Latest On Browns’ Coaching Staff Targets
9:36pm: The Dolphins wanted to interview Wilson for a running game coordinator position as well, writes Goessling in a full post, but the Vikings blocked Miami’s and Cleveland’s requests with the hope that they could sign Wilson for 2016 and beyond.
9:13pm: Wilson’s Wednesday interview is almost a formality, according to Goessling, who reports (Twitter link) that Wilson is “all but assured” of landing the running game coordinator position.
8:27pm: New Browns head coach Hue Jackson is still working to formulate a coaching staff, and it appears as though several new hires are close to being finalized. Veteran offensive coordinator Al Saunders is expected to join Cleveland as an assistant, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, while former Vikings running backs coach Kirby Wilson will interview with the club on Wednesday with an eye toward becoming the Browns’ running game coordinator, per Ben Goessling of ESPN.com.
Jackson and Saunders have a working relationship that dates back to the 2009 season, when both were working for the Ravens (they also worked together on the 2011 Raiders), so it’s no surprise that Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reported this morning that Saunders was a “strong candidate” to join the Cleveland staff. The 68-year-old Saunders offers more than thirty years of NFL coaching experience, and while he won’t be calling plays (Jackson will do that), he’ll presumably help design the club’s weekly game plan.
Meanwhile, Wilson’s contract with the Vikings expired today, per Goessling, so he is now free to negotiate with any team. Previous reports indicated that Minnesota had blocked Cleveland’s request to interview Wilson, but now that he is no longer under contract, the Browns don’t need the Vikings’ approval. Wilson would add yet another voice — including Sanders and possibly Pep Hamilton, whom Jackson is also said to be courting — to Cleveland’s offensive meeting room.
Of course, Saunders and Wilson aren’t the only coaches that Jackson is reportedly eyeing, as we heard this morning that — after much trepidation — Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton interviewed for the same position with the Browns. In her report linked above, Cabot confirmed that today’s scheduled meeting did in fact take place.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Browns Notes: Horton, O-Line, Cap Room
Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton arrives in Cleveland today for his interview with the Browns, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. According to Rapoport, the Browns have made it clear that they want to hire Horton and things could happen quickly between the two sides.
It was just two days ago that Horton took exception to a report suggesting that he was heading to the Browns after being upset by not being given a fair shot at the Titans’ head coaching job — at the time, Horton indicated he was working on a contract extension to remain in Tennessee, so if he lands with the Browns later in the week, it would be a quick turnaround.
Here’s more from out of Cleveland:
- Following up on Horton, Rapoport adds (via Twitter) that the Browns are paying his salary from his initial contract with the team, so Cleveland has some extra incentive to bring him aboard again.
- Already in the midst of a rebuild, the Browns risk creating a hole that doesn’t currently exist on the offensive line as free agency approaches, writes Pat McManamon of ESPN.com. As McManamon observes, center Alex Mack can opt out of his contract, right tackle Mitchell Schwartz is eligible for free agency, and left tackle Joe Thomas has hinted that he may ask to be traded. The offensive line has been one of Cleveland’s strong spots in recent years, so the club will have to do all it can to keep at least one or two members of this trio.
- Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap looks ahead to the Browns’ offseason, focusing on the club’s cap situation and its pending free agents. Per Fitzgerald, the team currently projects to have about $35MM in cap space, but that figure could end up increasing to close to $60MM.
- In an interesting piece for TheMMQB.com, Jenny Vrentas examines the interview process for head coaching candidates, including what sort of questions interviewees can expect to be asked, and what sort of traits team executives are looking for. Within the piece, Vrentas notes that candidates who interviewed with the Browns this year had to ask about the team’s front office structure, featuring Sashi Brown and Paul DePodesta.
Browns, Eagles, Jaguars Interested In Jim Schwartz
7:12pm: The Eagles will interview Schwartz for their defensive coordinator position Tuesday, ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan reports (on Twitter). Davis has not been fired but is not expected to be retained.
4:28pm: Schwartz is reportedly in Philadelphia and, according to 6ABC.com’s Jamie Apody, a strong possibility exists of Schwartz becoming the Eagles’ DC. The Browns’ and Jaguars’ reported interest in the seasoned DC won’t preclude the Jeffrey Lurie from outbidding them for Schwartz’s services, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer notes (on Twitter).
4:21pm: As teams look to fill defensive coordinator jobs, Jim Schwartz‘s name has come up in multiple teams’ searches.
