Panthers Add Darrell Bevell To Staff
After serving as the Dolphins’ quarterbacks coach/passing-game coordinator over the past four years, Darrell Bevell emerged as a finalist to take over as the Jets’ offensive coordinator. The Jets ended up hiring Frank Reich for the position on Feb. 4, but Bevell has landed a different job a week later. He’s leaving Miami to join the Panthers’ staff as associate head coach/offensive specialist, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Carolina will be the seventh NFL team for the 56-year-old Bevell, whose pro career began in 2000 as an assistant quarterbacks coach in Green Bay. Between his six-year run with the Packers and his four seasons with the Dolphins, Bevell coached in Minnesota, Seattle, Detroit and Jacksonville. He was the O-coordinator with the Vikings (2006-10), Seahawks (2011-17), Lions (2019-20) and Jaguars (2021).
Bevell is best known for a successful tenure in Seattle, which won the Super Bowl in 2013 and then came within a yard of repeating the next year. Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler had other ideas, though, as he intercepted a Russell Wilson pass at the goal line to seal a 28-24 Pats victory in Super Bowl XLIX.
Bevell and former Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll have since drawn no shortage of criticism for passing instead of handing off to Marshawn Lynch in the game’s waning moments. Bevell nonetheless remained in charge of their offense for three more seasons.
Dave Canales, now the Panthers’ head coach, was the Seahawks’ wide receivers coach during Bevell’s entire seven-year stay as their O-coordinator. Panthers general manager Dan Morgan was in the Seahawks’ front office for that stretch.
The three are now reuniting in Carolina, which won the NFC South in 2025 despite an 8-9 record. Quarterback Bryce Young, the former first overall pick, made enough progress in his third season for the team to pick up his fifth-year option. The jury is still out on whether Young will turn into a franchise signal-caller, but Bevell will now have a hand in his development after drawing mixed results from Tua Tagovailoa in Miami.
With assistance from Bevell, Tagovailoa led the league in passer rating (2022), yards (2023) and completion percentage (2024) in separate seasons. Tagovailoa also received a Pro Bowl invitation in 2023, but he bottomed out in 2025 – Bevell’s last year in South Florida – and the Dolphins now hope to trade him.
Browns, Dolphins, Steelers Interested In QB Malik Willis?
The Packers expect to see Malik Willis depart in free agency next month. His destination will remain unclear for the time being, but a list of suitors to watch has emerged. 
At least four teams are regarded as likely to make an offer in Willis’ case, SportsBoom’s Jason La Canfora reports. The Steelers are among them. La Canfora adds the Browns and Dolphins are viewed as being “particularly keen” in Willis’ case, making them logical candidates to make a free agent push.
Willis has spent the past two years as a backup to Jordan Love in Green Bay. During limited action filling in as the team’s starter, the former third-round pick has flashed enough potential to generate notable interest. The 2026 quarterback market is not on track to include many options seen as containing much in the way of upside. Willis represents an exception, and a bidding war could land him a starting gig ahead of next season.
The Dolphins have a number of ex-Packers staffers in the fold. That includes new general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley. The latter holds Willis in high regard, per the report. That would make a notable Dolphins pursuit unsurprising, although the team also has the matter of Tua Tagovailoa and his contract to attend to. Trading Tagovailoa will be a goal for Miami this offseason, and retaining money to facilitate a deal may be on the table. A cost-effective replacement – especially one familiar to the Dolphins’ new decision-makers – would of course be attractive.
Pittsburgh inked Aaron Rodgers to a one-year deal last offseason. Connections between the two parties resulted in a long-running period before an agreement was ultimately reached. Moving on to Will Howard or another option could take place in 2026, but the Steelers expressed a willingness to retain Rodgers even before Mike McCarthy was hired as head coach. A QB-HC reunion dating back to the time both shared in Green Bay remains a distinct possibility.
