HEADLINES

Jim Harbaugh

Extra Points: Titans, Roos, Harbaugh, Browns

February 24th, 2014 at 5:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Titans are currently prioritizing this year’s pending free agents and potential cap casualties, the team shouldn’t forget about players like left tackle Michael Roos and defensive tackle Jurrell Casey, whose contracts are up after the 2014 season, writes Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. In Wyatt’s view, Tennessee can afford to wait to see how Casey fits in a changing defense, but the team would be wise to try to lock up Roos to an extension as soon as possible.

Here are a few more miscellaneous Monday links from around the NFL:

  • Former Octagon agents Doug Hendrickson and C.J. LaBoy have joined Relativity Sports, according to Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal (via Twitter). Mullen adds in a second tweet that the duo will work with and report to Relativity’s football CEO, Eugene Parker.
  • If Jim Harbaugh doesn’t receive a contract extension this offseason and the 49ers don’t win the Super Bowl next season, expect the Dolphins to be among the teams pursing the head coach next year, tweets Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports.
  • Before he was removed from his role as CEO of the team, Joe Banner had the Browns‘ offensive and defensive coordinators reporting directly to him, reports Pat Kirwan of CBSSports.com. As agent Mike McCartney observes (via Twitter), if Kirwan’s report is accurate, it’s not hard to understand why head coaching candidates would’ve been reluctant to accept the Cleveland job.
  • Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who had a stellar performance at the combine, met with nine teams, according to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link): The Cowboys, Ravens, Bears, Bengals, Vikings, Texans, Lions, Buccaneers, and Rams.
  • The Packers, Patriots, and Seahawks met with Rutgers receiver Brandon Coleman, who also had an informal meeting with the Redskins, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.

Latest On Jim Harbaugh, 49ers, Browns

February 24th, 2014 at 8:59am CST by Luke Adams

Since Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported on Friday that the Browns had “nearly” acquired the rights to 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, several reports have followed up on that story with additional details and an assortment of half-confirmations, half-denials from the Browns and Niners. Here’s a round-up of where the story stands as of Monday morning:

  • After tweeting on Friday that PFT’s report “isn’t true,” 49ers CEO Jed York softened his stance somewhat. “The Browns reached out to me, and we had no interest in pursuing it,” York tells Peter King of TheMMQB.
  • Speaking to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, York explained that he initially shot down the report because it wasn’t true that the 49ers were willing to move forward with the deal and Harbaugh wasn’t interested. Asked how far discussions progressed, York replied “not far at all,” adding that the Niners had “no interest” in entering serious negotiations. According to York, the team intends to reopen extension talks with Harbaugh before the 2014 season.
  • Barrows reported yesterday that the Browns called the 49ers last month to ask about several of the team’s coaches. During conversations between the two sides, Harbaugh’s name came up, and former Browns CEO Joe Banner indicated what sort of compensation the team would be willing to provide for the Niners head coach. However, the discussion didn’t progress from that point.
  • Browns owner Jimmy Haslam confirmed this weekend that there was at least something to the initial report, telling Jarrett Bell of USA Today, “There was an opportunity there, and it didn’t materialize.”
  • While Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com also believes talks between the Browns and Niners didn’t get far, he says the rift between Harbaugh and San Francisco’s front office – including GM Trent Baalke and president Paraag Marathe – is much greater than has been portrayed in the media. League sources who have spoken to La Canfora at the combine have been pessimistic about the odds of an extension this offseason for Harbaugh.

Browns Nearly Traded For Jim Harbaugh?

February 21st, 2014 at 5:36pm CST by Luke Adams

5:36pm: 49ers CEO Jed York denied the rumor via Twitter.

4:58pm: Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report hears from multiple source that Florio’s report is “essentially accurate,” with one source telling Freeman there were “extensive discussions between the Browns and Niners (Twitter link).

3:58pm: While the Browns didn’t deny the PFT report, a 49ers source calls it “ridiculous” and “completely false,” according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).

Of course, whether or not the initial report is true, it makes sense for the Niners to deny it, since they’re moving forward with Harbaugh in charge. For the Browns, as I wrote below, the report suggests that the team was aiming high in its coaching search, so Cleveland may be less inclined to publicly shoot it down.

3:47pm: Jim Harbaugh nearly became the first NFL head coach traded since the Jets sent Herm Edwards to Kansas City in 2006, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Citing multiple league sources, Florio reports that the Browns had a deal in place that would have sent multiple draft picks to the 49ers in exchange for the rights to Harbaugh, but the San Francisco coach decided to stay put. On the heels of Florio’s report, the Browns have released a statement in which the team didn’t deny pursuing Harbaugh.

“The team conducted an extensive coaching search, and explored several options,” said the Browns in the statement. “That search produced an outstanding head coach in Mike Pettine and we’re excited about his future with the club” (Twitter links via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal).

The Browns were the NFL’s last team to hire a head coach this offseason, and their long, laborious search was believed to have contributed to GM Mike Lombardi and CEO Joe Banner losing their jobs. If Florio’s report on Harbaugh is true, it adds another odd wrinkle to the team’s lengthy coaching hunt, and shows how high Cleveland was aiming in its search for Rob Chudzinski‘s replacement. The Browns ultimately hired Pettine, the former Bills’ defensive coordinator, as their head coach.

