Panthers’ Marty Hurney On His New Role
Marty Hurney is back in charge of the Panthers, but he told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that he will not seek to parlay his interim GM role into the full-time position. But, until the job is filled by another executive, Hurney have will full say over the 53-man roster. He’ll be instrumental in helping to find the team’s new GM, but the organization will not target candidates until after the season is through.
Hurney also believes that he has the trust of owner Jerry Richardson to make both short and long term decisions for the team, including contracts that may extend beyond the 2017 season.
Here’s a look at some more highlights from today’s presser. All links go to Jordan Rodrigue and Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer on Twitter, unless noted otherwise:
On talks that he is too old or too far removed from the job:
“I wouldn’t come here if I didn’t think I had the energy, the knowledge and the insight it will take to help this organization.” (link)
On whether the firing of Dave Gettleman was a rash decision by the Panthers:
“I can tell you knowing Jerry Richardson, rash decisions aren’t made. It’s about winning games.” (link)
On how he’ll approach the job differently this time:
“I want the analytical part of my brain to take over the emotional part of my brain. Some mistakes may have been due to that.” (link)
On Gettleman:
“Dave Gettleman did a terrific job and I never lost pride in this organization.” (link)
Bears Sign Mitch Trubisky
The Bears have signed first round pick Mitch Trubisky, according to a team announcement. It’s good timing for both sides as Bears rookies report to training camp today.
Even as the two sides took additional time to come to an accord, Trubisky made it clear that he would not be training camp holdout a la Joey Bosa.
“I’m not going to miss any practices or anything like that,” Trubisky said in late June. “I’m excited to sign my contract as soon as possible, however that goes down. But I don’t see that being held out through training camp; even if it did, I’m going to be practicing and all that. I’m looking forward to getting it done as soon as possible. I’m a Chicago Bear, no matter if they let me sign or what. I guess not, but I am.”
The Bears shocked the world in April by not only selecting Trubisky with their top pick, but trading up from No. 3 overall to No. 2 for the right to do it. Switching places with the 49ers cost picks No. 67 and No. 111 in the 2017 draft, plus a 2018 a third-round pick.
The pressure is on for Trubisky, though it won’t necessarily be felt right away. For now, the plan is for free agent acquisition Mike Glennon to be the Bears’ starter while Trubisky learns from the bench.
The deal leaves us with six unsigned first round picks: defensive lineman Solomon Thomas (49ers), wide receiver Corey Davis (Titans), safety Jamal Adams (Jets), quarterback Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs), cornerback Gareon Conley (Raiders), and safety Jabrill Peppers (Browns).
Photo courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
Jaguars To Host Gary Barnidge On Visit
Gary Barnidge could finally be getting closer to finding work for 2017. The Jaguars are bringing the former Pro Bowl tight end in for a Tuesday workout and visit, a league source tells Mike Kaye of First Coast News (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Jaguars Are One Of Eight Fits For Barnidge]
This offseason, the Jags parted ways with tight end Julius Thomas and their only significant addition at the position has been former Raider Mychal Rivera. When considering that Rivera hasn’t topped 300 receiving yards since 2014 and that Marcedes Lewis hasn’t been setting the world on fire in recent years, Barnidge could make a lot of sense for Jacksonville. This season will be a critical year in the evaluation of quarterback Blake Bortles, and he’ll need a big reliable target if he hopes to establish himself as the answer going forward.
In 16 games last season, the tight end hauled in 55 receptions for 612 yards and two touchdowns. That wasn’t a great stat line, but he’s only two years removed from his breakout 2015 effort. In that campaign, the 6’5″ tight end had 79 receptions, 1,043 receiving yards, and nine touchdowns.
NFL: Panthers Did Not Violate Rooney Rule
When the Panthers hired Marty Hurney to be the team’s interim GM without first interviewing any minority candidates, some wondered if the team was in violation of the Rooney Rule. Apparently, that’s not the case. The NFL tells ESPN.com’s David Newton (Twitter link) that the Panthers did not run afoul of the mandate since Hurney has only been given the job on an interim basis.
When the Panthers hire their true GM down the line, they will be required to satisfy the Rooney Rule. That mandate still applies, even if Hurney somehow winds up being the full-time hire.
It’s conceivable that the league will look to close this loophole next offseason. Recently, the NFL “informally” extended the Rooney Rule to also cover offensive and defensive coordinator positions.