An agent who spoke with La Canfora pointed to Cleveland as the team which could end up in pole position to land Willis. 2025 draftees Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel are still in the fold after each saw time atop the depth chart as rookies. Deshaun Watson is likely to be healthy by the start of next season, and he could compete for the QB1 gig. More competition could nevertheless be brought in, something which could point the Browns in the direction of a Willis signing.
One GM predicted Willis, 26, will ultimately land a contract similar to the one Justin Fields signed last spring. Upon joining the Jets, Fields secured a two-year, $40MM pact with $30MM guaranteed. Any pact close to that one would represent a major raise relative to Willis’ rookie contract. Especially if multiple teams find themselves competing for his services, a multi-year contract could soon be in store.
Dolphins Hope To Trade QB Tua Tagovailoa
With the 2025 NFL season officially over and most top coaching positions filled, the spotlight will now turn to the league’s annual quarterback carousel.
Among the passers likely to be available is Tua Tagovailoa, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. The Dolphins have long been expected to move on from the 2020 first-round pick as part of a full organizational overhaul, which also featured changes at head coach and general manager.
A trade would be preferable to an outright release for a number of reasons. Cutting Tagovailoa would incur a $99MM dead cap hit, the largest in NFL history. The Dolphins can restructure his deal to push the majority of that dead money into 2027 with a post-June 1 cut, but the extra cap savings would not be available until that date.
Finalizing a trade would allow Miami to part ways with Tagovailoa earlier in the offseason while also reducing the resulting financial impact. It would also get back some kind of return, though the draft compensation in such a deal may be minimal
Miami appears to be willing to eat some of Tagovailoa’s remaining contract to facilitate a trade, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The 27-year-old is owed $54MM in guaranteed money in 2026, comprised of a $39MM salary and a $15MM option bonus (via OverTheCap). Understandably, an acquiring team would not want to pick up that entire tab. But they might be willing to take on part of Tagovailoa’s deal if the Dolphins absorb the rest. In that event, a trade that yields draft picks and a dead cap charge under $99MM would be considered a major success for Miami’s new front office.
The Dolphins seem to be mulling their options as their new leaders step into their jobs. New offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald) that Tagovailoa can “absolutely bounce back,” but the quarterback has not been informed of a decision one way or the other.
Adam Gase To Join Chargers’ Staff
FEBRUARY 9: Gase is indeed being hired by the Chargers, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network confirms. He will work as an assistant “focusing on the passing game,” as expected.
FEBRUARY 7, 4:16pm: According to OutKick’s Armando Salguero, Gase will be flying to Los Angeles early next week to discuss the potential of him assuming the pass game coordinator position for the Chargers. As Zenitz suggested in his initial report, it’s considered a strong possibility that the trip will end Gase’s six-year hiatus from the NFL.
FEBRUARY 7, 10:28am: Adam Gase hasn’t coached in the NFL since the Jets fired him in 2020, but the 47-year-old could resurface on the Chargers’ staff next season. Head coach Jim Harbaugh is “strongly considering” Gase for the Chargers’ passing game coordinator role, Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports reports.
In joining the Chargers, Gase would take over for soon-to-be Ravens assistant Marcus Brady and team with two-time Pro Bowl quarterback Justin Herbert. Harbaugh and new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel would be landing a seasoned staffer in Gase, who carries 16 years’ experience in the pros.
Gase has held high-level assistant jobs with the Lions (QBs coach, 2007), Broncos (QBs coach from 2011-12, offensive coordinator from 2013-14) and Bears (O-coordinator, 2015). However, he’s better known for his ill-fated head coaching tenures with the Dolphins and Jets.
Gase took the reins in 2016 in Miami, which won 10 games and earned a playoff berth that year. Things went downhill from there, though. After the Dolphins combined to go 13-19 over the next two seasons, they fired Gase.
It didn’t take long for Gase to land with the Jets, who hired him under two weeks after the Dolphins canned him. Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning, whom Gase coached in Denver from 2012-14, recommended him to Jets owner Woody Johnson. Despite Manning’s endorsement, Gase’s run as the Jets’ sideline leader was a disaster. They went 7-9 in 2019 and then spiraled to a 2-14 mark the next season, leading Johnson to hand Gase his walking papers.
