2022 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker

Last year, seven NFL teams opted to make a head coaching change. Sean Payton stepping away from the Saints created nine full-time vacancies available this year.

Listed below are the head coaching candidates that have been linked to each of the teams with vacancies, along with their current status. If and when other teams decide to make head coaching changes, they’ll be added to this list. Here is the current breakdown:

Updated 2-7-22 (1:45pm CT)

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Coaching Rumors: Saints, Texans, McDaniel, Giants, Broncos

The Saints began their cycle of head coaching interviews this week, conducting meetings with the following candidates: former Eagles’ head coach Doug Pederson (1/30; hired by Jaguars), former Dolphins’ head coach Brian Flores (2/1), Lions’ defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn (2/2), their current special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi (2/3), their current defensive coordinator Dennis Allen (2/4), and Chiefs’ offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy (2/6).

New Orleans also requested permission to interview Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. There were some early reports that permission had been granted, but that hasn’t been confirmed and nothing has been scheduled, as of yet. ESPN’s Saints’ reporter Mike Triplett also mentioned that current offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael was offered an opportunity to interview for the position, but Carmichael declined. Despite being a part of Sean Payton‘s staff since Payton’s tenure in New Orleans began back in 2006, it appears Carmichael has no interest in running the show in the Big Easy. Whether he has retirement or another destination in mind or he is just comfortable in his role, Carmichael will not be the Saints’ next head coach.

Here are a few more notes from the ongoing coaching searches and staff changes throughout the NFL, starting with the other head coaching vacancy:

  • Houston recently narrowed their list of head coaching candidates down to three: Brian Flores, former quarterback Josh McCown, and Eagles’ defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon. Well, according to USA Today’s Josina Anderson, the Texans are now down to two candidates, with Gannon being informed Saturday that he will not be receiving the head coaching position, leaving Flores and McCown as the two remaining names.
  • New Dolphins’ head coach Mike McDaniel reportedly has interest in holding on to some of the defensive assistants currently under contract in Miami, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. This includes current defensive coordinator Josh Boyer, who followed Flores to Miami from New England. The lack of staff turnover would be a positive for a defensive unit that played well during the team’s seven-game win-streak in the back half of the season.
  • The Giants were able to add a piece to Brian Daboll‘s new staff while missing out on another today. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan tweeted out that Andy Bischoff will become the Giants’ new tight ends coach. Bischoff followed David Culley from Baltimore to Houston and will make the lateral move over from the Texans with their head coaching position still in the air. Unfortunately, the Giants did not get their running backs coach, as Bruce Feldman of The Athletic tweeted out that Deland McCullough has turned down Daboll’s offer, choosing instead to remain the running backs coach at Notre Dame, believing it gives him the best opportunity to eventually become a head coach.
  • New Broncos’ head coach Nathaniel Hackett is also looking to fill out his staff. The Broncos are planning to interview Jon Embree who most recently held the position of tight ends coach/assistant head coach in San Francisco. Embree parted ways with the Niners after being asked to take a 60 percent pay cut after San Francisco’s NFC Championship loss. The man who has coached George Kittle since he was drafted in 2017 would be a nice addition to Hackett’s system.

Dolphins Hire Mike McDaniel As Head Coach

The Dolphins have announced that they’ve agreed to terms to make 49ers’ offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel their next head coach (Twitter).

McDaniel recently had his second interview with Miami on Friday. Fox Sports Writer Peter Schrager reported that the interview lasted for 10 hours.
McDaniel was one of two candidates to receive a second interview with the Dolphins as Cowboys’ offensive coordinator Kellen Moore interviewed yesterday. With Moore not getting the job, it looks like Dallas will keep both coordinators as Moore has not been mentioned as a contender for the Saints’ or Texans’ jobs and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn has informed teams that he is remaining in Dallas.

McDaniel is a longtime Kyle Shanahan-staffer, following Shanahan from Atlanta to San Francisco. Following Mike LaFleur‘s departure to join Robert Saleh on the Jets, McDaniel was promoted to offensive coordinator.

The 2021 NFL season was McDaniel’s first and only year as an offensive coordinator at any level. He first entered the NFL as an intern for the Broncos in 2004. He spent three years as an offensive assistant in Houston before taking the position of running backs coach for Sacramento’s short-lived UFL team. McDaniel re-entered the NFL ranks an an offensive assistant in Washington for two years before getting promoted to wide receivers coach. He spent one season in that position in Washington followed by a season holding the same position in Cleveland before heading to Atlanta to become an offensive assistant under Shanahan.