Latest On Panthers, Hurney, Gettleman
Here’s a look at the Panthers:
- Former Panthers GM Dave Gettleman was known to be a jerk in contract meetings if he didn’t get his way, sources tell Jordan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer. However, Rodrigue argues that it’s not entirely fair to vilify Gettleman for the way things sometimes played out in those negotiations. Her feeling is that an NFL franchise needs something of a good cop/bad cop act in order to satisfy players while also keeping cap restrictions in mind. Gettleman’s job was to be mindful of the finances, and he did a good job of that after inheriting a salary cap nightmare. That enabled owner Jerry Richardson to have positive relationships with his players and create a largely welcoming culture. Eventually, these two approaches clashed to the point where Richardson felt the need to fire Gettleman just days before training camp.
- The firing of Gettleman took Panthers coach Ron Rivera by surprise, as Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer writes. “The decision was made, and that’s what we’re going to do,” Rivera said. “The biggest thing is Dave did a great job for us. He helped me to grow as a coach, he helped to put the final pieces of the puzzle together and he helped us get to the Super Bowl.” Although a major change is being made in the front office, Rivera is reportedly safe. And, for the next year, Marty Hurney will be back at the helm. Hurney first hired Rivera back in 2011.
- Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wonders if the Panthers could run into some issues with Rooney Rule compliance. The Rooney Rule stipulates that at least one minority candidate must be interviewed for a major role such as GM, but the team seemingly conducted a one-man search before giving the job to Hurney. Before the hire was made official, Fritz Pollard Alliance chairman John Wooten told Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer that the “interim” designation was a new wrinkle for them, but he still hoped that Richardson would follow protocol.
Jaguars DE Dante Fowler Arrested
Jaguars defensive end Dante Fowler was arrested in St. Petersburg on Tuesday night, as Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times writes. He is now facing misdemeanor charges of simple battery and mischief. 
According to police records obtained by Matthew Head of First Coast News (Twitter link), cops say that Fowler got out of his car and got into a verbal exchange with a man who commented on his driving. When they came face to face, the defensive end allegedly hit the man, knocked off his glasses, and stepped on them. He then proceeded to take the victim’s grocery bag and throw it in a nearby lake.
The victim was not injured and Fowler was arrested without incident. The 22-year-old is currently free after posting a small bond early Wednesday morning.
Fowler, a first-round pick out of Florida in 2015, missed his entire rookie season due to injury. When he debuted in 2016, he recorded 32 tackles and four sacks. Fowler made just one start last season, but this year he projects as a starting bookend opposite of Calais Campbell. If he misses time as a result of this incident, it will be a serious blow to the Jaguars.
Panthers Hire Marty Hurney As Interim GM
What’s old is new in Carolina. The Panthers have officially appointed Marty Hurney as their interim GM. 
“I never lost the connection with the organization,” said Hurney, who worked for the Panthers from 1998-2012 with the final ten years spent as GM. “I’ve gained a lot of perspective and have looked at things in different ways. I think I can help this team in a lot of areas. I think I’ve grown. And I feel I’m better prepared to come in this time and do a better job than I did over the 12 years I was general manager last time.”
In the wake of Dave Gettleman‘s firing, a number of highly-respected rising front office stars were floated out as potential replacements. But, because of the unusual timing, the Panthers felt the need to install someone immediately in a temporary capacity. The Panthers will have Hurney at the helm for 2017 before possibly looking into executives like Trent Kirchner of the Seahawks, Ryan Cowden of the Titans, and their own Don Gregory. When they do begin interviewing candidates, Hurney “will help the team identify its next general manager,” per the team’s press release.
Hurney, who will be leaving his post at ESPN Radio in Charlotte to take the job, knows the roster pretty intimately. He was responsible for bringing in some of the Panthers’ biggest stars, including team captains Cam Newton, Luke Kuechly, Thomas Davis, Greg Olsen, Ryan Kalil, and Charles Johnson. He’s also the man who hired head coach Ron Rivera in 2011.
His relationships with Davis and Olsen could have a major influence on their contract situations this offseason. Davis, 34, is entering the final year of his deal and has been pushing for an extension. Olsen, meanwhile, has two years to go on his deal but is hoping to get a reworked contract that will make him one of the league’s highest paid tight ends.
NFC North Notes: Packers, Lions, Vikings
The Packers have a surplus at wide receiver, and that leaves the team with a roster quandary, Ryan Wood of USA Today writes. Last year, the Packers were the only team in the league to carry seven receivers on the initial 53-man roster. This year, the Packers will have at least seven receivers deserving of a roster spot, but there’s no guarantee that they’ll go with that untraditional allotment again.
Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb, Davante Adams, and Geronimo Allison make up the team’s top four WRs. Beyond them, there’s former small college star Jeff Janis, the speedy Trevor Davis, fifth-round rookie/possession specialist DeAngelo Yancey, seventh-round rookie/one-time top prospect Malachi Dupre, NFL legacy Max McCaffrey, and a few more intriguing talents.