Gase, owner of an ugly 32-48 record in a half-decade as a head coach, has stayed connected to the game despite not officially working for any teams since 2020. When Antonio Pierce was the Raiders’ interim head coach in 2023, he invited Gase and fellow former HCs Tom Coughlin and Marvin Lewis to participate in meetings. Gase, the son-in-law of Denver senior defensive assistant Joe Vitt, also spent time around the Broncos and offensive coordinator (then their QBs coach) Davis Webb last summer, per Jon Heath of Broncos Wire.
Along with Gase, Dolphins offensive assistant Max McCaffrey is a candidate to join the Chargers’ staff, according to Zenitz. There’s a “strong possibility” the Chargers will hire McCaffrey, possibly as their running backs coach, after he worked for McDaniel in Miami from 2023-25. Kiel McDonald, the Chargers’ RBs coach from 2024-25, will not return next season, per Daniel Popper of The Athletic. That could open the door for McCaffrey.
An NFL receiver from 2016-18, the 31-year-old McCaffrey is the brother of superstar 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey and Commanders wideout Luke McCaffrey. He began his coaching career assisting with Northern Colorado’s WRs in 2020.
Final 2026 NFL Draft Order
With Super Bowl LX in the books, the full 2026 NFL draft order has been set. Free agency is not far away, but attention will increasingly turn to April’s event as the offseason progresses.
The top of the first-round order is not subject to much in the way of speculation. The Raiders own the No. 1 selection and are widely seen as the landing spot for Fernando Mendoza, the lone quarterback regarded as a first-round lock at this point. How other QB-needy teams positioned throughout the order operate over the coming weeks – knowing there is a lack of high-end prospects this year – will make for an interesting storyline around the league.
This year’s NFL Combine will begin on February 23. Events such as the Senior Bowl have already taken place, leaving the Combine as the next major checkpoint in the evaluation of top prospects. Teams will begin arranging ‘Top 30’ visits with several players of interest relatively soon during the build-up to the draft. This year’s event will take place in Pittsburgh from April 23-25.
Pending the inevitable trades which will shake up the order, here is a final look at how things stand leading up to Day 1:
- Las Vegas Raiders (3-14)
- New York Jets (3-14)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-14)
- Tennessee Titans (3-14)
- New York Giants (4-13)
- Cleveland Browns (5-12)
- Washington Commanders (5-12)
- New Orleans Saints (6-11)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-11)
- Cincinnati Bengals (6-11)
- Miami Dolphins (7-10)
- Dallas Cowboys (7-9-1)
- Los Angeles Rams (via Falcons)
- Baltimore Ravens (8-9)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)
- New York Jets (via Colts)
- Detroit Lions (9-8)
- Minnesota Vikings (9-8)
- Carolina Panthers (8-9)
- Dallas Cowboys (from Packers)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
- Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
- Philadelphia Eagles (11-6)
- Cleveland Browns (from Jaguars)
- Chicago Bears (11-6)
- Buffalo Bills (12-5)
- San Francisco 49ers (12-5)
- Houston Texans (12-5)
- Los Angeles Rams (12-5)
- Denver Broncos (14-3)
- New England Patriots (14-3)
- Seattle Seahawks (14-3)
NFC Staff Updates: Cardinals, 49ers, Cowboys, Lions, Buccaneers
New Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur quickly hired Nathaniel Hackett as his offensive coordinator, and he is now looking for coaches to run his defense and special teams.
Arizona is interviewing a number of candidates for defensive coordinator, while Giants special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial has emerged as a leading candidate to take over as special teams coordinator, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan.
Ghobrial, 37, has spent the last two years with the Giants. Before that, he served as the Jets’ assistant special teams coordinator on Robert Saleh‘s staff, overlapping for two years with LaFleur. Ghobrial previously worked for a number of college programs as well as the Lions in 2017.
