Latest On Colts’ General Manager Search
The Colts aren’t rushing through their hunt for a new general manager, and have identified “no specific timetable” during which they will make a decision on their next personnel chief, according to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. The process isn’t expected to reach a conclusion for at least another week to 10 days, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com.
[RELATED: 2017 GM Search Tracker]
Indianapolis and owner Jim Irsay finished up its first round of interviews, and follow-up meetings are to be scheduled, per Holder. Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard and Packers director of football operations Eliot Wolf are considered the favorites for the position, reports Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link), although incumbent candidate Jimmy Raye III — currently acting as the Colts’ interim GM — has also been mentioned as the leader in the clubhouse.
The six contenders — a list that includes the Seahawks’ Scott Fitterer and Trent Kirchner, the Vikings’ George Paton, and those listed above — are meeting with Indianapolis head coach Chuck Pagano as part of the interview exercise, tweets Garafolo, rightly noting that the “dynamic” between Pagano and the next general manager will be critical. The mandatory retaining of Pagano is a small barrier for some candidates, per Holder, but the vacancy is still viewed as highly attractive.
“What a great situation,” one of six contenders anonymously told Holder. “But you’ve got to fix that defense. It’s old.”
Colts To Interview Chris Ballard For GM Job
The Colts continue to traverse the path the 49ers did weeks ago at the outset of their GM search, and Indianapolis has requested permission to interview a candidate who didn’t end up getting that chance in San Francisco. The team sent out a request to meet with Chiefs director of football operations Chris Ballard, Tom Pelissero of USA Today reports (on Twitter).
Ballard will take the Colts up on their offer and interview for the job, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The interview will occur today, per Rapoport. Ballard joins Jimmy Raye III, Scott Fitterer and George Paton as confirmed candidates who will meet with Jim Irsay for the job.
This comes after the 49ers made the same request, but San Francisco didn’t have a chance to meet with the exec that was reportedly the team’s first choice because Kansas City blocked the move. With teams being able to block execs from interviewing for GM jobs during their respective seasons, the 49ers lost out on that opportunity. Since the Chiefs’ season is over, Ballard made the decision on his own and will vie for the job.
Ballard has been with the Chiefs for four seasons, coming to Kansas City at the same time GM John Dorsey did. In that span, the Chiefs have returned to being a perennial playoff contender after more than five years spent residing mostly near the bottom of the league. Kansas City finished its second straight season in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Kyle Shanahan Likely To Become 49ers’ HC
As of Tuesday evening, Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan wasn’t a lock to accept the 49ers’ forthcoming offer to become their head coach. However, Shanahan’s now “almost certain” to take the job, reports Mike Silver of NFL.com.
With Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable having withdrawn from the race this week, Shanahan is the last man standing among the eight candidates the 49ers have interviewed. The rest have accepted head coaching positions elsewhere. Thus, in the unlikely event Shanahan turns San Francisco down, it would send CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe scrambling to hit the reset button on their search to replace Chip Kelly.
The 49ers are also on the hunt for a new general manager, of course, and lost one candidate when Cable’s Seattle colleague, co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner, took himself out of consideration Tuesday. Of the GM possibilities the Niners have considered, Kirchner, fellow Seahawks executive Scott Fitterer and Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard would have preferred to work with Cable, according to Silver. The Chiefs prevented Ballard from talking to the 49ers, though, and awarded him a pay raise as compensation, Silver writes.
Cable has another fan in defensive coordinator-to-be Gus Bradley, who would have gone to San Francisco had it hired Cable. Instead, after Cable dropped out of contention Tuesday, Bradley spurned the 49ers when they asked if he’d be interested in teaming with Shanahan. It appears, then, that Bradley will become the Chargers’ D-coordinator.
Shanahan is currently preparing for Sunday’s NFC championship game between the Falcons and Packers. If Atlanta advances to Super Bowl LI, the 49ers wouldn’t be able to hire him until after Feb. 5. Regardless, he’ll have a second interview with the Niners next week and will discuss GM choices with team brass. Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst remains the favorite, relays Silver, who adds that Green Bay director of football operations Eliot Wolf and Vikings assistant GM George Paton are also strong contenders.
John Dorsey Could Succeed Ted Thompson As Packers GM
We heard earlier today that the Chiefs are expected to pursue an extension for head coach Andy Reid, who is under contract through 2017, at the end of the season. But general manager John Dorsey, who, like Reid, came to Kansas City in 2013, is already in the final year of his deal, and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that Dorsey could take over the Packers’ GM job next season.
Ted Thompson, the Packers’ current GM, has two years remaining on his contract, but the 63-year-old could step aside to a senior scouting role, which Rapoport reported last week. If that happens, the door could be open for Dorsey to return to Green Bay, where he first found front office success.
