Rams, Browns To Consider O’Connell?
Kevin O’Connell, in all likelihood, will be out of a job soon. The Redskins are poised to hire Scott Turner as their new offensive coordinator and O’Connell has been granted permission to speak with other teams about OC opportunities. Once the dust settles, O’Connell could land with the Rams or Browns, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com and Albert Breer of The MMQB (Twitter links). 
O’Connell has been referred to as “the next Sean McVay” by many in years past – he’s a young and highly-respected offensive guru who took on McVay’s one-time role in 2019. The two could unite on the same staff in Los Angeles, where McVay is also seeking a new coordinator on the other side of the ball.
Meanwhile, O’Connell could wind up as the Browns’ OC, if Josh McDaniels is hired. As a rookie quarterback for the Patriots in 2008, O’Connell was coached by McDaniels, who was then the team’s QBs coach. After that, O’Connell bounced around the league until 2012 and, eventually, transitioned to the sidelines.
Rams To Move On From DC Wade Phillips
Wade Phillips won’t return as the Rams’ defensive coordinator in 2020. On Monday, Phillips announced that he’s leaving Los Angeles. 
“I have been informed by the Rams that my contract will not be renewed,” Phillips wrote. “I want to thank them for the opportunity to be a part of their success the last three years. Most of all I want to thank the players who I loved workings with. I still want to coach and feel I can contribute.”
Phillips, 72, was a part of head coach Sean McVay’s inaugural staff. He’s been in the NFL since 1976 and even though he has done it all and captured a Super Bowl ring, he has no desire to retire. Given his resume, there’s little doubt that Phillips will be able to hook on elsewhere as a defensive coordinator, even though things did not go according to plan for his Rams defense in 2019.
In 2019, the Rams allowed 22.8 points per game and 339.6 yards per contest, putting them in the middle of the pack in both categories. Still, he didn’t get as much help from the offense as he would have liked – McVay’s much-ballyhooed offense put up just 24.6 points per contest.
Updated 2020 NFL Draft Order
After a weekend full of drama and upsets, four more spots have been determined in this year’s NFL Draft order. Most notably – the Patriots will pick No. 23 overall, their highest original pick since 2006.
Here’s the updated rundown, from Nos. 1-24:
1. Bengals (2-14)
2. Redskins (3-13)
3. Lions (3-12-1)
4. Giants (4-12)
5. Dolphins (5-11)
6. Chargers (5-11)
7. Panthers (5-11)
8. Cardinals (5-10-1)
9. Jaguars (6-10)
10. Browns (6-10)
11. Jets (7-9)
12. Raiders (7-9)
13. Colts (7-9)
14. Buccaneers (7-9)
15. Broncos (7-9)
16. Falcons (7-9)
17. Cowboys (8-8)
18. Dolphins (via Steelers 8-8)
19. Raiders (via Bears 8-8)
20. Jaguars (via Rams 9-7)
21. Eagles (9-7)
22. Bills (10-6)
23. Patriots (12-4)
24. Saints (13-3)
Rams To Meet With Andrew Whitworth
- While the Rams received considerably worse play from their highly paid offensive trio of Jared Goff, Todd Gurley and Brandin Cooks this season, Les Snead pushed back on the notion the recent extensions were the wrong decisions. “From a salary cap standpoint, and I assume the cap does go up, there’s a new collective bargaining agreement that’s coming that’s another variable that we don’t know about,” Snead said, via ESPN.com’s Lindsey Thiry. “We’ve shown in the past that when you have commodities that you might move on with via trade to collect draft capital that maybe the perception says you don’t have and to clear cap space.” That said, the Rams’ top-market extensions caused them to lose key role players this offseason and have Michael Brockers, Cory Littleton, Austin Blythe and Dante Fowler looming as threats to defect in March. The team soon must shape a Jalen Ramsey re-up as well.
- Another of the Rams’ many key free agents, Andrew Whitworth is now 38. But the Rams will meet with the veteran left tackle to determine if he still fits into their equation, Thiry adds (via Twitter). Snead said Whitworth’s place on the team is “a harder piece of the puzzle.” He signed a three-year, $33.75MM deal in 2017 to head to Los Angeles and has been a key part of Sean McVay‘s three Rams offenses. Should Whitworth not be brought back, youngsters Joe Noteboom and Bobby Evans stand as successor options, per Thiry.
Eric Weddle Does Not Expect To Return To Rams
Veteran safety Eric Weddle signed a two-year pact with the Rams in March, but he does not expect to see the second year of that deal. After the team’s season finale on Sunday, Weddle told reporters, including Lindsey Thiry of ESPN.com, that he expects Los Angeles to release him and move forward with younger players John Johnson and Taylor Rapp.
Weddle did start all 16 games for Los Angeles this year and recorded 108 tackles, but his intelligence and instincts have increasingly been overtaken by declining speed in recent years, and he knows he is nearing the end of his career.
He has not determined whether he will retire just yet, but one way or another, he will soon undergo shoulder and knee surgery after enduring nagging pains throughout the season. A team with a need for stability in the back end of its defense could see him as a valuable rotational player and leader, but it doesn’t sound as if he’s interested in that role. “I’m not going to come back to be a backup, and that’s totally fine,” Weddle said when asked about his future with the Rams. And if he feels that way about LA, he likely feels the same about other clubs.