The Browns, Eagles and Jaguars are interested in the former Lions head coach, Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com reports, and Schwartz is considering his options. Cleveland has contacted Schwartz, according to Pat McMenamon of ESPN.com, about the position.
The Jaguars have already interviewed Schwartz for their opening, and the Browns are still planning to interview current Titans DC Ray Horton for their vacancy, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). The Browns, per Rapoport, are getting permission from the Titans to interview Horton, who served as the Cleveland DC in 2013.
The 49-year-old Schwartz would prefer to rejoin the Titans, whose defense he presided over from 2001-08 before taking the Lions’ head-coaching job, according to Kuharsky. Dick LeBeau‘s presence as assistant head coach with defensive responsibilities may cloud that situation, per Kuharsky, especially with Horton rumored to be staying on as Tennessee’s DC.
Schwartz went 29-51 as head coach of the Lions and did not coach in 2015 after serving as the Bills’ defensive coordinator in 2014.
The Bills’ 4-3 defense ranked fourth in total defense under Schwartz’s guidance last season. They regressed to 19th in 2015.
Mike Pettine‘s also been linked to this Eagles opening. Bill Davis‘ Eagles defense ranked 30th in the league this season.
Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Browns To Interview Ray Horton
4:46pm: In another twist regarding Horton’s future, the Browns have received permission from the Titans to talk to Horton about their DC job, Kuharsky reports. The ESPN.com reporter notes the Browns will interview Horton later this week.
MONDAY, 1:02pm: After Sunday’s Horton-related drama, the presumption from his side is that he’ll remain with the Titans going forward, tweets Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com. Nothing is official yet, however.
SUNDAY, 3:54pm: Horton is actually talking about a contract extension with the Titans, he tells Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com, and he also rejects the notion that he was insulted by the club’s interview process. The situation seems a lot more fluid than originally presented, so we’ll likely have to wait for a more definite outcome.
3:45pm: Ray Horton is set to join the Browns as defensive coordinator for a second time, according to Jason Wolf of the Tennessean, who cites John Wooten in reporting that Horton will be let out of his Titans contract to join Hue Jackson‘s staff in Cleveland. Horton was previously the Browns DC in 2013.
[RELATED: Browns negotiating with Pep Hamilton]
The 55-year-old Horton, who has been Tennessee’s defensive coordinator for the past two seasons, is not leaving the Titans on good terms. Horton, who interviewed last week for the Titans head coaching position, was passed over in favor of Mike Mularkey, and apparently feels insulted that he was not seriously considered for the job.
“The Browns had put in a request to interview him, and then Tennessee interviewed him (for the head-coaching job Saturday),” said Wooten, chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, which encourages NFL clubs to consider minority candidates. “And they said that they didn’t know that he had any interest in being a head coach. Well, that’s an insult to the man. That is just an insult. And then when he got in the interview, they seemed shocked that he was as prepared and knowledgeable and everything else at that point.”
Horton has been a defensive coordinator since 2011, first with the Cardinals before moving onto Cleveland and then Tennessee. His role with the Titans was arguably marginalized prior to the 2015 season, when the Titans hired former Steelers DC Dick LeBeau as an assistant head coach. LeBeau was given “complete control” of the defense, and Horton was directed to report to him.
In Cleveland, Horton should have more of a say under the offensive-minded Jackson, and he’ll try to turn around a defense that ranked just 29th in DVOA last season. Horton will likely be the only coordinator the Browns hire, as the club is expected to go without an OC (Jackson will call the offensive plays).
Titans Notes: Roster, Staff, No. 1 Pick
In an afternoon press conference, the Titans introduced their new general manager Jon Robinson, along with new permanent head coach Mike Mularkey. The club didn’t confirm the hiring of Terry Robiskie as offensive coordinator, which was reported earlier in the day, but there were still a handful of notable tidbits to come out of the presser. Let’s round them up….
- Robinson will have control of the 53-man roster, while Mularkey will have control of the coaching staff, per Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Mularkey indicated that “there will be multiple coaching changes” in the near future, as Jason Wolf of The Tennessean tweets.
- Former offensive coordinator Jason Michael will become the Titans’ new quarterbacks coach, Mularkey confirmed today (Twitter link via Kuharsky).
- Discussions regarding the defensive coordinator job are ongoing, with Mularkey declining to comment on whether Ray Horton asked to leave (Twitter link via John Glennon of The Tennessean).
- According to Titans president and CEO Steve Underwood, the team was turned down by only one candidate for the general manager job (Twitter link via Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com). That one candidate was probably Ravens assistant GM Eric DeCosta, whom the Titans reportedly wanted to interview.