Dorsey helped to build the Packers into a consistent contender, first as a college scout from 1991-97 and then as director of college scouting in 1998. After a one-year stint as the Seahawks’ director of player personnel in 1999, Dorsey returned to the Packers, where he served as the team’s director of college scouting from 2000-11 and as the director of football operations in 2012.
Per Rapoport, Dorsey’s success in his various roles with Green Bay made him incredibly well-regarded by the club’s executive committee, including president and CEO Mark Murphy. In addition to Dorsey, Thompson’s list of potential successors includes current director of football operations Eliot Wolf–who was long considered to be the heir apparent to Thompson but who interviewed for the 49ers’ GM job last week–vice president of football administration Russ Ball, director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst and senior personnel executive Alonzo Highsmith.
It is interesting to note that, whether the Chiefs blocked current director of player personnel Chris Ballard from interviewing for the 49ers’ job or whether he turned down San Francisco’s overtures on his own–there are conflicting reports on that front–the fact remains that Ballard will remain in Kansas City. It could be, as Rapoport suggests (via Twitter), that Ballard plans to be elevated to the Chiefs’ GM job sooner rather than later.
Chiefs Blocked Chris Ballard/49ers Meeting
While Nick Caserio declined an interview request for the 49ers’ GM job, Chris Ballard did not receive the opportunity. The Chiefs blocked their director of football operations from interviewing for the 49ers’ GM vacancy, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.
This runs counter to a previous report indicating Ballard turned down the opportunity, so San Francisco has now run into issues on multiple fronts in bringing some of its top candidates in for an interview for Trent Baalke‘s former job. Teams can block front-office execs from interviewing for GM jobs until their respective seasons end. So, the 49ers could wait until the Chiefs’ season concludes, but that would mean stalling their HC search as well while other teams vie for the available candidates.
This looms larger than the Patriots’ player personnel director turning this potential opportunity down. A source told Florio that Ballard was the 49ers’ “first choice, second choice and third choice” for the position. Ballard has been an NFL personnel man for 16 seasons and is finishing up his fourth with the Chiefs. Interestingly, Ballard was given permission to interview for the Titans’ GM job — one that ultimately went to Jon Robinson — last year.
Ballard spent 12 years with the Bears, the first 11 as a southwest area scout and in 2012 ascended to the role of director of pro scouting with the franchise prior to joining John Dorsey in Kansas City.
49ers Ask To Interview Chiefs’ Chris Ballard
7:55pm: According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), Ballard will not be taking the interview with the 49ers. The executive believes he’s in an excellent situation in Kansas City and has a great relationship with general manager John Dorsey.
8:21am: The 49ers’ general manager search is underway and it sounds like Chris Ballard is a priority candidate. The Niners have reached out to the Chiefs for permission to interview the exec, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (on Twitter).
It seems likely that the Chiefs will grant permission for the interview since Ballard has been a GM candidate for some time and was allowed to interview for the Titans job last offseason. Ultimately, that job went to Jon Robinson, partially because Ballard’s assessment of coach Mike Mularkey didn’t align with that of team ownership.
Ballard, who just completed his third season with Kansas City, has been an NFL personnel man for 16 years. This offseason, he could interview for multiple vacancies and this could be the year that he breaks out from John Dorsey‘s shadow.
49ers Targeting Tom Cable, Others For HC Job
Josh McDaniels isn’t the only candidate on the 49ers’ list. The team is also looking to bring in Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable, Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn, Jaguars interim coach Doug Marrone, and Dolphins defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, according to CSNBayArea.com’s Matt Maiocco.
The Jets interviewed Cable for their head coaching vacancy before the 2015 season, but he did not receive any interviews last offseason. Cable, of course, offers head coaching experience after nearly three years at the helm in Oakland. From 2008-2010, the Raiders went 17-27 under Cable and never finished higher than third in the AFC West.
Meanwhile, the top GM candidates right now are Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio, Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard, ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, Vikings assistant GM George Paton, and Seahawks co-player personnel directors Trent Kirchner and Scott Fitterer.
CEO Jed York and executive vice president of football operations Paraag Marathe are leading the search to fill both vacancies. After witnessing years of discord between former coach Jim Harbaugh and former GM Trent Baalke (and perhaps some disagreement between Baalke and recent ex-coach Chip Kelly), the 49ers may opt for a ready-made GM/coach combo like McDaniels and Caserio. McDaniels appears to be one of the hottest coaching candidates on the market this offseason and Caserio has been viewed as a rising front office star for the last couple of years.
Breer On GM Search, Harbaugh, Draft
When it comes to being a GM, is it more about who you know than what you know? In his latest column, Albert Breer of The MMQB spoke with one league official who suggested that the NFL’s career development advisory panel has something of a fraternity-vibe.
“It’s all full of nepotism. It’s a joke. And it starts with Charley Casserly,” the personnel man said.
Casserly rejected the idea that he, Ron Wolf, Bill Polian, Ernie Accorsi, John Madden, Tony Dungy and Carl Peterson are aiming to line up their friends with jobs, but he did acknowledge that connections help.
“It’s so different than it is with coaches,” Casserly said. “Coaches are so clearly defined. You know who calls the plays, you see them on TV, coordinators have press conferences. It’s just not like that in scouting. Are they pro? College? None of them are making big decisions. What you need is networking. It’s not politicking.”
Casserly was directly involved with the Jets’ coach and GM search process in 2015. Gang Green wound up hiring Todd Bowles and Mike Maccagnan – two former co-workers of Casserly’s.
Here’s more from Breer:
- Breer identified the following executives as people who could immediately jump into a GM job somewhere: Chiefs VP of player personnel Chris Ballard, Patriots VP of player personnel Nick Caserio, Ravens assistant GM Eric DeCosta, Seahawks co-director of player personnel Scott Fitterer, Texans director of player personnel Brian Gaine, Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst, Seahawks co-director of player personnel Trent Kirchner, Cowboys assistant director of player personnel Will McClay, Cardinals VP of player personnel Terry McDonough, Vikings assistant GM George Paton, Falcons assistant GM Scott Pioli, Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin, Packers director of football operations Eliot Wolf.
- The widespread feeling in NFL circles is that Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh will be back in pro football eventually, even if it’s not happening right now. For his part, Harbaugh says that he is incredibly happy as the Wolverines’ coach.
- Is Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen the next under-the-radar quarterback prospect a la Carson Wentz? It was Craig Bohl who recruited Carson Wentz to North Dakota State and he is now Allen’s coach at Wyoming. It’s hard to say whether the 6’5″, 222-pound signal caller has the same kind of talent, but his stock is rising. “He’s a big ol’ kid with a big arm, and he’s pretty athletic too,” said one AFC exec. “We gotta learn more about him, but the tools are there.” Allen, a redshirt sophomore, has plenty of time to develop.
- Western Michigan coach P.J. Fleck recently predicted that Central Michigan quarterback Cooper Rush will be an “incredibly high draft pick” this year. Apparently, talent evaluators do not agree. “He may get drafted late because of the [lack of] quality at the position,” said one area scout assigned to CMU. “He’s an accurate thrower with deceptive athletic ability to extend plays with his feet. Not a dynamic or explosive athlete, but good enough to avoid the rush and create at times. Average arm at best, but he’s got solid touch on intermediate and deep balls. He just lacks elite velocity.”
Titans Leaning Toward Mike Mularkey?
Despite going 2-7 in his most recent head-coaching audition, Mike Mularkey appears to be the clear favorite to become the Titans’ next full-time head coach, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.
The PFT reporter hears it would be a “massive upset” if the Titans don’t retain Mularkey, who replaced Ken Whisenhunt after seven games last season. This goes along with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reporting earlier today the Tennessee job is Mularkey’s “to lose.”
Owner Amy Adams Strunk developed a strong relationship with Mularkey, per Florio, last season and prefers the 54-year-old coach keep the job. Recent GM candidates Chris Ballard and Chris Polian did not share Strunk’s views on Mularkey’s potential, so they were not hired, Florio reports.
New GM Jon Robinson reportedly did agree to consider keeping Mularkey, who Florio notes will be offered a short-term deal with a salary on the low end of the head-coaching earnings scale.
Rapoport points out the Titans could make this official today. The team’s also interviewed Doug Marrone and
Teryl Austin and is set to meet with Titans DC Ray Horton today.
Mularkey carries an 18-39 coaching record and would be a rare third-try head coach without a playoff berth on his resume. His best season came with the Bills, when they went 9-7 in 2004. Mularkey’s Buffalo tenure lasted just two years, and his Jaguars stint, in 2012, produced a 2-14 mark.
Mularkey joined the Titans as their tight ends coach in 2014 before being elevated to assistant head coach prior to the 2015 season’s outset.
The Titans have gone 5-27 the past two seasons.
Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Titans To Interview Chris Ballard For GM
The Titans are scheduled to interview Chiefs director of football operations Chris Ballard for their general manager vacancy on Monday, reports Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). We learned yesterday that Tennessee had requested and received permission to interview Ballard.
[RELATED: Patriots OC Josh McDaniels interested in Titans’ head coaching job]
Ballard, who just completed his third season with Kansas City, has been an NFL personnel man for 15 years, and was considered a strong candidate for the Bears GM job at this time last year. He’s one of several candidates for the Titans position, joining former Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist, Giants exec Marc Ross, and former Lions GM Martin Mayhew. The club also confirmed today that it had interviewed Jaguars director of player personnel Chris Polian and Buccaneers director of player personnel Jon Robinson.
As the Titans seek to replace Ruston Webster, there’s a question as to how their GM search will affect their hunt for new head coach. As Alex Marvez of FOX Sports notes (via Twitter), it’s a little surprising that Tennessee got such a late start; while the Dolphins, for example, have already completed seven head coaching interviews, the Titans have completed zero, as our head coaching search tracker shows.