Rex Ryan Wants To Coach Jets Again
Despite being fired as the Jets’ head coach in 2014, Rex Ryan wants to return to his former job under owner Woody Johnson.
Johnson fired Robert Saleh at the beginning of October after a 2-3 start to the season despite managing seven wins in 2023 after Aaron Rodgers played just four snaps before tearing his Achilles.
Ryan made his pitch on an ESPN New York radio show with ex-Jets linebacker Bart Scott, via ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio. Ryan was originally asked about Lions head coach Dan Campbell before pivoting into a passionate pitch to return to his old job in New York.
“I had a vision for the team and we weren’t gonna take any s—,” Ryan said. “And that’s exactly how Dan Campbell is. And that’s what I think, the other thing is, too, get a guy that connects with the fan base and all that. That’s why I want to be the next coach of the Jets.”
From there, Ryan took off, promising that he would get the most out of the Jets’ roster and backing Johnson despite recent reports of the owner’s meddling in the team’s personnel decisions.
“Blow it up? We’re gonna blow the opponents up,” Ryan said. “There’s way too much talent on this team to play the way we’ve been playing. Period.”
Ryan isn’t wrong about the untapped potential in New York. Recently fired general manager Joe Douglas may have only led the Jets to a 30-64 record during his tenure, but he did hit on a number of high draft picks. Most impressive is the 2022 class, with the Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year (Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner), a Pro Bowl edge rusher (Jermaine Johnson), a star running back (Breece Hall) and a Day 3 interior disruptor (Michael Clemons). 2023 draftees Will McDonald and Joe Tippmann have also emerged as solid starters.
Ryan also claimed that he can get a disillusioned Jets team back on track, saying “nobody’s seen a team gonna play the way — as hard as this team’s going to play in the future, trust me. If I’m the guy. Trust me.” Ryan also cited his continued loyalty to the Jets since his 2014 firing, saying that other coaches would not be as dedicated to the franchise.
“They ain’t New York Jets. I’m all about the Jets,” he said. “Here’s the great thing. Yeah, you get a second chance at it and that doesn’t happen very often. Well, when it does it’s usually special.”
Ryan then cleverly praised the Jets’ direction under Johnson’s ownership, appealing to his former boss’ penchant for relying on yes-men in key positions within the organization.
“Woody Johnson was awesome,” Ryan said. “I can just tell you firsthand from my perspective, he was fantastic. You know what he’s guilty of? He’s guilty of giving you what you want. And that’s exactly what happened with this group. He gave them exactly what they wanted.”
Ryan even defended Johnson’s role in the Jets’ ill-fated acquisition of Rodgers: “You told him to go get Aaron Rodgers. And so that’s what he did. And it never worked out. But at least he fired his gun. Why? Because he wants a championship.”
Ryan added that he has not reached out to Johnson about returning to the Jets since the franchise will not start the search for Saleh’s long-term successor until after the end of the regular season.
The Jets went 46-50 in Ryan’s six-year tenure, which included back-to-back AFC championship game appearances in 2009 and 2010. New York hasn’t played in the postseason since then, a fact that Ryan will likely use in his pursuit of his old gig.
ECU CB Shavon Revel Declares For 2025 Draft
One of the first 2025 NFL Draft prospects we talked about this year, East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel is also one of the first to officially declare for the draft, forgoing his final year of collegiate eligibility, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Revel made headlines back in September when what would become his final year of college football came to an early end after only three games due to a torn ACL.
Revel’s rise through the football ranks was a rapid one, though it took a moment to jumpstart. Out of high school, Revel went the junior college route, making his mark at Louisburg College. Despite starring for the Hurricanes of Louisburg, Revel didn’t attract much attention, ranking as a three-star JuCo recruit before signing with the Pirates. Even in his first year in Greenville, Revel was quiet, tallying only eight tackles.
Revel’s college breakout occurred the next year. As a junior, Revel earned a stubborn reputation as the AAC’s lockdown cornerback. He only picked off one pass that year, but his 13 passes defensed led the conference. He was electric, finding his way into the offensive backfield for four tackles for loss and a sack and returning a fumble for a touchdown. It was thought that, after his dominant season, offenses wouldn’t test him as much in 2024. Instead, Revel answered a continuing challenge with two passes defensed and two interceptions — one returned 50 yards for a touchdown — in only three contests.
Despite missing almost the entire 2024 season, Revel still ranks extremely high in early prospect rankings. When the injury occurred, ESPN ranked Revel as the second-best cornerback prospect (not including Colorado’s two-way player Travis Hunter, who announced his intentions to declare yesterday) and the 14th-best overall prospect. Dane Brugler of The Athletic and ESPN’s Mel Kiper both have Revel trailing only Michigan’s Will Johnson and Hunter at the cornerback position now.
