East Notes: McAdoo, Jets, Dolphins, Patriots
New Giants head coach Ben McAdoo still isn’t sure whether he’ll call offensive plays in 2016, he told SiriusXM NFL Radio today (link via Tom Rock of Newsday). Mike Sullivan, who is expected to be promoted from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, does have experience calling plays (with Tampa Bay from 2012-13). But McAdoo plans to speak with his old boss, Packers head coach Mike McCarthy — who reclaimed play-calling duties midway through the season — before he makes a final decision.
Here’s more from the NFL’s two East divisions:
- The Jets were major players during last’s year free agent period, but with only about $10MM in cap space to work with this offseason, their plan might have to change, as GM Mike Maccagnan tells Brian Costello of the New York Post. “It’s kind of a little different scenario from last year to this year,” Maccagnan said last week. “We’ll still have money to be active and do things with, but it ends up being like a puzzle and it’s not only trying to put all the pieces in different scenarios.” New York should be able to clear out about $20MM more in room, figures Costello, and it can start by releasing (or lowering the cap figures of) cornerback Antonio Cromartie and left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson.
- If the best player available when the Dolphins are on the clock in this year’s draft is a quarterback, then the club needs to select him, regardless of Ryan Tannehill‘s presence, opines Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Miami — and new head coach Adam Gase — can’t win unless the club finds a long-term answer at signal-caller, and until Tannehill proves he is that, the Dolphins need to keep taking swings at finding one.
- Washington worked out defensive lineman Ziggy Hood, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). A former first-round pick, Hood spent about two months with the Bears during the 2015 season.
- The Giants also tried out several players recently, including receiver Eric Rogers, running back Cameron Marshall, and defensive end Euclid Cummings, reports Wilson (Twitter link).
- The Patriots visited with linebacker James Vaughters, per Wilson (Twitter link). Vaughters, a Stanford alum, was placed on the Packers’ practice squad injured reserve in September.
49ers To Fire OC Geep Chryst
New 49ers head coach Chip Kelly hasn’t yet been introduced via press conference, but he’s already making changes to his staff. San Francisco is expected to fire offensive coordinator Geep Chryst, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, as well as the following eight assistant coaches:
- Scott Brown, defensive line
- Ronald Curry, wide receivers
- Ejiro Evero, defensive assistant
- Aubrayo Franklin, defensive assistant
- Tim Lewis, defensive backs
- Steve Logan, quarterbacks
- T.C. McCartney, offensive assistant
- Joe Scola, offensive assistant
In addition to those coaches listed above, four other former 49ers assistants have found jobs elsewhere in the NFL/NCAA. Chris Foerster (OL) joined the Dolphins, Adam Henry (WRs) will head to the Giants, Clancy Pendergast (LBs) left to coordinate USC’s defense, and Tony Sparano (TEs) will coach the Vikings’ offensive line.
Chryst, who was promoted from QBs coach to offensive coordinator after Greg Roman left for the Bills, lasted just one season in the Bay Area. Under former head coach Jim Tomsula, Chryst led an offensive unit that ranked 31st in yards, 32nd in points, and 28th in DVOA. Granted, he didn’t have much to work with, as quarterbacks Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert were largely ineffective, while promising running back Carlos Hyde was injured for most of the year.
As Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee notes (Twitter link), the omission of certain coaches from that list above — RBs coach Tom Rathman and DC Eric Mangini among them — could indicate that they’ll be asked to remain on staff (reports earlier today indicated that Rathman and both Niners special teams coordinators would likely be retained). Mangini’s role, in particular, remains uncertain, especially given that San Francisco interviewed Mike Vrabel today for its defensive coordinator position.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Coach Rumors: Jaguars, 49ers, Eagles, Bucs
After showing interest in Jim Schwartz before he was named the Eagles’ new defensive coordinator, the Jaguars have turned their attention in another direction as they search for a defensive play-caller. Jacksonville is today interviewing Cowboys secondary coach Jerome Henderson for their DC vacancy, reports Albert Breer of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Longtime NFL defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin is “involved in [the Jaguars’] process” of finding a defensive coordinator to replace the fired Bob Babich, but he is not in line for a formal coaching position with the club, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (Twitter links).
Henderson, 46, has been in high demand this offseason, and even interviewed for a head coaching position (Browns) earlier this month. Dallas’ defensive backs coach since 2012, Henderson, who also has a background in player development, was also linked to jobs on Miami’s new staff.