The Giants had a solid year on special teams in 2025. They ranked fifth in yards per kickoff return (27.7) and 10th in average starting field position (31.3). Cornerback Deonte Banks also recorded one of the NFL’s five kick return touchdowns last year.
Here is the latest from the coaching ranks across the NFC:
- Elsewhere in the NFC West, the 49ers are hiring former Dolphins offensive assistant Roman Sapolu to their staff, according to KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. He previously served as Hawaii’s offensive coordinator and Fresno State’s run game coordinator. He is also the son of former NFL offensive lineman Jesse Sapolu, who won four Super Bowls with the 49ers between 1983 and 1997.
- The 49ers also promoted team president Al Guido to Chief Executive Officer, per a press release. Guido first arrived in San Francisco in 2014 as the Chief Operating Officer before his promotion to president.
- The Cowboys are retaining Jamel Mutunga, who spent the 2025 season in Dallas via the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship. He will be the team’s assistant running backs coach moving forward, per ESPN’s Todd Archer.
- The Lions are promoting assistant offensive line coach Steve Oliver to tight ends coach, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. He will replace Tyler Roehl, who left Detroit to become Iowa State’s offensive coordinator.
- The Buccaneers are making internal promotions to replace cornerbacks coach Kevin Ross (fired) and safeties coach Nick Rapone (retired), according to Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds. Rashad Johnson will take over Ross’ role while Tim Atkins will succeed Rapone. Both served as assistant secondary coaches in 2025.
2026 NFL Offseason Outlook Series
Pro Football Rumors is breaking down how all 32 teams’ offseason blueprints are shaping up. Going forward, the Offseason Outlook series is exclusive to Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers, and that link provides details on how to sign up for an annual membership.
This post will be updated as more Outlooks are published.
AFC East
- Buffalo Bills
- Miami Dolphins
- New England Patriots
- New York Jets
AFC North
- Baltimore Ravens
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Cleveland Browns
- Pittsburgh Steelers
AFC South
- Houston Texans
- Indianapolis Colts
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Tennessee Titans
AFC West
- Denver Broncos
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Los Angeles Chargers
NFC East
- Dallas Cowboys
- New York Giants
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Washington Commanders
NFC North
- Chicago Bears
- Detroit Lions
- Green Bay Packers
- Minnesota Vikings
NFC South
- Atlanta Falcons
- Carolina Panthers
- New Orleans Saints
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
NFC West
- Arizona Cardinals
- Los Angeles Rams
- San Francisco 49ers
- Seattle Seahawks
NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 2/5/26
Today’s reserve/futures deals:
Miami Dolphins
- TE Zack Kuntz
Zack Kuntz was a seventh-round pick by the Jets in 2023 and spent two years with the organization. The majority of his NFL career has been spent on New York’s practice squad, although he did find his way into two games with the Jets. He was waived at the end of the 2025 preseason and didn’t join a team for this past season. The tight end was selected by the DC Defenders during this past January’s UFL draft.
Bears To Hire Eric Studesville As RBs Coach
The Bears have found their replacement for Eric Bienemy, their running backs coach in 2025 who returned to Kansas City as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator this offseason. Former Dolphins assistant Eric Studesville will take up the job in 2026, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
Studesville, 58, began his NFL coaching career with the Bears as an offensive quality control coach in 1997. Interestingly, that followed a college career in which he played and coached on the defensive side of the ball. He then served as the wide receivers coach/assistant special teams coach in 1999 and 2000 before he was hired by the Giants to be their running backs coach. He spent three years in New York before taking the same job with the Bills (2004-2009), Broncos (2010-2016), and Dolphins (2017-2025).
In Miami, he also held the titles of run game coordinator (2017-2020), co-offensive coordinator (2021), and associate head coach (2022-2025). He also overlapped with then-Dolphins WRs coach Ben Johnson for two years and will now fill a key role on his staff in Chicago.
Studeville has developed notable star running backs in his career, including De’Von Achane, Tiki Barber, Fred Jackson, Willis McGahee, C.J. Anderson, and Knowshon Moreno. He will now work with D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai, who were an effective one-two punch in 2025.
