Vikings Could Franchise QB Case Keenum?
The Vikings are open to using the franchise tag in order to retain quarterback Case Keenum, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link). Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com goes a step further, noting it “would be beyond shocking” for Keenum not to receive the franchise tender.
Keenum, a career journeyman who inked a one-year, $2MM pact with Minnesota last offseason, posted the best season of his career in 2017 while leading the Vikings’ offense to a No. 5 finish in offensive DVOA. The soon-to-be 30-year-old ranked seventh in passer rating and ninth in adjusted net yards per completion during the 2017 regular season, and finished first in Football Outsiders‘ individual DVOA metric. Keenum, of course, will quarterback the Vikings in tonight’s NFC Championship Game against the Eagles.
The Vikings have the fifth-most cap space (about $57MM) of any NFL team in 2018, so the ~$23.3MM franchise tag is palatable for general manager Rick Spielman & Co. A franchise tender would also allow Minnesota to lock in Keenum for only a single season, alleviating any concerns that Keenum will turn back into a pumpkin during the course of a long-term deal. The Vikings have yet to enter extension discussions with Keenum or any of their other their pending free agent quarterbacks, a list that includes Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater.
Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur is expected to accept the Giants’ head coaching position when Minnesota’s postseason run concludes, and while some reports have indicated Shurmur could bring Keenum along to his new destination, that now seems unlikely given that New York is expected to retain Eli Manning. Speculatively, the Bills could be a potential suitor given that they expressed interest in Keenum last offseason.
Vikings’ Adam Thielen Has Back Fractures
Although he’s expected to play against the Eagles in tonight’s NFC Championship Game, Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen had been listed as questionable throughout the week due to a back injury. That ailment is reportedly more serious than originally thought, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Thielen is dealing with slight fractures in his lower back which are — unsurprisingly — “extremely” painful, per Rapoport. The injury was suffered on a hit by Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore in last week’s Divisional Round contest. While pain tolerance could seemingly be an issue for Thielen during today’s game, he’s expected to manage the discomfort in order to play.
One of the more notable receiver breakout stories in recent memory, Thielen played in all 16 of Minnesota’s regular-season games and suited up for the Vikings’ thrilling walk-off win last Sunday. The 27-year-old Division II product landed on the NFC Pro Bowl roster after a 91-reception, 1,276-yard, four-touchdown slate. He missed practice on Wednesday and went through a limited session Thursday.
Latest On Pats QB Tom Brady’s Hand Injury
As was fully expected, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is active and will start today’s AFC Championship Game against the Jaguars. However, a few new details have now emerged about the hand injury Brady suffered during practice last week.
The 40-year-old Brady is dealing with a collateral ligament sprain in his right thumb, according to Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com (Twitter link), who adds that injury could be cause for concern regarding Brady’s “functionality.” Additionally, Brady required 10 stitches after sustaining a cut to his right hand, and sources claimed there was a “good amount of blood” following the laceration, tweets Mike Reiss of ESPN.com.
Exactly how much either of these injuries will affect Brady’s performance later today is impossible to predict, but there didn’t seem to be any realistic chance that Brady wouldn’t suit up for Sunday’s contest. New England, of course, only has one other quarterback on its 53-man roster: veteran Brian Hoyer, whom the Pats signed earlier this year after trading Jimmy Garoppolo.
Dave Gettleman Wants Eli Manning To Stay
Just as they were 14 years ago, the Giants are in a position to select another potential franchise quarterback with their first-round pick. However, the new GM isn’t ready to abandon the incumbent just yet.
Dave Gettleman wants Eli Manning to stay with the Giants this coming season and be the 2018 starter, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reports. The two had a meeting Gettleman described as “great” earlier this week, and Manning confirmed as such to ESPN.
Pat Shurmur will have a major say in the franchise’s choice here, and the man tabbed as the next Giants HC offered a favorable impression of Manning in his interview, Mortensen reports. However, Gettleman explained to Manning during the powwow the team has yet to fully dig in on the 2018 draft class or come to a consensus on Davis Webb.
Manning has said all along he would like to be a Giant through the conclusion of his career, and he reaffirmed his desire to remain with the team in 2018 — regardless of what Big Blue does with its No. 2 overall pick. That selection is expected to be used on a quarterback.
The Giants ended Manning’s historic start streak this season but botched the handling of the benching so badly it ended the tenures of Jerry Reese and Ben McAdoo early. Gettleman was a high-level Giants executive during both of the Super Bowl runs Manning piloted and was also around when Ernie Accorsi made the deal with the Chargers to acquire Manning in 2004. Accorsi jettisoned previous starter Kerry Collins quickly but added Kurt Warner as a stopgap.