The Rams could cut Weddle and save about $4.75MM against the cap while incurring just $500K of dead money. The six-time Pro Bowler and two-time First Team All-Pro has had an excellent career that has included stints with the Chargers, Ravens, and Rams, and if he does choose to hang them up, he said he will have no regrets.
Minor NFL Transactions:
Here are Saturday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Promoted from practice squad: QB Drew Anderson
- Placed on IR: TE Darrell Daniels
Dallas Cowboys
- Promoted from practice squad: CB Donovan Olumba
- Waived: S Josh Jones
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: CB Tony Brown
Houston Texans
- Promoted from practice squad: OL Elijah Nkansah
- Waived: DE Joel Heath
Indianapolis Colts
- Promoted from practice squad: LB Skai Moore
Los Angeles Rams
- Promoted from practice squad: RB John Kelly
- Placed on IR: RB Darrell Henderson
New York Giants
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Garrett Dickerson
- Placed on IR: TE Scott Simonson
New York Jets
- Claimed off waivers: TE Ross Travis
- Promoted from practice squad: OL Ben Braden
- Placed on IR: OL Tom Compton, OL Alex Lewis
Jalen Ramsey To Miss Week 17
- Cornerback Jalen Ramsey will miss the Rams game against the Cardinals on Sunday. Coach Sean McVay told reporters that Ramsey is dealing with a strained lateral collateral ligament that was suffered during the team’s loss to the 49ers. The Rams sent a pair of first-rounders (along with a fourth-rounder) to the Jaguars for Ramsey, and the 25-year-old ended up chipping in 33 tackles, four passes defended, an interception, and one forced fumble in nine games (eight starts) for Los Angeles.
Wade Phillips Might Not Be Back With Rams In 2020
The Rams have obviously been having a disappointing season, as they enter the final two weeks of the season with their playoff chances hanging by a thread the year after making a Super Bowl run. Anytime a team fails to meet expectations there’s the possibility for major changes, and it sounds like that could be the case in Los Angeles. Wade Phillips might be nearing the end of his time with the team, as Alex Marvez of Sirius XM NFL Radio tweets that he’s “hearing there’s a chance” Phillips doesn’t return for the 2020 season. Phillips, 72, has been the Rams’ defensive coordinator for the past three seasons, and was part of head coach Sean McVay’s inaugural staff.
The former Cowboys head coach has been coaching in the league since all the way back in 1976. Before joining forces with McVay he was the defensive coordinator in Denver, overseeing their vaunted ‘No Fly Zone’ secondary which won a Super Bowl in 2015. Marvez adds that Phillips is in the final year of his contract, and that if he were to depart then linebackers coach Joe Barry would be a “strong replacement candidate.” The Rams’ defense has had some notable meltdowns this season, like when they gave up 44 points to the Cowboys last week or 45 to the Ravens a month back, but they’ve also played quite well at times. The secondary has been better since trading for Jalen Ramsey, and they’ve given up 17 or fewer points in six of their last eight games. If Phillips does get the boot or chooses to leave on his own, he’d likely draw some interest from teams in search of a veteran assistant, perhaps to be paired with a young offensive-minded head coach.
Rams Work Out K Brett Maher
With Greg Zuerlein dealing with a quad injury, the Rams worked out former Cowboys kicker Brett Maher, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
This Maher audition comes after he traveled to Tennessee for a workout with the Titans, who ended up signing Greg Joseph off the Panthers’ practice squad. Zuerlein has not missed a game this season but missed five in 2018. Sean McVay said earlier this week the Rams would explore kicking options.
Maher had been Dallas’ kicker from the start of last season to earlier this month, but his 10-for-20 connect rate — which included two 60-plus-yarders — prompted the Cowboys to move on. Maher, who also made a 62-yard field goal as a rookie in 2018, made 29 of 36 field goals last season. He was 36-for-36 on PATs in 13 Cowboy games this year.
Last season, the Rams used Cairo Santos and Sam Ficken in Zuerlein’s five-game absence. The All-Pro specialist returned late in the season and made both the game-tying and game-winning field goals to send Los Angeles to the Super Bowl.
This season marks the final year of the 32-year-old kicker’s second NFL contract, with Zuerlein joining Dante Fowler, Michael Brockers, Cory Littleton and Austin Blythe among Rams impending free agents.
2020 NFL Draft Order As Of Week 15
With 14 full weeks of the NFL season in the books, the 2020 draft order is beginning to take shape. Here’s the rundown of where things would stand if the 2019 season ended today:
1. Bengals: 1-12
2. Giants: 2-11
3. Redskins: 3-10
4. Dolphins: 3-10
5. Lions: 3-9-1
6. Cardinals: 3-9-1
7. Jaguars: 4-9
8. Falcons: 4-9
9. Jets: 5-8
10. Chargers: 5-8
11. Broncos 5-8
12. Panthers 5-8
13. Eagles 6-7
14. Raiders 6-7
15. Colts 6-7
16. Buccaneers 6-7
17. Browns 6-7
18. Raiders (via Bears) 6-7
19. Titans 8-5
20. Jaguars (via Rams) 8-5
21. Cowboys 6-7
22. Dolphins (via Steelers) 8-5
23. Dolphins (via Texans) 8-5
24. Vikings 9-4
25. Bills 9-4
26. Chiefs 9-4
27. Packers 10-3
28. Seahawks 10-3
29. Patriots 10-3
30. Saints 10-3
31. Ravens 11-2
32. 49ers 11-2