED: Inside The Dolphins’ Pursuit Of Joe Burrow]

The initial belief is Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah has suffered an MCL sprain (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Uzomah will undergo an MRI later today to determine the extent of the damage and his timetable for recovery.

Uzomah went down with a left knee injury in the first quarter, forcing him to the sidelines. After doctors took a closer look, he was carted off to the locker room and officially ruled out for the remainder of the game. Without him, the Bengals still managed to pull off a thrilling overtime upset, beating the Chiefs 27-24 and earning their first Super Bowl trip in decades.

The 29-year-old has been outstanding so far in the playoffs, notching a total of 13 catches for 135 yards and a touchdown against the Raiders and Titans. He did not register a catch before his early exit on Sunday and it remains to be seen whether he’ll get the opportunity to play two weeks from today.

Josh McDaniels To Call Raiders’ Plays

January 30th, 2022 at 5:32pm CST by Zachary Links

On Sunday, the Raiders found their new head coach in Josh McDaniels along with their next GM in Dave Ziegler. There will be more changes on the way, but regardless of who is installed as offensive coordinator, McDaniels will be the one calling plays (Twitter link via Vincent Bonsignore of the Review Journal). 

[RELATED: Raiders To Hire Josh McDaniels As HC, Dave Ziegler As GM]

This doesn’t come as a huge surprise given McDaniels’ background and offensive acumen. Sean McVay took a similar approach with the Rams, opting to call the plays in L.A. despite the presence of Kevin O’Connell.

McDaniels, 45, enjoyed success across two separate stints as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator, both with and without Tom Brady under center. In 2021, he guided rookie quarterback Mac Jones as the Pats reached the playoffs and finished sixth in overall scoring. He’ll now look to fix the Raiders and lead them to their first playoff win since the 2002 postseason.

The Raiders made the hiring of Ziegler official earlier today, though they’ve yet to officially announce the hiring of McDaniels.

Cowboys Sign Dan Quinn To Multi-Year Extension

January 28th, 2022 at 12:27pm CST by Zachary Links

Dan Quinn is staying put. On Friday, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told 105.3 The Fan that he’s signed his defensive coordinator to an extension that will keep him in place “for years to come,” (Twitter link via Jon Machota of The Athletic). 

[RELATED: Cowboys To Keep HC Mike McCarthy]

Quinn was up for head coaching jobs with the Bears, Broncos, Jaguars, Dolphins, and Giants. It’s not clear if he received any offers, though Jones personally believes that he did (Twitter link). It’s likely that Quinn will be contacted in future cycles and one has to imagine that he’ll be willing to listen. But, for now, he’ll remain as the Cowboys’ DC.

Jones also “believes” that offensive coordinator Kellen Moore will return to Cowboys in 2022 (Twitter link via Calvin Watkins of the Dallas News), though he has another interview coming up with the Dolphins. Both coordinators, in theory, could be internal HC candidates at some point down the line, especially given the rumors surrounding Mike McCarthy‘s status.

The Cowboys will stick with McCarthy for another year, though Jones didn’t exactly rush to give his vote of confidence. “There was never an issue with Mike being the head coach,” JJ said during the interview.

WFT Signs David Mayo To Extension

January 28th, 2022 at 10:08am CST by Zachary Links

The Washington Football Team has signed David Mayo to a one-year extension, per a club announcement. The linebacker was on course for free agency in March, but he’s now under contract through the 2022 season. Mayo will receive the veteran’s minimum (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero) with a full signing bonus of $152K, up from the $138K limit of last year.

In March of 2020, the Giants gave Mayo a three-year re-up, but he didn’t make it very far into that pact. Mayo enjoyed a breakout 2019 season where he started 13 games and graded out well, but he fell out of favor with the new coaching staff led by then-head coach Joe Judge, and only started two games in 2020.

Mayo, who entered the league as a fifth-round pick of the Panthers in 2015, now seems to have found a home in D.C. He even leapfrogged first-round pick Jamin Davis as the MIKE linebacker towards the end of this year, though that may say more about the youngster than the seventh-year pro.

All in all, Mayo made four starts in 2021, appeared in 16 of 17 games, and finished out with 28 stops, one fumble recovery, and two tackles for loss.

Saints Plan To Interview Brian Flores

January 28th, 2022 at 9:00am CST by Zachary Links

The Saints are expected to interview Brian Flores for their head coaching vacancy (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). At least, that’s the plan — Flores is also in the running for the Giants’ HC job, and they’re expected to make a decision sometime this weekend.

[RELATED: Saints’ Sean Payton Not Planning To Coach In ’22]

The Giants are reportedly down to two candidates in Flores and Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Saints, meanwhile, are scrambling to find their next HC after Sean Payton‘s shocking decision to step down.

In years past, the Saints’ job would have held tremendous appeal for coaching candidates. This time around, they’re dealing with a salary cap nightmare, so one has to imagine that Flores would prefer the Giants job if that offer comes through first. The same goes for Byron Leftwich — the Bucs’ offensive coordinator may leap at the Jaguars job, if/when that offer comes through.

In addition to Flores and Leftwich, the Saints are also expected to chat with their own defensive coordinator Dennis Allen and Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.

49ers Activate Mohamed Sanu

January 26th, 2022 at 1:49pm CST by Zachary Links

The 49ers have activated Mohamed Sanu from the injured reserve list, per a club announcement. With that, Sanu will be eligible to play in this weekend’s NFC Championship Game against the Rams. 