The 38-year-old’s rise has been meteoric since joining Shanahan. After two years in Atlanta, McDaniel became Shanahan’s run game coordinator in San Francisco for four seasons before finally getting his shot last year at offensive coordinator. McDaniel didn’t call plays for the 49ers, but he did draw up the running plays and coordinate a running game that ranked in the top-10 despite losing Raheem Mostert in Week 1 and missing Elijah Mitchell for 6 games this year.

With Brian Flores‘ lawsuit against the NFL, Dolphins, Giants, and Broncos alleging racial discrimination, much attention will likely be paid to the fact that McDaniel identifies as multiracial, making him the first minority coaching candidate to be hired in this year’s cycle. The 49ers will receive two third-round compensatory picks as a result of the hire.

With Miami securing their man, there are now only two teams remaining who are without a head coach: the Texans and Saints. Keep up with the last remaining coaching searches on our 2022 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker.

NFC Coaching Notes: Eberflus, Bucs, Panthers, Giants, Packers

Although Matt Eberflus landed the Bears job because of the Colts’ defensive performance, Chicago’s new HC is planning more of a CEO-type role for himself. Eberflus is not planning to call defensive plays for the Bears this season, via The Athletic’s Adam Jahns (on Twitter). Instead, new Chicago DC Alan Williams will handle that responsibility. Williams, 52, has previous DC experience, working under Leslie Frazier in Minnesota in the early 2010s, and has enjoyed a few tours as a DBs coach. This will be an interesting transition for Eberflus, a first-time HC. It will not be a notable transition for the Bears, who spent much of the past two seasons with their head coach operating in a CEO-type capacity. Matt Nagy handed off play-calling duties to then-OC Bill Lazor in each of the past two seasons.

Here is the latest from the NFC coaching carousel:

  • The Buccaneers are set to go through a major transition, with Tom Brady‘s retirement ending a brief but successful era that likely doubled as the second-highest peak in franchise history. But Bruce Arians is not eyeing a rebuild. The fourth-year Bucs HC denied a report that indicated the team would allow assistants to pursue other jobs even if the new positions were not promotions, per The Athletic’s Greg Auman (on Twitter). It looks like Arians will keep both coordinators — Byron Leftwich and Todd Bowles — for the 2022 season, so Tampa Bay will still feature considerable continuity despite Brady’s departure and the presumptive exits of some key free agents.
  • Circling back to the Bears, the team made some additional hires in recent days. New OC Luke Getsy‘s right-hand man on the Justin Fields front will be Andrew Janocko, Chicago’s new quarterbacks coach. Janocko spent the past seven seasons with the Vikings, ending the run by serving as their QBs coach in 2021. He also worked as the Vikes’ receivers coach and assistant O-line coach at points during his long Minnesota tenure. The Bears also hired James Rowe as their secondary coach. Rowe will come over after serving as the Colts’ cornerbacks coach. David Overstreet, Indianapolis’ assistant DBs coach, will also follow Eberflus and fill the same position with the Bears. Overstreet moved up from the quality control level with Indy in 2021.
  • Former Packers offensive line coach James Campen landed a job as the Panthers‘ O-line coach, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Following a 12-year tenure in Green Bay, Campen will begin the 2022 season with a new team for the fourth straight year. He coached the Browns, Chargers and Texans’ O-lines from 2019-21.
  • Giants running backs coach Burton Burns is expected to retire, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post tweets. Burns, 69, began coaching in 1981 and spent the past two years as the Giants’ RBs coach — his only NFL position during his career. Fellow college-staff veteran Kevin Sherrer is expected to follow Burns on the way out, per Dunleavy. Sherrer served as the Giants’ linebackers coach last season and migrated to the NFL level, like Burns, for the first time in 2020.
  • To replace tight ends coach Justin Outten, who made a big leap to become the Broncos’ offensive coordinator, the Packers promoted John Dunn. Although this is a promotion, after Dunn spent the 2021 season as an offensive analyst in Green Bay, he coached Jets tight ends from 2019-20.

Giants Interview Jim Schwartz For DC

Four former defensive coordinators have now interviewed with the Giants. Jim Schwartz was the latest to do so, going through a virtual meeting with the team Saturday, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.

A Titans assistant, Schwartz has extensive experience as a defensive coordinator. He gained plenty of intel on recent Giants teams from his five-year post as Eagles DC. The Eagles hiring a new head coach last year ended up sending Schwartz back to Tennessee, where he aided Mike Vrabel‘s staff from a non-DC position this season.

The Giants have now met with Schwartz, ex-Ravens DC Don Martindale, multi-stint DC Teryl Austin and 2021 Bears defensive play-caller Sean Desai. After being prepared to keep Patrick Graham on for a third season, Brian Daboll appears to prefer Graham’s replacement have coordinator experience. Graham agreed to become the Raiders’ DC on Friday night.

Schwartz, 55, is best known for his time with the Lions. Inheriting a team coming off an 0-16 season, Schwartz guided Detroit to a 10-6 slate in 2011. After the Lions fired Schwartz following the 2013 season, he resurfaced as the Bills’ DC before moving to Philly and collecting a Super Bowl ring. The Colts interviewed Schwartz recently but ended up hiring Gus Bradley as their defensive leader.

Giants Interview Teryl Austin For DC

The Steelers interviewed previous Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham for their DC role last month. Less than 24 hours after Graham’s decision to leave for Las Vegas, the Giants met with Mike Tomlin‘s top defensive assistant.

Steelers secondary coach Teryl Austin met with the Giants about their DC position Saturday, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post tweets. Austin is both a familiar face to the Giants, having interviewed for their HC job in 2016, and could have a higher-profile role with the Steelers as well.

Austin looms as an option to succeed Keith Butler as Pittsburgh’s DC, though the organization has continued to interview candidates following a report surfaced indicating Austin was on track to land the gig. Austin joins ex-Ravens DC Don Martindale and former Bears DC Sean Desai as Giants DC interviewees thus far. Brian Daboll had hoped to retain Graham as the team’s defensive play-caller, but the Raiders — now run by ex-Graham Patriots coworkers Josh McDaniels and Dave Zieglerpoached him Friday.

Formerly a defensive coordinator in Detroit and Cincinnati, Austin began his NFL career in 2003 but was a college staffer for over a decade before that. The 56-year-old assistant was once a regular on the HC interview circuit; his last such meeting came in January 2018.

Austin has worked as the Steelers’ secondary coach, while assisting Tomlin in game management, since 2019. With Tomlin having taken over the Steelers’ defensive play-calling role last season, the Giants — who recently hired an offensive-minded HC in Daboll — would offer greater responsibility.

Giants To Hire Eagles’ Brandon Brown As Assistant GM

Howie Roseman will lose another lieutenant from his front office. The Giants are hiring Eagles director of player personnel Brandon Brown to be their assistant general manager, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

This move comes barely a week after the Bears hired the Eagles’ other co-player personnel directorIan Cunningham — to be their assistant GM. Brown will join Joe Schoen‘s front office in New York. Previous Giants assistant GM Kevin Abrams is moving to a different role. He will become the team’s senior vice president of football operations and strategy.

A Giants organization that had either promoted GMs from within or hired familiar faces (in the case of Dave Gettleman) for the previous three decades now has two outsiders atop its front office. In Brown, the Giants are bringing in a young executive and one that has gone through multiple GM interviews. The Vikings interviewed Brown for their GM job last month.

Brown had been with the Eagles since 2017, joining the team ahead of its Super Bowl-winning season after spending two years as a Colts scout. The Eagles bumped Brown up to their pro scouting director post in 2019 and elevated him to VP of player personnel last year. Brown finished his Eagles run by overseeing their scouting department. Brown and Cunningham’s Philadelphia exits come not too long after the Jets and Browns, respectively, hired their GMs — Joe Douglas and Andrew Berry — from Roseman’s front office.

Abrams has since been the team’s assistant GM for the past 20 years, working under GMs Ernie AccorsiJerry Reese and Gettleman. The Giants interviewed Abrams for the GM job in 2017.

Kevin has been and will continue to be an invaluable resource for me and our staff,” Schoen said. “In his new role, Kevin will be assisting with the day-to-day football operation, administration and strategy of the organization moving forward.”