Brugler’s ranking (from before the injury) has Revel the highest at 12th overall, while Kiper dropped him a bit down to 23rd. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) dropped him the hardest, at 35th overall, and ranked Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison, who also suffered a season-ending injury, and Ole Miss cornerback Trey Amos ahead of him.
Revel’s ideal frame, impressive speed, and elite ability to locate the ball in the air have been enough to keep scouts interested despite his injury. Teams will be keeping a close eye on his recovery over the next few months, but Revel is still likely to hear his name called in the first two rounds of the draft. After drawing early comparisons to another Group of 5 talent in Quinyon Mitchell, who has excelled as a rookie out of Toledo, Revel has a good chance of getting selected on the first night of the draft.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/22/24
Friday’s minor moves:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived: LB Antonio Grier
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on IR: LB Jack Gibbens (story)
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 11/22/24
Today’s only practice squad moves:
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: LB Ochaun Mathis
- Released: LB David Anenih
Seahawks Activate S Rayshawn Jenkins
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald announced that Rayshawn Jenkins would be activated from injured reserve, per Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic. Seattle is expecting their veteran safety to take the field on Sunday against the Cardinals for his first appearance in Week 6.
Jenkins started the Seahawks’ first six games, racking up 38 tackles and a 102-yard fumble return touchdown, the longest in the NFL this season. He played with a cast over his left hand in Weeks 5 and 6, but landed on injured reserve on October 16 to allow his injury to fully recover. The 2017 fourth-round pick returned to practice this week and quickly got back up to speed in the defense.
Jenkins arrived in Seattle this past offseason on a two-year, $12MM contract to pair with Julian Love as starting safeties in Macdonald’s new defense. In Jenkins’ absence, third-year defensive back Coby Bryant has stepped up at safety, ranking fifth on the team with a 73.2 overall defensive grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
While Jenkins is expected to return to a starting role this weekend, Bryant’s emergence will give Macdonald more options in a defense that prioritizes interchangeability between versatile defensive backs. All three players are capable of playing deep safety or sliding into the slot. Jenkins also saw plenty of time in the box in dime packages, so Macdonald could also call more three-safety formations.
The Seahawks currently have 52 players on their active roster, so they will not need to make a corresponding move to accommodate Jenkins’ activation.
49ers Rule Out Brock Purdy, Nick Bosa For Week 12
Kyle Shanahan announced that the 49ers ruled out All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa and starting quarterback Brock Purdy for their Week 12 matchup with the Packers.
Shanahan also announced that Brandon Allen will make his first start since 2019 in Purdy’s absence. Allen has played just one snap this season: a kneel-down to close out a 32-19 victory over the Jets in Week 1.
[RELATED: Trent Williams Not Improving, Iffy For Week 13]
Purdy has been dealing with a shoulder injury since the 49ers’ Week 11 loss to the Seahawks, limiting him in practice on Wednesday and Thursday before holding him out entirely on Friday. Shanahan said that an MRI of Purdy’s shoulder did not reveal a long-term issue, but his status for Week 13 against the Bills is “up in the air,” per the San Jose Mercury News’ Cam Inman.
Allen spent 2023 in San Francisco as the team’s third-string quarterback behind Purdy and Sam Darnold. He re-signed with the 49ers during the offseason and beat out Joshua Dobbs for backup quarterback job this year.
Purdy is still traveling with the team, but he will not be joined by Bosa, who is remaining in San Francisco for treatment on his oblique and hip, according to ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. Bosa has racked up 4.0 sacks in his last four games despite dealing with the injury for almost a month.
Yetur Gross-Matos is likely to start in Bosa’s place after being activated from injured reserve and recording his first sack as a 49er last week.
Eagles Place DE Bryce Huff On IR
NOVEMBER 22: The Eagles placed Huff on injured reserve on Wednesday, sidelining him for at least four weeks. He will be eligible to return in Week 16 for Philadelphia’s crucial divisional tilt against the Commanders.
NOVEMBER 20: The Eagles’ defense has made strides in recent weeks, helping the team to an 8-2 record. Bryce Huff, however, has not played the kind of role his contract would generally warrant. And the big-ticket free agency addition will see his season pause soon.
Huff is set to undergo wrist surgery, ESPN.com’s Tim McManus tweets. This is not believed to be a season-ending malady, as Huff is slated to return at some point down the road, but it appears he will head to IR. This marks another speedbump for Huff, who had climbed from Jets UDFA to $17MM-per-year Eagle. Huff has played recent games with a cast, limiting his effectiveness; the procedure will occur Thursday, All PHLY’s Zach Berman notes.
Philadelphia deployed Huff as a starter to open the season, but the player the Jets deemed a high-end situational rusher has drifted to a backup role. Huff has not started since Week 8 and has not played more than 21% of the Eagles’ defensive snaps in a game since then as well. Huff has played only 32 combined defensive snaps over the past three games, sitting on 2.5 sacks for the season.