Had Harbaugh agreed to coach the Browns, and had the two teams agreed on fair compensation, the divisional rivalry between the Browns and Ravens would’ve taken on a new importance as well, with Jim and John Harbaugh squaring off twice a year. Ultimately though, it seems as if the younger Harbaugh was just one of many coaching candidates the Browns targeted but couldn’t reel in.

NFC Notes: 49ers, Boldin, Pettigrew, Bears

February 18th, 2014 at 7:52pm CST by Matt Feminis

Yesterday morning, there was news of the 49ers and free agent receiver Anquan Boldin working on a long-term deal, but tonight, Pro Football Talk says not so fast. A source tells PFT no negotiations have taken place, though both sides are expected to talk at the Combine. Additionally, Boldin is the team’s top priority by virtue of him being on the verge of hitting the open market, but quarterback Colin Kaepernick and head coach Jim Harbaugh could also receive extensions this year.

Other NFC notes:

  • Brandon Pettigrew is the only reasonable candidate for the Lions franchise tag, according to Kyle Meinke of MLive.com, but he says the team is unlikely to use the tag, probably for reasons explained by Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Both writers seem to agree that Pettigrew is not worth the money given his inconsistency, injuries and inability to stretch the field. Furthermore, the team is sitting with just about $3MM in cap space.
  • There’s a good chance Bears running back Michael Bush will be a cap casualty, according to Dan Pompei. Bush is signed for two more years with cap hits of $3.85MM in 2014 and $4.6MM in 2015, but has been very average as Matt Forte‘s backup.
  • Former Ravens safety Christian Thompson worked out for the Bears, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). A good-sized, athletic prospect who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2012 draft, Thompson was released by the Ravens last season after he served a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.
  • The 49ers need a speedy receiver to compliment Michael Crabtree (and maybe Boldin) if they are to have more success against the big, physical Seahawks secondary, says Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.

NFC Notes: Dimitroff, Shields, Orakpo, Eagles

February 15th, 2014 at 10:14am CST by Matt Feminis

Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff was put under the microscope by the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Dawson Devitt, who published the first part of an exhaustive retrospective analysis of the GM’s transaction history 2008-09, including free agency, cuts, trades, extensions and drafts. The verdict? More good than bad.

Other opinions from NFC writers:

  • Packers free agent cornerback Sam Shields‘ arrow is pointing up, according to ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky, who says the 26-year-old is worth $7-8MM per year. Shields has blazing speed to run with outside burners and has improved leaps and bounds with his technique and tackling.
  • With Henry Melton, Jay Ratliff and Nate Collins set to hit free agency, defensive tackle “will have to be a top priority” for the Bears, according to ESPN Chicago’s Michael C. Wright, who believes the team will add interior defenders in the draft, via free agency and still attempt to bring back its own free agents.
  • The Redskins can re-sign both Brian Orakpo and Perry Riley provided both players don’t ask for unreasonable deals, says ESPN Washington’s John Keim.
  • Thanks to second-year head coach Chip Kelly’s familiarity with college players, Dallas Morning News writer Rick Gosselin believes the Eagles are in a window when they have a distinct draft advantage. Gosselin cites past examples of Jimmy Johnson‘s move from the University of Miami to the Cowboys, Jim Harbaugh‘s jump from Stanford to the 49ers and Pete Carroll’s escape from USC to the Seahawks when the coaches drafted players they were familiar with, creating the core of winning NFL teams. Kelly, who recruited nationally for Oregon, “spent four years with the Ducks so he has a four-year window when he’ll know the draft board better than the NFL lifers,” contends Gosselin.

NFC West Notes: Williams, 49ers, Cardinals

February 13th, 2014 at 4:58pm CST by Luke Adams

The Rams introduced new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams at a press conference this morning, as Jonathan Webb of StLouisRams.com details. However, our afternoon NFC West roundup focuses on a pair of St. Louis’ division rivals. Here’s the latest:

  • As we heard last night, the 49ers and Anquan Boldin have mutual interest in working out a new deal, but that’s just one of the top items on the team’s offseason to-do list, says Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. According to Florio, San Francisco’s other top two priorities involving locking up head coach Jim Harbaugh and extending quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The Niners’ offseason plans figure to come into better focus after next week’s scouting combine, a source tells Florio.
  • Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee provides an update on the 49ers‘ new stadium, which is approximately 80% complete and on track to be ready for use by August.
  • General manager Steve Keim and the Cardinals are in the process of putting together a top 100 board for free agents, similar to the kind of board teams compile for the draft, writes Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. Urban’s piece includes several interesting quotes from Keim on Arizona’s approach to roster building and the club’s long-term plan.
  • Keim on building the Cardinals‘ roster: “We have to constantly look at it with a three-year view. How certain things affect what we can do with Patrick [Peterson], how some of the other young players fit, and [that] we might have to make some tough decisions. Not this year, but we have talked about where we will have to make tough decisions after 2014 and 2015. If you look at the big picture and you look at it with a three-year view, you have a chance to sustain success instead of having so many peaks and valleys.”

Extra Points: Hoyer, Harbaugh, Foles, Miller

February 2nd, 2014 at 4:41pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer speculates that the Texans might be interested in Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer. New Texans coach Bill O’Brien and Hoyer worked together with the Patriots, where O’Brien was the offensive coordinator. If the Browns select a quarterback with the fourth overall pick, Hoyer could become expendable. If the Texans opt to not to draft a quarterback with the first overall pick, they could use a player like Hoyer to stabilize the quarterback position, presuming they release Matt Schaub.

A few more pre-Super Bowl notes: