HEADLINES

Clyde Simmons

AFC Notes: Bolts, Texans, Fins, Browns

January 17th, 2017 at 2:34pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Before the Chargers hired Anthony Lynn as their head coach, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported that he would retain offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt if he got the job. That will indeed be the case, Lynn confirmed Tuesday at his introductory press conference. Whisenhunt, who’s in his second stint with the Chargers, will enter his third season atop the club’s offense. He has a “strong relationship” with quarterback Philip Rivers, notes CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora (Twitter link).

As for the Bolts’ defensive coordinator position, Lynn revealed that he’ll conduct a second interview with Gus Bradley on Tuesday, tweets John Keim of ESPN.com. Lynn and Bradley have been connected to one another over the past few weeks, and the ex-Jacksonville head coach is reportedly the front-runner to take over the Chargers’ defense. At the same time, though, Bradley’s waiting to see if San Francisco will vie for his services.

More from the AFC:

  • The Texans are likely to re-sign pending free agent punter Shane Lechler to a one-year deal, reports John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. Lechler indicated Monday that he’d like to return for what would be his age-41 season in 2017. “Looking forward to next year,” he said. “Hopefully, they’ll have me back. I’m ready to go. I feel good. We’ll see how it goes.” After spending the first 13 years of his career in Oakland, where he earned seven Pro Bowl nods and six first-team All-Pro selections, Lechler joined the Texans in 2013. He’s coming off a season in which he finished sixth in the NFL in yards per punt, ninth in kicks inside the 20 and 16th in net yardage.
  • The Dolphins held an “animated” December meeting in which they discussed moving linebacker Kiko Alonso from the middle to the weak side, but they opted against it so as not to “mess with Kiko’s head,” sources told Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Now that the Dolphins’ season is over, they’re again weighing whether to make the switch. If the Dolphins are confident Alonso can play either spot, it would give them flexibility in finding upgrades at the other two linebacker positions, writes Salguero. “We’ll see what other type of players we bring in through free agency and the draft and where Kiko fits in,” said new defensive coordinator Matt Burke. In his first year in Miami, Alonso rebounded from a torn ACL in 2014 with Buffalo and a disastrous 2015 as an Eagle to pile up a Dolphins-leading 115 tackles and two interceptions.
  • The Browns have tabbed Clyde Simmons as their assistant defensive line coach, per Sporting News’ Alex Marvez. He’ll take over for Robert Nunn, whom the Browns fired Tuesday, according to Nate Ulrich of Ohio.com (Twitter links). Simmons, a former defensive end who amassed 121.5 sacks between 1986-2000, worked as the Rams’ assistant D-line coach over the past half-decade. Heading to Cleveland means he’ll remain under defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who was also previously with the Rams.

Coaching Notes: LeBeau, Rams, Dolphins

February 5th, 2015 at 5:49pm CST by Zachary Links

The Titans announced that new coach Dick LeBeau will be “in charge of the defense” while defensive coordinator Ray Horton will “work with him to implement it,” according to Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean (on Twitter). LeBeau, 77, was originally said to be seeking a defensive coordinator position when he parted ways with the Steelers. He doesn’t exactly have that in Tennessee, but he’ll have plenty of authority with his new club. More coaching news from around the National Football League..

  • Meanwhile, the Titans are promoting Mike Mularkey to assistant head coach on offense, where he’ll be in charge of the team’s run game, according to Wyatt (on Twitter). The Bears requested permission to interview Mularkey for their OC vacancy last month but were denied. The Titans also plan to hire Jason Tucker as assistant receivers coach (link). He was formerly with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.
  • Tight ends coach Rob Boras, who lost out to quarterbacks coach Frank Cignetti for the Rams‘ offensive coordinator opening, will be elevated to the assistant head coach of the offensive side, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). The formal announcement on both promotions is expected to come next week.
  • Terrell Williams has been named as the Dolphins‘ new defensive line coach, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (on Twitter). Williams served as the Raiders’ defensive line coach from 2012 through 2014.
  • The Bears announced (on Twitter) that they have hired Stan Drayton as their running backs coach. Drayton spent the last four years at Ohio State and helped them win the national title in 2014.
  • The Buccaneers announced (on Twitter) that they have named former Central Michigan offensive line coach Butch Barry as their new assistant offensive line coach.
  • Rams assistant line coach Clyde Simmons is interviewing for the head defensive line coach job with the Raiders, according to Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch (on Twitter).