Giants To Interview Don Martindale, Sean Desai For DC Job

With Patrick Graham heading to Las Vegas, Brian Daboll and the Giants are hunting for a new defensive coordinator. Well, it sounds like some contenders are starting to emerge. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), the Giants will interview Don “Wink” Martindale and Sean Desai for their defensive coordinator vacancy. The interviews will both take place today.

Martindale has been a coordinator for two teams, also serving as the Broncos’ DC during a poor 2010 season. He revamped his reputation with the Ravens, with Baltimore ranking as a top-10 defense from 2018-20. The veteran coach entered the season with lame-duck status in Baltimore, and the two sides ultimately decided to part ways. The Ravens regressed defensively this season, dropping to 25th in yards allowed, but the team dealt with injuries throughout. Before the Giants settled on Graham, “Wink” was a strong candidate for the gig, per SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano (on Twitter).

Desai’s NFL coaching career dates back to 2013. At the age of 38, he already has an impressive amount of experience, with three different roles in the college ranks (including special teams coordinator at Boston College) and, most recently, the DC role he held with the Bears in 2021. With Matt Eberflus electing to bring a familiar face in Alan Williams with him from Indianapolis, though, Desai is in search of a new home.

One of the top young defensive minds in the coaching ranks, Desai’s unit ranked sixth in the league in yards allowed this season, despite injuries to the likes of Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks. That success earned him interest from the Seahawks and Raiders.

Raiders Hire Patrick Graham As DC

The Raiders have agreed to hire Patrick Graham as their new defensive coordinator, according to sources who spoke with NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (Twitter link). With that, Graham will make a lateral move from the Giants to work under newly-hired head coach Josh McDaniels in Las Vegas. 

[RELATED: Raiders Name Champ Kelly Assistant GM]

New Giants head coach Brian Daboll wanted to retain Graham as his DC, even though he was a Joe Judge holdover. The two men worked together in New England, but their history wasn’t enough for Graham to stay put. Ultimately, Graham would have liked to stay as the head coach. The Giants and Vikings both had him as a finalist, but he did not land an HC offer in this cycle.

I have had a good relationship with Pat for some time in this league,” Daboll said at his introductory press conference. “He’s very diligent. He’s smart. I think the players respect him. I have a good working relationship with him. Selfishly, I would love him to be here“.

It’s also worth noting that Graham has even more ties with the Raiders’ new regime — he’ll now work with fellow ex-Patriots in McDaniels and recently crowned GM Dave Ziegler. McDaniels and Graham overlapped in New England from the 2011 postseason through the end of the 2015 season, when Graham left for the G-Men.

Raiders Interview Patrick Graham For DC, Set Up OC Meeting With Drew Petzing

Patrick Graham has generated considerable attention this offseason. After making it to the final round of the Vikings’ HC search, he booked a Raiders defensive coordinator interview.

The Raiders are interviewing the Giants’ DC for the same position Friday, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. They also requested a meeting with Browns tight ends coach Drew Petzing, Zac Jackson of The Athletic tweets. Petzing will interview for Las Vegas’ OC job Saturday, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).

Should Graham’s Raiders interview go well, he may have an interesting decision to make. New Giants HC Brian Daboll wants Graham back as DC, despite the latter being a Joe Judge holdover. Daboll and Graham worked together in New England, however. Graham also has close ties to the new Raiders power structure, having worked alongside Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler with the Patriots. McDaniels and Graham overlapped as Pats staffers from the 2011 playoffs — when McDaniels returned after a one-and-done Rams OC stint — through the end of the 2015 season, after which Graham left for his first run as a Giants assistant.

The Vikings chose Rams OC Kevin O’Connell over Graham, but Graham has now met with three teams — also being up for the Steelers’ DC job that went to in-house candidate Teryl Austin — this offseason. The 43-year-old defensive play-caller will land on his feet soon. The Raiders poaching Graham would force the Giants into other plans.

This upcoming OC interview marks new territory for Petzing, who has been a position coach for the past several seasons. Petzing, 34, has worked with Browns HC Kevin Stefanski throughout his career. After five years with the Vikings, Petzing went with Stefanski to Cleveland in 2020. McDaniels plans to call plays for the Raiders, minimizing their next OC’s role to some degree. The team has its new QBs coach in place already, in Bo Hardegree. The Raiders are also retaining wide receivers coach Edgar Bennett.

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