The Niners haven’t seen Sanu since Week 9, when the veteran wide receiver suffered a knee injury. Before that, Sanu had just 15 catches for 177 yards across eight games. The 49ers have turned to Jauan Jennings ever since, using him as the WR3 behind Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk.

Sanu played in three games for the 49ers during the 2020 campaign, hauling in a single nine-yard catch. He was released in early October and ultimately caught on with the Lions before circling back to SF this year. At the age of 32, he’s not quite the player he once was, but he’s not that far removed from his career year in Atlanta. In 2018, Sanu finished with 66 receptions for 838 yards and four touchdowns.

If everything works out in practice, Sanu will have an opportunity to help the Niners’ cause. He could be joined by running back Trenton Cannon and safety Tavon Wilson, both of whom have been designated for return.

To make room on their 53-man roster for Sanu, the 49ers waived veteran safety Jarrod Wilson.

Giants Owner: We Won’t Trade For Deshaun Watson

January 26th, 2022 at 1:06pm CST by Zachary Links

There will be plenty of new faces in the Giants’ locker room this year, but Deshaun Watson will not be among them. On Wednesday, owner John Mara told reporters that the Giants will not be trading for embattled Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo). 

[RELATED: GM Says Watson “Likely” Done With Texans]

Mara cited the allegations against Watson and the Giants’ cap situation as reasons for staying out of the sweepstakes. But, beyond that, he says he is all in with Daniel Jones at QB.

“We do feel Daniel can play,” Mara said. “[And] we’ve done everything possible to screw this kid up.”

With new GM Joe Schoen at the helm, the Giants believe that they’ll be able to get Jones back on track. At his introductory press conference, Schoen said that he will be focused on upgrading the offensive line to better protect the QB and running back Saquon Barkley (Twitter link). Of course, that’s just the start, and Schoen will also have to weigh Barkley’s future beyond 2022 — the talented tailback has just one year let on his rookie deal.

And, before all of that, Schoen and Mara will have to hire a new head coach. Mara says he hopes to make it happen next week (Twitter link), though he won’t rush the process either.

As for Watson, the 26-year-old is “more than likely” done with the Texans, according to recent comments from GM Nick Caserio.

Eagles’ Brandon Brooks Announces Retirement

January 26th, 2022 at 10:13am CST by Zachary Links

Brandon Brooks is calling it a career. On Wednesday, the Eagles guard announced that he’s retiring from the NFL at the age of 32. 

Brooks, 33 this summer, was among the league’s best interior linemen when healthy. Unfortunately, he missed all but two games this season with a torn pectoral muscle. His medical history also includes Achilles tears to both legs, with the most recent season-ender coming in 2020.

“Brooks has been one of the best right guards in the league for a long time,” teammate Lane Johnson said in September, after Brooks’ pec tear ruled him out for the year (via the Philadelphia Inquirer). “Tremendous loss for us. Having him out there, might’ve been the difference between us winning and losing.”

Earlier today, Brooks agreed to restructure his contract, reducing his cap figure from $19.4MM to $7.1MM with just $1.12MM in non-guaranteed base salary. It was purely procedural — the shuffling of Brooks’ pact will provide the Eagles with additional cap space, something they sorely needed. As of Tuesday night, the Eagles were projected to have just ~$14MM in space with Brooks slotted as their second-largest hit.

“We had a lot of communication with Brandon,” GM Howie Roseman said earlier this week (via The Athletic). “It was really important for us to make sure that Brandon Brooks ended the season healthy and to make sure that he had an offseason where he was healthy and he wasn’t rehabbing. That is the extent of our communication. I met with him at the end of the season, and you’re talking about one of the greatest players, one of the greatest guards in the history of the franchise. I have tremendous respect for him as a player and as a person. Those are the conversations we’ve had with Brandon up to this point.”

Brooks will leave the game as a multiple-time Pro Bowler, having gotten the nod in every season between 2017 and 2019. The Eagles, meanwhile, will have some mighty big shoes to fill in the middle of their offensive line.

Vikings To Hire Kwesi Adofo-Mensah As GM?

January 26th, 2022 at 9:28am CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings have agreed to hire Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as their next GM (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). The two sides were hard at work on the contract early this morning, as first reported by NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, and they’ve now got everything in place. It’ll be a four-year deal for Adofo-Mensah worth $12MM, according to NFL.com’s Cameron Wolfe (on Twitter).

Adofo-Mensah was one of two finalists in Minnesota, alongside Ryan Poles. But, after the Bears pounds on the former Chiefs’ executive director of player personnel, Adofo-Mensah was the last man standing.

Adofo-Mensah was also in the running for the Panthers job last year, but he didn’t make it to the finalist stage. Before joining Cleveland’s front office in 2020 under Andrew Berry, the Stanford grad spent seven years with the 49ers. The Bears also looked at him in this cycle before settling on Poles.

Now, he’ll take over for longtime GM Rick Spielman and lead the search for Mike Zimmer‘s replacement. The Vikings have already begun doing their homework on that front, chatting with eight candidates including ex-49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans. Adofo-Mensah overlapped with Ryans for three years, so it’s possible that he’ll have a leg up on the competition.

Outside of Adofo-Mensah and Poles, the Vikings also considered:

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