Manning would likely be the stopgap in the upcoming scenario, but Mortensen notes the 37-year-old passer is confident enough in his abilities to compete with whoever the Giants choose at No. 2 — if they, in fact, select a quarterback. Gettleman told Manning during the meeting he wants the team to make a bigger commitment to fortifying its offensive line, which is an area the Giants have struggled mightily with the past two seasons.
Probably the best quarterback in this franchise’s storied history, Manning is under contract through the 2019 season. He’s set to count at $22.2MM and $23.2MM against the Giants’ next two salary caps. While the Giants could fit a rookie signal-caller’s contract on their payroll, they have several other needs that may be difficult to fill if they still have Manning’s salary on the books.
Browns Interview Todd Haley For OC Job
The Browns continue to search for an offensive coordinator, with multiple recent head coaches on the team’s short list for the position.
One high-profile coordinator is as well. Todd Haley and the Browns have discussed this job, with Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reporting the sides are engaged in “serious talks” about the role. Haley has formally interviewed for the post (Twitter link via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal).
The Steelers let Haley’s contract expire after their season ended, and the two sides are going their separate ways after six seasons together. The Browns have obviously not enjoyed a similar kind of consistency on their staff but are set to change their offensive coaching arrangement.
Cleveland’s interviewed Ben McAdoo and Sean Ryan for the job, and Mike Mularkey is a consideration as well. Hue Jackson has gone without an OC the past two seasons, which have been worse than any other two-year run in NFL history.
The 50-year-old Haley has been an offensive coordinator for eight seasons, with his Cardinals run ending with a narrow Super Bowl loss to the Steelers and providing a springboard for Haley to catch on as the Chiefs’ head coach. After the Kansas City tenure did not go especially well, Haley helped Ben Roethlisberger to his best statistical seasons. Over the past four years, the Steelers were second in cumulative offense — behind only the Patriots. And Haley’s overseen the work of two of the game’s best players in Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell.
While Ryan would prefer to call plays, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com notes the Texans’ QBs coach might not be viewed as experienced enough to do so over Jackson. However, Cabot adds Haley’s extensive run as a play-caller would probably induce Jackson to give him the keys to the 2018 Browns’ offense, if hired.
Jack Del Rio Frontrunner For Giants’ DC Job?
Fired less than a year after signing a lengthy extension, Jack Del Rio looks to have an offer to get right back into high-profile coaching.
Pat Shurmur is interested in the former Raiders head coach to run his defense once he lands with the Giants, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reports. Del Rio is a leading candidate for a position that, as of now, has no other known external candidates. Mortensen describes Shurmur as having Del Rio high on his prospective candidate list.
The Giants are expected to hire Shurmur as their next head coach but still plan to interview him a second time, Mortensen reports.
Any Del Rio deal would be offset against his Raiders contract, which will average $6MM annually for the next three years, per Mortensen.
While there are no known external candidates, interim head coach Steve Spagnuolo interviewed for the Giants’ HC post and has worked with Shurmur in the past. Shurmur served as Spagnuolo’s offensive coordinator in St. Louis from 2009-10. The Giants and Shurmur both think highly of the longtime DC, Tom Rock of Newsday notes.
While the Giants have lost several of their assistants to jobs elsewhere, much of the team’s defensive staff remains on board. Although, Shurmur could certainly have names in mind to replace the incumbents.
Del Rio’s Raiders defenses weren’t particularly imposing, but he fielded multiple top-five units with the Broncos (in 2012 and ’14). And both of Del Rio’s playoff teams in Jacksonville (2005 and ’07) fielded top-10 scoring defenses before the Jags began to deteriorate in his later years.
Ryan Day To Become Titans’ Next OC?
Ryan Day could be set for a prestige rise now that Mike Vrabel has become the new Titans head coach. The Ohio State co-offensive coordinator looks to be the frontrunner for Tennessee’s OC job.
Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter) Day is considering taking the job. The 39-year-old Day has been in his position with the Buckeyes for one year, with quarterbacks-coaching stints with the Eagles (2015) and 49ers (’16) coming in the years prior. Day is the first candidate mentioned for this job.
Day’s two NFL coaching stints came under Chip Kelly, making the connection to the Titans notable because of former Kelly pupil Marcus Mariota. Although Day did not coach Mariota at Oregon, serving as OC at Temple and Boston College prior to joining Kelly’s final Eagles staff, he knows the system in which Mariota thrived en route to a Heisman Trophy.