Cardinals To Hire Nathaniel Hackett As OC
Nathaniel Hackett was believed to be heading to Miami to become the Dolphins’ quarterbacks coach. But he is now on track to move back onto the coordinator tier.
The Cardinals are hiring Hackett as their OC under Mike LaFleur, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports. Hackett was LaFleur’s successor as Jets OC; the duo will now head up the offense in Arizona.
A report last week had Hackett committing to the Dolphins to become their QBs coach under Jeff Hafley, but a better offer has come up that will force Miami to keep looking. This will be a non-play-calling position, with LaFleur set to hold the play sheet in the desert. That will be familiar territory for Hackett, who served as Matt LaFleur‘s non-play-calling OC with the Packers from 2019-21. That stay boosted Hackett’s stock; the next three seasons tanked it.
Considering Hackett’s three-year stretch from 2022-24, a move back to the coordinator tier represents a risky decision on the Cardinals’ part. The Broncos fired Hackett 15 games into his HC tenure, and the Jets demoted him from play-calling duties in 2024 — after an offseason effort to strip his power failed. Hackett ended up back in Green Bay as a defensive analyst last season, and his relationship with the LaFleurs appears to be strong enough for what will be a fifth chance as an NFL OC.
Prior to Hackett’s Green Bay stay, he served in that capacity in Buffalo and Jacksonville. Fired during a disappointing Jaguars 2018 season, Hackett landed on his feet weeks later as Matt LaFleur’s OC. The Packers then secured three playoff byes in Hackett’s three years in that role, with Aaron Rodgers earning MVP acclaim in 2020 and ’21. Rodgers has consistently vouched for Hackett, to the point he is believed to have interceded with a Jets effort to fire him after the 2023 season. But Hackett has enjoyed memorable failures with and without the star QB outside of Wisconsin.
The Broncos named Hackett as head coach in January 2022; in early March, they completed a blockbuster Russell Wilson trade. This move took place shortly after Rodgers recommitted to the Packers on a three-year extension. The Broncos were connected to Rodgers for a while, and although they insisted their Wilson trade was not connected to the then-reigning MVP’s Packers decision, the Hackett-Wilson partnership was a historic bust.
Giving Wilson’s camp considerable influence in the building and having the perennial Seahawks Pro Bowler partially dictate how the offense was structured, Hackett proved to be a poor HC fit. Hackett game management gaffes that September led to the Broncos bringing in an assistant (Jerry Rosburg) to run that department, and the embattled HC then removed himself from play-calling duties, giving the play sheet to QBs coach Klint Kubiak. The Broncos canned Hackett after a blowout loss to the Rams, with Rosburg finishing the season as interim HC. Despite Denver’s disjointed offense ranking last in 2022, Hackett landed the New York OC job in 2023.
After LaFleur saw Zach Wilson‘s struggles lead to his ouster, Hackett was soon forced to work with the QB bust after Rodgers’ Week 1 Achilles tear. The Jets ranked 29th in scoring in 2022 and ’23, though Hackett’s attack was worse in yardage (31st) and EPA per play (32nd). Robert Saleh sought to strip power from Hackett during the 2024 offseason, but a stealth search for a de facto OC failed. Saleh was planning to demote Hackett early that season, but the Jets fired their head coach. The team removed Hackett from play-calling duty anyway, giving the play sheet to QBs coach Todd Downing.
It is not known which external minority candidate the Cardinals interviewed; teams must interview one external minority before filling OC or DC posts. Regardless, Hackett (46) will receive yet another chance. He will provide an experienced voice for Mike LaFleur, 38, but his Denver and New York work brings obvious concerns.
Hackett was at the controls for a surprisingly effective 2017 Jaguars offense — one that reached the Super Bowl LII precipice — but he is mostly known for recent failures. He will presumably have a say in how the Cardinals proceed at quarterback, as Kyler Murray is far from certain to enter an eighth season as the team’s QB.