Dolphins Release DE Jason Jones
The Dolphins announced that they have released defensive end Jason Jones. Jones recently returned from suspension. 
[RELATED: Dolphins To Release DL Mario Williams This Offseason]
Miami decided this week that they would not be using Jones in the first-round playoff game against the Steelers, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald writes. It’s possible that Jones reacted poorly to that news, because the Dolphins have decided they do not want to have Jones around at all. Jones, 30, appeared in ten Dolphins games this season. He posted 2.5 sacks, 23 tackles, and a fumble recovery. With Jones out, Mario Williams will play Sunday against Pittsburgh.
Meanwhile, in another surprising development, quarterback Ryan Tannehill returned to practice today. Previous reports indicated that Tannehill would definitely not play this weekend, but today’s news could open the door slightly to that possibility. At minimum, it’s a promising sign for his availability going forward, should Miami win this weekend.
Vance Joseph Favorite For Broncos’ HC Job
Although he hasn’t met with Denver officials, Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph has emerged as the front-runner to become the Broncos’ head coach, multiple league and team sources told Mike Klis of 9NEWS. Sporting News’ Alex Marvez previously named Joseph as the likely successor to Gary Kubiak, citing Joseph’s connection with Broncos director of player personnel Matt Russell (Twitter link).
While Joseph hasn’t yet spoken with Denver’s brass this week, the former University of Colorado quarterback did interview with the club before it hired the now-retired Kubiak in January 2015. It’s also notable that Joseph once worked under the Broncos’ most recent defensive coordinator, Wade Phillips, in Houston.
“I have so much respect for that man,” Joseph said of Phillips in October (via Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post).
Despite Joseph’s affinity for Phillips, Marvez reported Thursday that the latter is likely on his way out of Denver. If hired, Joseph would probably promote defensive backs coach Joe Woods to replace Phillips, whose contract is up.
Joseph, who’s preparing to counter the Steelers’ offense in this weekend’s wild-card round, is in the midst of his first season as a coordinator. While it hasn’t gone well statistically (Miami finished the regular season 18th in scoring, 19th in DVOA and 29th in total defense), Joseph is nonetheless drawing plenty of interest from teams without head coaches. That could add to the Broncos’ urgency to hire the 44-year-old, who’s facing competition from Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan – who prefers Denver’s job to others – and Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub. Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn‘s name has also come up, though the Broncos haven’t sought an interview with him, according to Klis (Twitter link).
Vance Joseph Hasn’t Talked With Broncos Yet
As shown in PFR’s Head Coaching Search Tracker, defensive coordinator Vance Joseph has already been linked to a number of jobs. However, we may need to pump the brakes on one potential gig. Joseph told reporters today that he has not talked to the Broncos during this cycle (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s James Walker). 
[RELATED: PFR’s 2017 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]
Here’s what we do know: the Bills, Rams, Chargers, and 49ers have all requested interviews with Joseph. The Broncos did interview Joseph two years ago before hiring Gary Kubiak, but they have yet to loop him into the discussion this time around. Recently, Broncos GM John Elway said there are three or four candidates the team is “excited about,” but it’s not clear whether Joseph is a part of that exclusive group.
So far, Denver has booked interviews with Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub, and Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn.
Ryan Tannehill Won’t Start For Dolphins
Ryan Tannehill has been ruled out for this week’s game, according to Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald (on Twitter). In his place, Matt Moore will get the start. 
This week, coach Adam Gase said that the team would only have to get Tannehill on the field for one practice session in order for him to start, at the same time, he admitted they were running out of time to make that happen. Today’s news was somewhat expected for Miami, but it’s still disappointing. This year, Tannehill bounced back from a slow start and performed like a top ten quarterback once he got into a rhythm. In his 13 games this season, Tannehill completed a career-high 67.1% of his passes with 19 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. He finished out the year as Pro Football Focus’ No. 13 ranked QB, several spots ahead of Sunday’s opposing signal caller, Ben Roethlisberger.
Moore, 32, has 28 regular season starts on his resume. In his five games and three starts this year, he has completed 55 of 87 passes (63.2%) with eight touchdowns against three interceptions.
Dolphins Try Out Several Defenders
- The Dolphins worked out linebacker Ron Thompson, defensive end Arthur Miley and four defensive backs – L.J. McCray, Floyd Raven, Trent Matthews and Daniel Davie – according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link). Miami’s need for DBs is obvious, as its secondary is extremely banged up with the team’s weekend wild-card game in Pittsburgh approaching. Cornerback Byron Maxwell and safety Bacarri Rambo didn’t practice Wednesday, while safeties Reshad Jones and Isa Abdul-Quddus are on the shelf thanks to season-ending injuries.
Latest On Dolphins QB Ryan Tannehill
Dolphins coach Adam Gase says Ryan Tannehill won’t practice today (Twitter link via Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com). If he gets one day of practice, that will be enough for Miami to play him on Sunday. However, Gase admits the Dolphins “may run out of time this week” (Twitter link via Mike Garafolo of NFL.com). 