Day coached Sam Bradford and Colin Kaepernick as starters the past two seasons, and the latter showed improvement compared to his 2015 work. Though the 2016 49ers went 2-14 to lead to Kelly’s ouster, Kaepernick threw 16 touchdown passes compared to four interceptions — this following a six-touchdown, five-interception year in an injury-abbreviated 2015.
However, Day has not been tasked with being the point man for an NFL offense yet. The co-pilot for the J.T. Barrett-fronted attack in 2017, alongside Kevin Wilson and under offensive-minded Urban Meyer, Day served under Kelly and his respective OCs while in the NFL. In Tennessee, he’d be the main offensive mind for a team that made Mariota’s development a central theme in its hiring process.
Jon Robinson made this a point of emphasis at his press conference announcing the franchise was parting ways with Mike Mularkey, and with Vrabel’s background obviously being on defense, Day would make a notable jump in responsibility should the Titans go ahead with this hire.
Packers To Prioritize Tight End In Free Agency?
Packers new general manager Brian Gutekunst has many routes he could potentially take in his first offseason at the helm. Making a splash at tight end in free agency is one of the possibilities according to USA Today’s Pete Dougherty. 
Going after a big name at tight end isn’t unfamiliar territory for the Packers, who swung and miss on their signing of Martellus Bennett in 2017. The team had some success with Jared Cook in recent years, but have lacked a consistent, big-bodied pass catcher at the position for years.
One name that Dougherty thinks should be on the team’s radar is Jimmy Graham, who is unlikely to return to the Seahawks in 2018. The veteran tight end secured his fifth Pro Bowl selection after tallying 57 receptions and 10 touchdowns in 2017.
Adding Graham to a receiver corps that includes Davante Adams, Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb would give the team arguably the best pass-catching group in the NFL. Throw in the fact they would also have Aaron Rodgers slinging them the ball and Green Bay’s offense could be a matchup nightmare for defenses.
Graham was the NFL’s top-paid tight end the last four years with average annual salary valued at $10MM. He will almost assuredly not command that type of money after four underwhelming seasons in Seattle by Graham’s standards. A return to a pass-happy attack, however, could see the former Saints great reemerge as an elite option at the position.
Giants To Overhaul Draft Process
The Giants could look very different in a short time after the hiring of new general manager Dave Gettleman. The team is not only expected to announce Pat Shurmur as the team’s new head coach, but it is set to change its entire draft process, the New York Post’s Paul Schwartz writes. 
Schwartz notes that Gettleman will be “tearing up the Giants’ entire operation when it comes to the draft — from how players are graded, how scouts will be assigned and how the actual draft board is assembled.”
The idea of the moves, which were not divulged in the piece, is to eliminate the misses in the middle rounds that the team has endured in recent years. That is one area where Gettleman has had success in his four years with the Panthers. From 2013-16, Gettleman oversaw the drafting of Kawann Short (second round), James Bradberry (second), Trai Turner (third round) and Daryl Williams (fourth), all of whom have cemented starting spots in Carolina.
In addition to revamping the team’s draft-board process, Gettleman is also expected to change the way the team’s scouts scour the country in search of talent. The Giants do not have regional or national scouts like most teams. They are instead assigned an area, and former GM Jerry Reese served as an “extra set of eyes” on the team’s A-rated prospects.
From the sound of things, it appears Gettleman is focused firmly on how the team evaluates talent and acquires it through the draft. That’s a good place to start with a team that owns the No. 2 pick in the upcoming draft.
Texans Make Crennel Defensive Coordinator
The Texans didn’t have to look far to replace defensive coordinator Mike Vrabel, who left to become the Titans’ head coach on Saturday. The team will make assistant coach Romeo Crennel the new leader of the defense, a source tells The MMQB’s Albert Breer (Twitter link). 
A longtime coach in the NFL, Crennel has spent the last four seasons in Houston as the team’s defensive coordinator (2014-16) and transitioned to an assistant head coach role in 2017 after the team moved Vrabel to defensive coordinator. In his final season as the team’s defensive coordinator, Houston allowed the fewest yards in the league.
Crennel rose to fame in New England and helped the Patriots to their first Super Bowl title in his first season as the team’s defensive coordinator (2001). He remained with the team through 2004, boasting three top-10 finishes in scoring defense, before joining the Browns as head coach. He spent four seasons at the helm in Cleveland and delivered the team’s last 10-win campaign (2007) before joining the Chiefs as defensive coordinator. The following season, he ascended to head coach and remained with Kansas City for two more seasons.
The transition back to defensive coordinator will be a smooth one for Crennel, who was still heavily involved with the defense in 2017, FOX 26’s Mark Berman reports (Twitter link).
Crennel should benefit from the return of J.J. Watt, who was sidelined for much of the 2017 campaign with an injury.