Coaching Rumors: Shanahan, Rams, Broncos
It’s a New Year and a new start for many teams on the sidelines. With a zillion interviews being requested today, we’ll run down the latest coaching rumors and requests here:
- The Rams and Broncos have requested permission to talk to Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, as Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. GM John Elway says the team will consider “three or four” candidates for the job, which means that Shanahan is on the short list. It will be interesting to see if the rocky relationship between Elway and Shanahan’s father, Mike Shanahan, plays a role in his candidacy.
- Cardinals coach Bruce Arians confirmed that the Bills and Rams have asked permission to interview offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin (Twitter link via Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic). As previously reported, the Jaguars will interview Goodwin today.
- The Bills will make a push for former Jacksonville head coach Gus Bradley as their defensive coordinator, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. La Canfora, like many, expects Anthony Lynn to shed the “interim” title this offseason and take over as head coach.
- The Rams have requested interviews with Lynn and Matt Patricia (Patriots defensive coordinator), according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link).
- The Jaguars will interview Buccaneers defensive coordinator Mike Smith for their head coaching vacancy, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.
- Dolphins head coach Adam Gase said teams have contacted Miami about talking to Vance Joseph for head coaching jobs, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald tweets.
49ers Targeting Tom Cable, Others For HC Job
Josh McDaniels isn’t the only candidate on the 49ers’ list. The team is also looking to bring in Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable, Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn, Jaguars interim coach Doug Marrone, and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, according to CSNBayArea.com’s Matt Maiocco.
The Jets interviewed Cable for their head coaching vacancy before the 2015 season, but he did not receive any interviews last offseason. Cable, of course, offers head coaching experience after nearly three years at the helm in Oakland. From 2008-2010, the Raiders went 17-27 under Cable and never finished higher than third in the AFC West.
Meanwhile, the top GM candidates right now are Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio, Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard, ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, Vikings assistant GM George Paton, and Seahawks co-player personnel directors Trent Kirchner and Scott Fitterer.
CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe are leading the search to fill both vacancies. After witnessing years of discord between former coach Jim Harbaugh and former GM Trent Baalke (and perhaps some disagreement between Baalke and recent ex-coach Chip Kelly), the 49ers may opt for a ready-made GM/coach combo like McDaniels and Caserio. McDaniels appears to be one of the hottest coaching candidates on the market this offseason and Caserio has been viewed as a rising front office star for the last couple of years.
Rams Ask To Interview Doug Marrone
The Rams are requesting permission to interview Jaguars’ interim head coach Doug Marrone for their own head coaching job, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
It’s not an automatic that the Jaguars will grant L.A.’s request since Marrone is a candidate to take over as head coach. Marrone had dinner with owner Shad Khan recently to discuss the job and a second meeting is likely on the horizon, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Khan has consulted with a number of people about the matter and one Super Bowl-winning coach advised him to promote Marrone (Twitter link).
The Rams are said to be looking to make a splashy hire, and Marrone may be a longshot in a search that will include 8-10 candidates in total. At minimum, however, the request could ratchet up the pressure on Khan and help Marrone’s case for taking over as head coach in Jacksonville.
Reportedly, if Sean Payton and the Saints part ways, Marrone will be in the mix for that job as well.
RELATED:
McDaniels To Interview With Rams, Jags, 49ers
Josh McDaniels is a popular man. As the Patriots offensive coordinator gears up for the playoffs, he’ll interview for three vacancies towards the end of this week, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Rams, Jaguars, and 49ers will all speak with the highly sought after coaching candidate. 
[RELATED: Three Teams Reach Out To McDaniels]
Over the weekend, we learned that all three teams reached out McDaniels and we now have confirmation that he will meet with all three. McDaniels is reportedly likely to take a head coaching job this offseason and each of these openings have their perks. The Rams job could be particularly appealing for the Pats’ OC, provided that he has a high opinion of quarterback Jared Goff. McDaniels could instead prefer the idea of resurrecting Blake Bortles‘ career or starting fresh with a quarterback of his choosing in San Francisco.