It will be interesting to see which receivers make the Packers’ final cut in early September. It seems like at least a couple of the discarded WRs could quickly find work elsewhere.
Here’s more from the NFC North:
- Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com looked at the Lions‘ defensive tackle depth chart. With Haloti Ngata, A’Shawn Robinson, and Akeem Spence as locks for the roster, there is now a fourth spot in play since Khyri Thornton will be serving a six-game suspension to start the year. There are a few notable names in the mix including Ego Ferguson, Jordan Hill, and Bruce Gaston. Twentyman notes that the Lions carried five DTs last season, but we might not see a repeat since players like Cornelius Washington and Anthony Zettel are able to play both inside and outside.
- Vikings special teams coach Mike Priefer says he would love to use rookie Dalvin Cook as his kick returner. However, he says the decision will ultimately be up to head coach Mike Zimmer (Twitter link via SiriusXM). The Vikings believe that Cook can be their lead running back of the future (and they have the ability to void Latavius Murray‘s contract after this season), so they might not want to give the high-risk role to him.
- Bears defensive end Akiem Hicks has changed agents as he looks ahead to free agency.
- This week, PFR’s Dallas Robinson gave us an in-depth recap of the Lions‘ offseason.
More Reactions To Cousins/Redskins Talks
It’s time to trade Kirk Cousins, Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com opines. In Barnwell’s view, the Redskins blew it with Cousins by lowballing him and then bashing him in a bizarre public statement. At this juncture, it seems unlikely that Cousins will stay with the Redskins long term and Washington can only keep him off the open market with an expensive third franchise tag, giving a record $78.4MM over three seasons to a quarterback who they did not feel was worthy of big money.
Giving up Cousins in a trade might sting, but it would be even worse to lose him for nothing. Barnwell wonders if the 49ers might be willing to give up a 2018 second-round choice and Brian Hoyer in a trade. Or, perhaps the Browns would give up the Texans’ 2018 first-round pick plus a restructured Brock Osweiler. Neither trade feels like a big win for Washington, but it might be the logical move after the way things have played out.
Here’s more on Cousins:
- If Washington was not going to sign Cousins long term, they should have drafted a quarterback or signed one in free agency, Mike Lombardi of The Ringer tweets. Without that, he says, the Redskins to operate with no leverage. To play devil’s advocate, the Redskins already have a quality backup in Colt McCoy and there’s weren’t a ton of affordable quarterbacks available who were clearly better than him in free agency this year. They also like Nate Sudfeld as their developmental quarterback. To drum up leverage, they would have had to draft a QB who was markedly better than Sudfeld, and that would have meant drafting one in the first two or three rounds. That’s a costly move to make for a leverage play.
- Cousins’ agent, Mike McCartney, liked some very interesting tweets in the hours following the deadline, Peter Halley of CSNMidAtlantic.com writes. One tweet compared the Redskins to a desperate and bitter guy in a budding relationship.
- Cousins’ future in Washington could partially hinge on how well he works with coach Jay Gruden this year, ESPN.com’s John Keim opines. With Sean McVay out of the picture, Gruden will be calling the plays and working more closely with Cousins than he has in the past. Cousins will probably also want to see the restructured Washington front office move in a positive direction.
- In an interview on Tuesday morning, Cousins said that staying with the Redskins is still his first choice. However, he also confirmed that he did not send an offer to the team.
Witness: Ezekiel Elliott Did Not Throw Punch
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott was said to be involved in a fight over the weekend that left one man with a broken nose. However, the running back has not been arrested for his involvement as of this writing and there are varied accounts of what transpired. Michael Huffman, a bouncer from Wichita Falls who was in the bar on Sunday night, says the alleged victim was the instigator and Elliott did not do anything wrong. 
“It didn’t go down like that,” Huffman wrote in a private message to Domingo Ramirez Jr. and Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Star-Telegram. “Everybody is saying that, but he didn’t throw the punch … Zeke was just standing there arms folded chilling feeling the crowd. Then I seen DJ getting loud toward the vicinity of Zeke and then I see an overhand right come over the back of Zeke shoulder that landed square in DTrain’s face and he went to sleep. He didn’t even see it. Then the crowd circled and dispersed. I’m surprised a whole video hasn’t been released yet.”
Other witnesses have said that the man throwing the punch appeared to be Elliott. But, if Huffman’s account of events can be verified, then the running back will avoid punishment from the legal system and the NFL. On Monday, an NFL spokesman confirmed that the league is investigating the matter.