Jets GM Joe Douglas showed interest in re-signing Huff, being prepared to make an offer. Owner Woody Johnson ultimately blocked this effort, as Gang Green’s plan careened off course this year. The Jets not franchise-tagging Huff led him to the market, where extensive interest formed. The Commanders, Giants, Seahawks and Vikings pursued Huff, who joined the Eagles early during the legal tampering period. The team reached a reworked agreement with Josh Sweat, leading to Haason Reddick being traded to the Jets — to set off a rumor spree due to the sides’ subsequent impasse.
Although Huff has struggled to acclimate in Philly, the Eagles sit sixth in scoring defense and first in yards allowed. Vic Fangio‘s unit has made improvements, with Sweat leading the team with six sacks. The team is waiting for Huff or 2023 first-rounder Nolan Smith to show consistency. Both edge rushers are sitting on four QB hits for the season; Smith has replaced Huff in the Eagles’ lineup. More will be on the shoulders of Smith and stalwart Brandon Graham while Huff recovers.
Titans To Place CB L’Jarius Sneed On IR
The Titans’ revamped cornerback group has sustained heavy losses this season. Chidobe Awuzie has not played since Week 3, and L’Jarius Sneed will join the free agent signing on IR.
Sneed is moving to the injured list, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, due to a quad issue. Sneed has not played since Week 6; this will tack on four more absences to the highly paid cornerback’s ledger in what has been another tough season for the Titans’ CB corps on the injury front.
Tennessee rarely saw 2021 first-round pick Caleb Farley healthy, helping to lead to this overhaul. The Titans let Kristian Fulton and Sean Murphy-Bunting walk in free agency, adding Awuzie on a $12MM-per-year contract and then extending Sneed upon acquiring him from the Chiefs. Even with Patrick Surtain signing an extension and Jalen Ramsey being paid again, Sneed’s $44MM guaranteed at signing (on a four-year, $76.4MM deal) outflanks both and sits third among corners. The Titans have not seen the formerly reliable Chiefs cog justify the payday yet.
The Chiefs tagged Sneed but did so, as Chris Jones was the team’s priority in free agency, with the understanding he would be traded. Kansas City allowed the young starter to find a trade partner. After several teams checked in, the price did not dazzle. Although it only cost the Titans a 2025 third-round pick to acquire a tagged performer, the team needed to reward the player with an extension. Sneed, 27, certainly commanded a lucrative payday thanks to becoming a dependable boundary starter during the Chiefs’ past two Super Bowl-winning seasons; he just has not stayed healthy for his new team yet.
Though snubbed for the Pro Bowl, Sneed allowed just a 51% completion rate as the closest defender (at 4.8 yards per target) and a 56.2 passer rating. The Louisiana Tech alum did not yield a touchdown last season, playing an elite level for a Chiefs team suddenly unable to rely on its star-studded offense. Kansas City, however, has passed on paying cornerbacks over the past several years. The team also traded Marcus Peters and let the likes of Charvarius Ward, Kendall Fuller and Steven Nelson walk as free agents. The Chiefs have continued to churn out CBs, though Jaylen Watson‘s injury this season has exposed this plan a bit. The reigning champs are still in better shape than the Titans at this position.
Awuzie has been down with a groin injury, though he is expected to be designated for return next week. The Titans gave the ex-Cowboys and Bengals starter a three-year, $36MM deal that came with $19MM at signing. Sneed did not practice this week, and slot cog Roger McCreary has also missed both Tennessee practices leading up to its Week 12 game. Sneed had not played well before being shelved; Pro Football Focus rated the former Steve Spagnuolo lockdown option as the worst corner among qualified options this season.
As the Titans take a long-term approach during a season that has produced a 2-8 record, they will hope to see Sneed and Awuzie team up to at least establish some momentum for the future. Sneed cannot return until Week 16. The Titans have primarily used waiver claim Darrell Baker and fifth-round rookie Jarvis Brownlee on the perimeter this season.
49ers’ Brock Purdy, Trent Williams, Nick Bosa In Doubt For Week 12
The 49ers have run into steady injury trouble this season, and arguably their three most important players are in doubt for a Week 12 game against the Packers. Most notably, Brock Purdy has now gone through an MRI on his injured throwing shoulder.
Limited in practice over the past two days, Purdy is iffy for San Francisco’s Green Bay trip. John Lynch said during a KNBR interview (h/t Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News) the situation is “tenuous” and noted Brandon Allen would take the snaps in front of Joshua Dobbs if Purdy were unable to go.