Last week, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen wrote that McDaniels is not a likely fit for the Jaguars. Regardless, Jacksonville will meet with him this week since this could be the last chance for all interested teams to meet with McDaniels if the Patriots reach the Super Bowl.
2017 NFL Draft Order
The Browns almost blew it yesterday. In the regular season finale, the Browns took the Steelers to overtime before ultimately losing 27-24. Had they won, the Browns would have been picking at No. 2 instead of the top position. Meanwhile, the Jaguars nearly slipped to No. 5, but they held their ground in the draft order when they lost 24-20 to the Colts. Phew.
The playoffs will help determine the bottom 12 picks, but the draft order has now been set for most of the NFL. Here is the list, with ties being broken by strength of schedule:
1. Browns (1-15)
2. 49ers (2-14)
3. Bears (3-13)
4. Jaguars (3-13)
5. Titans (via the 4-12 Rams)
6. Jets (5-11)
7. Chargers (5-11)
8. Panthers (6-10)
9. Bengals (6-9-1)
10. Bills (7-9)
11. Saints (7-9)
12. Browns (via the 7-9 Eagles)
13. Cardinals (7-8-1)
T-14. Eagles (via the 8-8 Minnesota Vikings)
T-14. Colts (8-8) (Note: The Vikings and Colts have identical records and the same strength of schedule. The tie will be broke by coin flip with the winner getting pick No. 14 and the other team getting the No. 15 pick.)
16. Ravens (8-8)
17. Redskins (8-7-1)
18. Titans (9-7)
19. Buccaneers (9-7)
20. Broncos (9-7)
Three Teams Reach Out To Josh McDaniels
As the AFC’s top seed, the 14-2 Patriots will be on a bye during the first week of the playoffs, but offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels could be busy. Three teams with head coaching vacancies – the Rams, 49ers and Jaguars – have reached out to the 40-year-old, reports Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com (Twitter link). It’s unclear if McDaniels will interview with any of those teams, but the upcoming week will be his last chance for a while if the Patriots advance to the Super Bowl.
McDaniels is reportedly likely to take a head coaching job this offseason, which would mean doing so for the second time in his career. He was previously atop the Broncos from 2009-10, but they went just 11-17 on his watch despite starting 6-0. McDaniels has rebuilt his stock in his second stint as the Patriots’ O-coordinator, though, and could be on his way to securing a fifth Super Bowl ring as an assistant.
Of the clubs showing interest in the quarterback guru, San Francisco is the only one without a recent first-round pick under center. The 49ers might not have an answer at quarterback on their roster at all, depending on what happens with Colin Kaepernick, though they are armed with the second pick in the 2017 draft and a boatload of cap space.
The Rams, meanwhile, have last year’s No. 1 overall selection, Jared Goff, who struggled in six games as a rookie. Jacksonille’s Blake Bortles hasn’t lived up to his draft status (third overall, 2014), but it’s possible he’d realize his potential under McDaniels. In the event McDaniels is bearish on him, the Jags wouldn’t force him to stick with Bortles.
Jaguars To Interview Harold Goodwin
As they continue their search for to replace fired head coach Gus Bradley, the Jaguars will interview Cardinals offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin during the upcoming week, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported earlier Sunday that Jacksonville would likely interview Goodwin, though he didn’t offer a timeline.
The 43-year-old Goodwin has been the Cardinals’ O-coordinator since 2013, but head coach Bruce Arians has called the plays during that four-season span. Arizona’s offense ranked just 22nd in the NFL in DVOA entering Sunday, but Goodwin is nonetheless drawing interest from multiple head coach-needy teams. Along with the Jaguars, he’s likely to interview with the Bills and Rams.
Before the Cardinals hired Goodwin, he worked as the Bears’ assistant offensive line coach from 2004-06 and then oversaw the O-lines of the Steelers and Colts. He’s now one of several known candidates for the Jaguars’ vacancy, joining interim head coach Doug Marrone, Tom Coughlin and Mike Smith, among others.
Coaching/GM Notes, Pt. 2: Arians, Gase, Wolf
Here is Part 2 of our coaching/GM rumors post. Part 1 can be found here.
- Despite his health concerns, Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians expects to return in 2017, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Schefter tweets that one of Arians’ top assistants, offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin, is expected to interview for a head coaching job with the Rams, Jaguars, and Bills.
- As the 49ers get prepared to search for a new head coach and GM, a ghost from the past has reared its ugly head. According to Jay Glazer of FOX Sports (via Twitter), San Francisco was prepared to hire current Dolphins head coach Adam Gase two years ago. The team informed Gase that he was the choice, but GM Trent Baalke intervened at the last moment and convinced ownership not to hire Gase. The 49ers chose Jim Tomsula instead, and it has been all downhill from there.
- The Packers are not expected to make major coaching changes–although offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett could get head coaching interviews–but GM Ted Thompson could step aside and become a senior scouting adviser, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. One reason, according to Rapoport, is that Director of Football Operations Eliot Wolf is a highly-coveted football mind, and if he’s not promoted soon, Green Bay could lose him.
- The Bengals are not expected to fire Marvin Lewis, who is signed through 2017, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. However, Lewis is not expected to get another one-year extension this offseason, which means that another disappointing campaign in 2017 could spell the end of his tenure as Cincinnati’s head coach.
- Jets head coach Todd Bowles will likely be back for a third season, but offensive coordinator Chan Gailey is expected to be fired, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post.
- The Ravens are expected to part ways with OC Marty Mornhinweg, and assuming they do, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Greg Roman is someone to “keep an eye on.”
- Browns coaches have “deep concerns” with the direction of the team’s personnel department and are expected to push owner Jimmy Haslam for changes in that regard, according to La Canfora. While head coach Hue Jackson is not planning to request the removal of top football man Sashi Brown, the coaching staff would like a proven, old-school talent evaluator involved in player selection to provide something of a checks-and-balance system to Brown’s analytics-based approach.
- La Canfora suggests that, if the Lions miss the playoffs this season, GM Bob Quinn could at least think about a coaching change, and his Patriots ties could lead him to consider Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia, with whom he established strong relationships during his time in New England. While I personally could imagine Quinn’s being interested in McDaniels, I cannot see Patricia as a legitimate head coaching candidate at this point.
Latest On Jaguars' Head Coaching Vacancy
Thanks to the now-fired Gus Bradley‘s disastrous stint as a first-time head coach, the Jaguars are unlikely to hire a replacement who doesn’t bring prior experience, league sources told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen. That makes it all the more probable the team will tab a previously reported candidate like Tom Coughlin, who interviewed Wednesday, interim head coach Doug Marrone or ex-Falcons head coach and current Buccaneers defensive coordinator Mike Smith. Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Steelers O-coordinator Todd Haley have also been head coaches, but it’s unlikely either will end up a match for Jacksonville, per Mortensen.
Prince Amukamara Wants Multiyear Deal
- Impending free agent cornerback Prince Amukamara would like to re-sign with the Jaguars on a multiyear deal, but he admitted Thursday that the team has bigger issues on its plate at the moment. “Right now the front office priority is probably finding a head coach and stuff like that, but I would hope to be a priority to them [after the hire],” he told Mike DiRocco of ESPN.com. Amukamara, who inked a one-year deal with the Jags last March, has appeared in 13 games and made 11 starts – his highest totals in those categories since 2012. Despite being in danger of posting his first interception-less season, the 27-year-old ranks a respectable 51st among 119 corners at Pro Football Focus. “I think it was huge to just be able to show that I am durable and I can play this game if I’m healthy,” added the former Giant.