Latest On Chargers’ Head Coaching Search
The Chargers’ list of candidates to take over for fired head coach Mike McCoy continues to grow. Former Falcons head coach and current Buccaneers defensive coordinator Mike Smith is likely to interview with the Chargers, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Meanwhile, Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub will meet with the Bolts this week, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, and FOX Sports’ Peter Schrager adds that San Diego has asked Carolina’s permission to interview defensive coordinator Sean McDermott (all Twitter links)
The Chargers now have five potential successors to McCoy – and no offensive coordinators – on their radar, as PFR’s head coaching search tracker shows, though Smith is the only one with previous experience.
The 57-year-old was at the helm with the Falcons from 2008-14 in a stint that began swimmingly but ended poorly. Atlanta started Smith’s tenure with five straight above-.500 seasons, four of which resulted in double-digit-win campaigns and playoff berths, and then went a combined 10-22 during his final two years on the job. All told, the Falcons posted a 66-46 regular-season record and a disappointing 1-4 playoff mark under Smith. Of the other five teams in need of head coaches, only the Jaguars have shown interest in Smith to this point.
Toub, who’s on a bye with the AFC West champion Chiefs, will also meet with the Broncos this week, relays Biggs. McDermott has a Wednesday interview set up with the Bills.
Coaching Rumors: Rams, Chargers, Patricia
We have six head coaching vacancies and it’s not easy to keep track of every candidate and development in each search. That’s why Pro Football Rumors rolled out the 2017 NFL Head Coaching Tracker this week. Bookmark the page and keep up with every bit of news out of Los Angeles, Buffalo, Denver, San Diego, San Francisco, and Jacksonville.
Here’s the latest coaching news from around the league:
- The Rams‘ interview with Panthers assistant head coach Steve Wilks will take place today (Tuesday), a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). This marks the Rams’ first coach interview of this cycle.
- The Chargers have requested to interview Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Broncos, he adds, are expected to do the same. Special teams coordinators are not often considered for head coaching jobs, but we have seen a few serve as interim head coaches. In the past, Toub has been an advocate for special teams coaches to get a chance at running the show.
- Matt Patricia‘s interviews with the Rams and Chargers will go down this weekend, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Patricia, the defensive coordinator for the Patriots, must get his interviews out of the way before the Pats’ first playoff game.
49ers Ask To Interview Chiefs’ Chris Ballard
7:55pm: According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), Ballard will not be taking the interview with the 49ers. The executive believes he’s in an excellent situation in Kansas City and has a great relationship with general manager John Dorsey.
8:21am: The 49ers’ general manager search is underway and it sounds like Chris Ballard is a priority candidate. The Niners have reached out to the Chiefs for permission to interview the exec, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (on Twitter). 
It seems likely that the Chiefs will grant permission for the interview since Ballard has been a GM candidate for some time and was allowed to interview for the Titans job last offseason. Ultimately, that job went to Jon Robinson, partially because Ballard’s assessment of coach Mike Mularkey didn’t align with that of team ownership.
Ballard, who just completed his third season with Kansas City, has been an NFL personnel man for 16 years. This offseason, he could interview for multiple vacancies and this could be the year that he breaks out from John Dorsey‘s shadow.
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.
Chiefs Activate Justin March-Lillard, Cut David King
- The Chiefs have activated linebacker Justin March-Lillard off IR and waived defensive lineman David King, per Adam Teicher of ESPN.com. Kansas City designated March-Lillard to return Dec. 21, which came at running back Jamaal Charles‘ expense. Before March-Lillard broke his hand in October, he started in all five appearances and amassed 22 tackles. King picked up three appearances with the Chiefs (two this year, one last season), but he didn’t record a tackle.
Chiefs Work Out Two Defensive Backs
Reid Expects Houston To Return For Playoffs
- Andy Reid said Justin Houston experienced swelling in his surgically repaired knee, leading to the Chiefs deactivating him on Christmas night. When asked about the possibility Houston could miss the playoffs, the fourth-year Chiefs coach said the team “will take it day by day and see.” Houston, who was severely limited during Kansas City’s two-game stay in last year’s AFC bracket, missed 10 games this season after offseason ACL surgery. “It felt a little bit better than it did the day before. He felt like things were getting better,” Reid said of Houston, via Blair Kerkhoff of the Kansas City Star. “That’s what we’re going on here. It’s just a matter of that thing calming down a little bit and he’ll be back.”
Justin Houston Expected To Miss Week 16
The Chiefs possess a clearer path to the AFC’s No. 2 seed with Derek Carr no longer in the equation for the Raiders, but they look set to have to complete the first leg of that journey without their best defender.
Justin Houston is not expected to play on Christmas night against the Broncos, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com and Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link) report.
Given a questionable designation by the Chiefs after not practicing this week, Houston has played in the past five games since being activated in advance of Week 11. Kansas City’s cornerstone defender has registered four sacks since returning from knee surgery this offseason, with three of those coming against the Broncos in the teams’ first 2016 meeting. The pass-rushing onus against a vulnerable Broncos offensive line stands to fall on Dee Ford and Tamba Hali, who got in one limited practice this week.
Before missing the first nine Chiefs games this season, Houston missed the final five games of the Chiefs’ 2015 campaign and was ineffective while attempting to play through an injury in the team’s two playoff contests. This obviously bears monitoring as the playoffs near considering the outside linebacker’s impact and recent history with knee problems.
The Broncos are set to be without defenders T.J. Ward and Brandon Marshall, with the Chiefs already missing two starting defensive linemen and Derrick Johnson, so neither team will be as healthy as it was in the rivals’ Week 12 overtime showcase.
Jamaal Charles Could Have Returned This Season?
- If the Chiefs hadn’t brought linebacker Justin March-Lillard back from IR on Wednesday, running back Jamaal Charles likely would’ve been cleared to practice next week and play in January, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Charles theoretically could have been a playoff weapon for the Chiefs, though they apparently didn’t think he’d have contributed enough to justify bringing back this season. The four-time Pro Bowler has played in just eight games (three this year) dating back to last season because of knee issues, including a torn right ACL. Further, as Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star explained Wednesday, the Chiefs’ linebacker corps took a hit when Derrick Johnson suffered a ruptured Achilles earlier this month and March-Lillard could help fill his void.
Jamaal Charles Won’t Return This Season
There was hope that injured Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles would return for the playoffs, but that won’t be the case. The Chiefs designated linebacker Justin March-Lillard to return from injured reserve Wednesday, thereby ending Charles’ season, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Charles landed on IR on Nov. 1 because he needed surgery on his right knee, in which he tore his ACL last season. He also underwent a procedure on his left knee, which seemingly increased the odds of a comeback this year. Instead, though, his 2016 will end with just 12 carries and 40 yards in three appearances. Charles only participated in five games last season, in which the four-time Pro Bowler rushed 71 times for 364 yards and four touchdowns.
Just as they did last year, the 10-4 Chiefs are on track to make the playoffs this season with limited contributions from Charles. Backup Spencer Ware has stepped up in Charles’ absence and totaled 1,287 yards (860 rushing, 427 receiving) and five touchdowns. Given Ware’s emergence, not to mention Charles’ recent injury issues and age (he’ll turn 30 on Dec. 27), it’s possible Charles has put on a Chiefs uniform for the last time. By releasing the nine-year veteran in the offseason, Kansas City would save $7MM in 2017 without incurring any dead money.
March-Lillard, meanwhile, is now set to come back after heading to IR in mid-October. Prior to going down, the 2015 undrafted free agent from Akron played in 49.9 percent of the Chiefs’ defensive snaps and accrued 22 tackles.