[RELATED: Dolphins To Release DL Mario Williams]
Miami’s original plan was to bring Tannehill back for Week 17 against the Patriots, but they decided to play it safe since they already had a 92% chance of making the postseason. With the ultra-tough Steelers on the docket, however, the Fins are eager to get their No. 1 QB back.
Tannehill was able to shed the cast on his injured leg some time ago, so he is at least moving in the right direction. Initially feared to be an ACL tear, Tannehill is dealing with an ACL/MCL sprain. That’s no walk in the park, but not as grim as it could be.
In his 13 games this season, Tannehill has completed a career-high 67.1% of his passes with 19 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. If Tannehill is unable to go, quarterback Matt Moore will start in his place.
Coaching Rumors: Lynn, 49ers, McDaniels
The latest news on the league’s coaching vacancies:
- For a complete rundown of every interview scheduled for the teams in search of a new coach, check out PFR’s 2017 NFL Head Coaching Tracker.
- Anthony Lynn‘s interview with the 49ers will take place today (Wednesday), according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
- Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will interview with the Rams, Jaguars, and 49ers all on the same day, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe writes. McDaniels will huddle up with all three teams on Saturday in separate rooms at a hotel near Gilette Stadium. Those three teams will be permitted to interview McDaniels again in the week after the AFC title game, if the Pats make it to the Super Bowl.
- The Chargers won’t force assistants on a new head coach, but they value their offensive staff, Rapoport tweets. There’s a good chance offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt and his fellow offensive coaches stay put.
- The Broncos are expected to talk to Lynn at some point and will interview Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph as soon as the rules allow, Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com tweets.
- Cardinals offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin is scheduled to meet with the Rams on Thursday and the Bills on Saturday, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.
- Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub will interview with the Broncos on Friday and then he has the Chargers on Sunday, Rapoport tweets.
49ers To Interview Sean McVay, Vance Joseph
Redskins offensive coordinator Sean McVay and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph are the latest serious candidates to fill the 49ers’ head coaching vacancy. McVay will interview next Monday, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, and Joseph will also meet with the team sometime in the near future, tweets Rand Getlin.
If McVay were to land the job, the soon-to-be 31-year-old wunderkind would become the youngest head coach in the modern era. McVay, who has three years’ experience as a coordinator, teamed with head coach Jay Gruden to guide the Redskins to the NFL’s third-best total offense and a fifth-place DVOA ranking this season. The Rams are also targeting him as a result, though going to San Francisco – where his grandfather, John McVay, once thrived as an executive – would perhaps make for a more interesting story.
Unlike McVay, Joseph’s season isn’t over – the playoff-bound Dolphins will take on the Steelers in the wild-card round this weekend. Thus, it’s unclear when he’ll meet with the Niners. The Broncos will also interview Joseph, according to Getlin, while the Rams, Bills and Chargers have expressed interest in sitting down with him. Joseph, 44, is amid his first year as a defensive coordinator, one in which the Dolphins finished the regular season with unspectacular rankings in scoring (18th), DVOA (19th) and total defense (29th).
Dolphins To Release DL Mario Williams
The Dolphins will waive defensive lineman Mario Williams this offseason, a source tells Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. It has been long expected that the Dolphins would drop Williams. 
[RELATED: Teams Request Permission To Interview DC Vance Joseph]
If Williams were to remain on the roster on the fifth day of the 2017 league year, he would have $3.5MM of his scheduled $8.485MM base salary guaranteed. The Dolphins have no interest in paying out his salary after a year in which he declined sharply. Williams was relegated to the bench in his first season with Miami and defensive coordinator Vance Joseph even slammed him publicly for a perceived lack of effort. Lately, he has been squeezed out of the gameplan altogether. Williams was a healthy scratch in Week 17 and he’ll likely be squeezed out on Sunday when the Dolphins face the Steelers in the first round of the playoffs.
Of course, this isn’t what the Dolphins had in mind when they signed Super Mario to a two-year, $17MM deal this spring. Williams had only five sacks in 2015, but in the year prior he piled up 14.5 sacks. The Dolphins felt that a change of scenery and a return to a 4-3 system would benefit him, but he instead turned in the worst season of his career. Now on the verge of his 32nd birthday, Williams will be a free agent and will have to take a drastic pay cut if he wants to continue playing.
Teams Request Permission To Interview DC Vance Joseph
- The Rams, Bills, and Chargers are requesting permission to speak with Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). We learned earlier today that the 49ers have also expressed interest in Joseph.
- If Joseph indeed gets a head coaching gig, linebackers coach Matt Burke is likely to replace him as the Dolphins defensive coordinator, Jeff Darlington of ESPN.com tweets. Burke joined the Dolphins last offseason after having previously served as the linebackers coach with the Bengals and Lions.
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