Let’s look at some news from the coaching front:
- New 49ers head coach Chip Kelly is likely to keep one offensive coach, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com reports (via Twitter) that running backs coach Tom Rathman is expected to remain on staff. Meanwhile, both incumbent special teams coach Thomas McGaughey and assistant Richard Hightower are in contention for San Francisco’s ST coordinator position, per Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter link).
- Eagles head coach Doug Pederson announced during his introductory press conference that running backs coach Duce Staley — who interviewed for Philadelphia’s top job — will be retained, Neil Hartman of CSNPhilly.com tweets.
- The Packers have shuffled their offensive staff, firing both running backs coach Sam Gash (per Michael Cohen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Twitter) and tight ends coach Jerry Fontenot (per Tom Silverstein of MJS on Twitter).
- Confirming four previously-reported hires, the Buccaneers announced that special teams coordinator Nate Kaczor, secondary coach Jon Hoke, defensive line coach Jay Hayes, and linebackers coach Mark Duffner have been added to the club’s staff.
Patriots Place Jerod Mayo On Injured Reserve
After leaving Saturday’s game against the Chiefs with a shoulder injury, linebacker Jerod Mayo won’t return to action for the Patriots this season. According to Field Yates of ESPN.com (via Twitter), New England is placing the veteran defender on injured reserve.
Mayo, who has been with the Patriots since he was selected 10th overall in the 2008 draft, saw his role reduced this season. After starting all but two of his 87 regular season games in the first seven years of his NFL career, Mayo started only eight of 16 games in 2015, appearing in just over 400 defensive snaps. His 47 tackles represented a new career low.
Mayo, who will turn 30 next month, has seen injuries derail his last few seasons — he appeared in just 12 of 32 regular-season contests in 2013 and 2014 before staying healthy for most of this year. His declining production and increasingly shaky health may ultimately lead to the end of his time with the Pats.
Heading into 2016, Mayo projects to have the Patriots’ second-highest cap number behind Tom Brady, and he almost certainly won’t be back at that price. The final two seasons of Mayo’s contract are option years, and the Pats figure to turn down that option this winter before the linebacker’s $4MM bonus is due in March. He’ll become a free agent unless the two sides can work out a new deal – with a reduced salary – for him to remain in New England.
It’s not clear yet who the Patriots will sign or promote to their active roster to replace Mayo.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cole’s Latest: Lynch, Carroll, Chargers, Lacy
In a series of videos today for Bleacher Report, Jason Cole tackled a handful of notable topics from around the NFL. Here’s the latest from Cole:
- The Seahawks would like to bring back running back Marshawn Lynch in 2016, since the team feels he’s still capable of big-time production. However, Seattle isn’t interested in retaining Beast Mode at his current $9MM base salary and $11.5MM cap hit, says Cole (video link). The club will explore the possibility of a pay cut – perhaps lowering Lynch’s base salary and adding incentives to his deal – but if the two sides aren’t making much progress, Seattle may eventually have to cut the standout running back.
- Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is currently signed through 2016, but it’s unclear what his future holds after that. If Carroll wants to continue his coaching career, I’d expect Seattle to try to keep him around, but Cole suggests that the Rams – and the Chargers, if they move to L.A. – could make a play for the former USC head coach (video link).
- Speaking of those Chargers, they’re still a little apprehensive about dealing with Rams owner Stan Kroenke, but the NFL has been encouraging Dean Spanos‘s franchise to take advantage of the opportunity to move to Los Angeles, according to Cole (video link). The league believes that the basic deal it has outlined for the Chargers would allow the team to make more money in L.A. than it would if it remained in San Diego.
- Not that we needed to be told, but Cole cites Packers sources who say running back Eddie Lacy looked “sluggish” during his 61-yard run against Arizona, adding that the team was disappointed with Lacy’s lack of development and fitness level this season. There’s major uncertainty surrounding Lacy’s future with the franchise, says Cole (video link).
Broncos Place Bolden On IR, Promote Nixon
As expected, the Broncos officially placed defensive back and return man Omar Bolden on their injured reserve list today, ending his 2015 season, per a team release. To replace Bolden on the 53-man roster, Denver has promoted cornerback Taurean Nixon from the club’s practice squad.
Bolden, 27, was limited to just nine games during the 2015 season, and wasn’t a contributor on defense for the Broncos. However, he was the team’s most effective return man when given the opportunity, with one of his five regular-season punt returns going for an 83-yard touchdown, and his lone playoff return going for 42 yards. A partial PCL tear suffered in the divisional round on Sunday ended Bolden’s season prematurely.
Nixon, a seventh-round pick in 2015, spent the entire season on the Broncos’ practice squad. If he’s active this Sunday, he’ll likely be used on special teams and perhaps in the return game, rather than on defense.
The Broncos now have an opening on their practice squad that they can fill prior to Sunday’s game if they so choose.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Eagles Hire Doug Pederson As Head Coach
JANUARY 19: Pederson, who was introduced to the media today, got a five-year contract from the Eagles, tweets Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
JANUARY 18: The Eagles have made it official, announcing the hiring of Pederson in a press release. He’ll be introduced at a Tuesday afternoon press conference.
JANUARY 14: The Eagles are set to hire Doug Pederson as their new head coach, a league source tells Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link). Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer confirms (via Twitter) that Pederson is the Eagles’ man. The Chiefs offensive coordinator remains alive in the postseason, so Philadelphia won’t be able to make the hiring official until after this weekend’s game, at the earliest.
A former Eagles quarterback, Pederson had only been connected to the Philadelphia job and none of the other NFL head coaching vacancies. In addition to having played for the Eagles, he also coached with the team during Andy Reid‘s tenure, serving as an offensive quality control coach in 2009 and 2010, then as the club’s quarterbacks coach in 2011 and 2012.
Pederson, who has been Kansas City’s offensive coordinator since the team hired Reid as its head coach in 2013, was one of six head coaching candidates to interview with the Eagles. Three coaches that were considered to be strong candidates for Philadelphia have since been hired elsewhere or withdrawn from the process — Adam Gase landed with the Dolphins, Ben McAdoo was promoted by the Giants, and Tom Coughlin removed himself from consideration.
In addition to those candidates, the Eagles also interviewed in-house assistants Pat Shurmur and Duce Staley. Shurmur, Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator, served as the interim head coach in Week 17 following Chip Kelly‘s firing, while Staley is the team’s running backs coach.
McAdoo and Coughlin received plenty of buzz this week for the Eagles’ job, with at least one report suggesting he would have been the choice if he hadn’t withdrawn. However, a weekend report indicated that Pederson initially entered the process as owner Jeffrey Lurie’s favorite among non-head coaches. After McAdoo and Coughlin became unavailable, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported that the Eagles had moved on to pursuing Pederson.
Despite losing Jamaal Charles this year and playing without a ton of wide receiving talent over the past two seasons, the Chiefs’ offense performed well on Pederson’s watch. Per Football Outsiders, Kansas City ranked sixth overall in offensive DVOA this season, just behind the Patriots, and ahead of teams like the Panthers and Packers. In 2014, the Chiefs placed 12th in offensive DVOA.
One of Peterson’s main challenges in Philadelphia will be coaxing production out of an offense whose quarterback situation is uncertain, with Sam Bradford facing free agency. The Eagles have also seen plenty of talented playmakers depart in recent years, with LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, and Jeremy Maclin all playing elsewhere now. Pricey free agent running back DeMarco Murray will look to have a bounce-back 2016 campaign under Pederson after a disappointing first year in Philadelphia.
As PFR’s head coaching tracker shows, five of the seven teams seeking new head coaches this month have now made their decisions, with only the Buccaneers and Titans still in the market for replacements. Those two jobs, which feature top young quarterbacks, will be interesting to watch, and it’s also worth keeping an eye on Detroit, where the Lions have yet to make a final decision on Jim Caldwell.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Eagles Notes: Bradford, Pederson, Coaches
The Eagles introduced new head coach Doug Pederson today at an afternoon press conference, and announced during that presser that former Lions head coach Jim Schwartz will be Philadelphia’s defensive coordinator for the 2016 season. However, that was hardly the only item of interest from the session. Let’s dive in and round up some of the other highlights….
- According to Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, the team started with a pool of about 25 head coaching candidates, then reduced that total to about 10 (Twitter link Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer). That list included head coaches on other teams, per Lurie, so I’d expect John Harbaugh, Tom Coughlin, and Sean Payton were among the Eagles’ names. Ultimately though, no one besides Pederson was going to be offered the job, Lurie said (Twitter link via Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer).
- Pederson said today that personnel decisions will be made collaboratively, with Lurie breaking any ties. Pederson and Howie Roseman figure to be involved in those decisions, along with the club’s new head of player personnel — Lurie confirmed today that the Eagles are looking to hire someone for that position (Twitter links via McLane).
- Asked about Sam Bradford, Pederson said a decision on the free-agent-to-be hasn’t been made, but he praised the QB as one who could fit into his system (Twitter link via Berman).