Purdy has not missed a start due to injury since suffering a UCL tear in the 2022 NFC championship game, establishing himself as the 49ers’ full-time starter in that span. Meanwhile, the 49ers have seen neither Nick Bosa nor Trent Williams practice this week. Bosa is dealing with the oblique injury suffered against the Seahawks in Week 11, while Williams has played through an ankle issue.
Sounding alarm bells about the All-Pro left tackle’s situation, Kyle Shanahan said (via the San Francisco Chronicle’s Eric Branch) the painkilling injection Williams received last week has not helped. Considering how the 49ers fared without Williams last season, this becomes a central concern for a team that has fallen to 5-5 and has a Packers-Bills road stretch upcoming.
Williams took the pregame injection and played every offensive snap for the 49ers in Week 12, but the aftermath threatens to keep him out. Williams, 36, has not missed any time this season; his absences last year point to trouble if the 49ers do not have the future Hall of Famer available Sunday. The 49ers lost to the Bengals and Vikings without Williams, starting their second-half push when he and Deebo Samuel returned to action. Williams has been the NFL’s first-team All-Pro left tackle for the past three seasons, riding those accolades to secure a lucrative rework in August.
Bosa sustained hip and oblique damage during San Francisco’s loss to Seattle, significantly hindering the team’s pass rush. The 49ers have relied on the dominant edge defender throughout his career, with the team’s Shanahan-era surge not beginning until it drafted Bosa second overall in 2019. The 49ers’ lone non-playoff season in that span (2020) came when Bosa suffered a torn ACL in Week 2, and the team has played only one game without Bosa since he recovered from knee surgery. While the team added Leonard Floyd in free agency and has activated Yetur Gross-Matos from IR, its pass rush will be compromised if Bosa cannot go.
The 49ers named Allen their backup QB to open the season, despite Dobbs momentum forming earlier in the offseason. It goes without saying a Purdy-to-Allen downgrade would be noticeable, even though the 49ers’ last two QB injuries (those to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo) did not lead to steps back. Allen, 32, signed with the 49ers shortly after the 2023 draft and became their third-stringer once the team traded Lance to the Cowboys. Allen re-signed this year. Unlike 2023 backup Sam Darnold, Allen may well need to start at least one game of consequence.
Eagles Showed Interest In Andrew Van Ginkel During Free Agency
Vic Fangio did not endear himself to several Dolphins defenders last season. Select Dolphins have addressed what appeared to be a poor fit, and a perception also emerged the one-and-done Fins DC was interested in returning to Philadelphia while he was on the job in Miami.
That ended up happening, as Fangio became the Eagles’ DC shortly after he and the Dolphins agreed to mutually part ways. This brought a reunion between the Eagles and the veteran coordinator, who was a consultant for Philly’s 2022 team before appearing squarely on the radar to succeed Jonathan Gannon. The latter’s Cardinals defection complicated Fangio’s 2023 offseason, and the DC’s eventual destination looks to have impacted the Eagles’ free agency plan this year.
The Eagles showed interest in Andrew Van Ginkel during the hybrid linebacker’s brief free agency stay, SI.com’s Albert Breer notes. The team ultimately viewed him as a bit too expensive. Van Ginkel had options to follow multiple former Dolphins coaches elsewhere, taking another one by signing with the Vikings. The former Brian Flores Miami charge has excelled in Minnesota.
Van Ginkel, 29, helped his free agency prospects in Fangio’s Dolphins defense by registering six sacks. The Wisconsin alum logged a career-high 321 pass-rushing snaps last season, helping secure a two-year, $20MM deal from the Vikings. While a foot injury sustained in Week 18 of last season kept Van Ginkel out of Miami’s wild-card loss in Kansas City, he enjoyed a nice market following a season in which he tallied 19 QB hits. The Rams also pursued Van Ginkel, who has been crucial to the Vikings’ 8-2 start.
The former fifth-round Dolphins draftee has notched a career-high eight sacks, registering two in Week 11. He has helped a Vikings team that said goodbye to Danielle Hunter and D.J. Wonnum. Minnesota remade its edge group by adding Jonathan Greenard early in the tampering period and then drafting Dallas Turner, also bolstering its off-ball LB corps by signing Blake Cashman. Van Ginkel leads the NFL with 13 tackles for loss, having added two pick-sixes during a strong reunion season with Flores, who was Miami’s HC when the team drafted him.
Fangio has reignited the Eagles’ defense, which crumbled after the team started 10-1 start last season. Philly ranks first in total defense, though only one player (Josh Sweat) has more than 3.5 sacks; the contract-year EDGE has six. As Van Ginkel also has a past as a standup linebacker, the Eagles had also already allocated much of their free agent budget to Bryce Huff and Saquon Barkley. The team also added low-cost linebackers in Zack Baun and the since-released Devin White. Now tied to the Vikings through the 2025 season, Van Ginkel keeping up this pace would stand to put him in line for a bigger payday in the not-too-distant future.