- The Eagles haven’t yet decided on an offensive coordinator, Pederson said today (Twitter link via McLane). Frank Reich is reportedly the frontrunner for the job, though the new head coach said he’ll consider incumbent OC Pat Shurmur too (Twitter link via McLane). Still, it’ll be Pederson, rather than the OC, who will call the team’s offensive plays, tweets James Palmer of the NFL Network.
- Special teams coach Dave Fipp and offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland will be retained, tweets McLane. Pederson is still deliberating on the rest of the staff.
Eagles Hire Jim Schwartz As DC
1:21pm: Pederson made it official during his introductory press conference this afternoon, announcing that Schwartz will be his defensive coordinator for the 2016 season (Twitter link via team).
12:36pm: After interviewing him today, the Eagles have reached an agreement with Jim Schwartz, who will become the team’s new defensive coordinator, reports Don Banks of SI.com (Twitter links). According to Banks, the move isn’t official yet, but the two sides have a deal in place.
[RELATED: Eagles hire Doug Pederson as head coach]
Schwartz, who began his NFL career as a personnel scout on Bill Belichick’s staff in Cleveland in the mid-1990s, served as the Titans’ defensive coordinator from 2001 to 2008. After spending several seasons as the Lions’ head coach, Schwartz returned to a DC role in Buffalo in 2014, and had an excellent season.
Per Football Outsiders, Schwartz’s Bills defense ranked second in the NFL in DVOA in 2014. However, when Doug Marrone opted out of his contract as the team’s head coach, and Rex Ryan entered the picture, Ryan decided to bring in his own defensive coordinator. Under Ryan and Dennis Thurman, the Bills slipped to 24th in defensive DVOA in 2015.
With Chip Kelly no longer leading the Eagles, the team already had been expected to undergo a number of personnel changes on both sides of the ball this offseason, and Schwartz’s arrival will likely ensure that those changes are made on defense. After running a 3-4 scheme under Billy Davis for the last few seasons, Philadelphia figures to shift to a 4-3 look under Schwartz, who often employs a “wide nine” alignment.
As Albert Breer of the NFL Network notes (via Twitter), one notable Eagles player who could benefit significantly from the scheme change is Fletcher Cox, who should thrive as a three-technique in 2016, which is a contract year for him. In general, the Eagles defense shouldn’t be worked quite so hard in ’16, with new head coach Doug Pederson replacing Kelly — Kelly’s Eagles ranked dead last in the NFL in each of the last three seasons in terms of time of possession, meaning the defense spent a ton of time on the field.
[RELATED: PFR’s 2016 offensive/defensive coordinator tracker]
With Schwartz now in line to take over the defensive coordinator job in Philadelphia, Davis figures to look for work elsewhere — perhaps on Kelly’s staff in San Francisco. Meanwhile, Mike Pettine had been cited as a candidate for the Eagles’ opening, but if he hopes to land a DC job in 2016, it’ll have to happen somewhere else. Pettine’s old team, the Browns, was one of the other teams that expressed interest in Schwartz as a defensive coordinator — the Jaguars also interviewed him.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Coach Rumors: Eagles, Schwartz, 49ers, Fins
While there are no head coaching jobs in the NFL that still need to be filled, many clubs are still tweaking their coaching staffs, making changes among position coaches or hiring new coordinators. Here’s a round-up of the latest news and rumors on those changes from across the league:
- There’s mutual interest between the Eagles and Jim Schwartz for the defensive coordinator role in Philadelphia. Per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), if Schwartz and Eagles head coach Doug Pederson hit it off and all goes well at today’s interview, Schwartz will likely end up with the job.
- Rapoport (Twitter links) also has a couple updates on the 49ers‘ defensive staff, reporting that Eric Mangini will interview to remain in his defensive coordinator role, while former Buccaneers linebackers coach Hardy Nickerson talked to the Niners about the same position in San Francisco.
- Longtime offensive coach Al Saunders, who has worked recently with the Dolphins, Raiders, and Ravens, is a “strong candidate” to join Hue Jackson‘s Browns coaching staff, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
- Veteran coaches Jim Washburn and Jeremiah Washburn are headed to the Dolphins, according to Alex Marvez of FOX Sports and Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). Jim, the elder Washburn, will work with the defensive line as a senior defensive assistant, while his son Jeremiah will be an offensive line assistant. The duo previously spent time with the Lions, so Jim has a history of working with Ndamukong Suh.
- Marvez adds (via Twitter) that the Lions denied the Dolphins‘ interview request for defensive line coach Kris Kocurek, who would have been a candidate for that DL job in Miami.