- While Underwood didn’t unequivocally come out and say it, he hinted strongly that controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk had a pretty good idea that the team would be hiring Mularkey before the head coaching search even began, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Underwood cited a “comfort level” that ownership had with Mularkey, tweets McCormick.
- Robinson suggested that there will be many avenues open to the Titans as they look to improve their roster in the offseason. The team will explore the free agent market for good fits, and will consider all possible options for the No. 1 overall pick, including trading it (Twitter links via McCormick).
- Running back is a position expected to be addressed this offseason by the Titans, according to McCormick, who says Mularkey seems to favor having a power back (Twitter links).
- Underwood confirmed today that the NFL has expressed some concern with the Titans’ ownership structure, but not with the owners themselves (Twitter link via Kuharsky).
Coaching Notes: Buccaneers, Titans, Coughlin
Alex Marvez of Fox Sports reports (via Twitter) that the Buccaneers will hire Jon Hoke as their defensive backs coach. The 58-year-old has spent much of his career in the NCAA, where he was the defensive backs coach for Missouri, Florida, and South Carolina (among many others). Hoke also had a seven-year stint as the Texans DB coach, and he also spent five seasons with the Bears.
Let’s take a look at some more coaching notes from around the league…
- Dirk Koetter is overjoyed to be the Buccaneers new head coach, writes Rick Stroud of TampaBay.com. The 56-year-old has been coaching in the NFL since 2007, and he’s thrilled to finally get an opportunity to lead the entire operation. “First, you know, it’s emotional, a day like this. It’s one of the happiest days of my life but also one of the most humbling,” Koetter said. “It’s been a long time, a long time in the making. There’s 32 of these jobs in the world. I know I can do the job, even though I’m whimpering around a little bit up here today. I’m a little tougher than I’ve been coming across so far. I’m ready for it. Nothing that is said here today is going to affect us one bit in wins and losses. That all comes later. There’s a lot of work to be done.”
- Defensive coordinator Ray Horton is meeting with the Titans today, and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets that it will the organization’s last scheduled interview for their head coaching vacancy. The reporter notes that the position could be filled today, and he believes the job is “Mike Mularkey‘s to lose.” If the interim head coach does get the full-time position, Rapoport expects it to be on a short-term contract.
- Giants co-owner John Mara admitted that he didn’t want to see former head coach Tom Coughlin take the same gig with the Eagles. “I’m not going to lie, it would’ve bothered me a lot,” Mara said (via Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News). “It would’ve been like watching Bill Parcells walk out onto the field with a (Dallas) star on his shirt. That was tough to see at the time. That would’ve bothered me. I want him to be happy, but I certainly didn’t want to see him happy in green.”
AFC Notes: Jones, Texans, Browns, Bengals
Despite not failing a drug test or being arrested, Chandler Jones could be subject to discipline under the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports.
Jones’ recent incident reportedly involving synthetic marijuana and a police report indicating a smell of burned marijuana in Jones’ apartment would be enough to place the Patriots defensive end in Stage 1 of the substance-abuse program, Florio notes.
Synthetic marijuana isn’t among the substances for which the NFL tests, but being placed in the program would open up Jones to tests for other substances, and potential advancement within the program would about subsequent discipline a subsequent test comes back positive.
Jones’ recent bizarre happening won’t result in a suspension, Florio reports, unless the fourth-year defender was already in an advanced stage of the program. Confidentiality limits that knowledge to a select few, but Jones is not believed to be among those in the substance-abuse program.
Here are some more notes from AFC as the divisional round nears.
- Ray Horton wants to be the Browns‘ defensive coordinator if he doesn’t receive a head-coaching opportunity, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports. John Wooten of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization that promotes minority coaches, front office personnel and scouts, told Cabot Horton “would love to come back to the Browns.” Horton served as Cleveland’s DC in 2013 under Rob Chudzinski but wasn’t retained after Chudzinski was fired after one season.
- In addition to pursuing Kirby Wilson as their running-game coordinator, the Browns will attempt to land Packers assistant offensive line coach Mike Solari as their offensive line coach, with an aim to possibly give him more responsibilities, Cabot reports. The 60-year-old Solari’s most notable role came as Chiefs offensive coordinator in 2006-07 under Herm Edwards. Since, Solari served as the offensive line coach for the Seahawks (2008-09) and 49ers (2010-14) before joining the Packers’ staff.
- The Texans hired former Patriots linebacker Larry Izzo as their special teams coordinator, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports. Izzo had previously served as the Giants’ assistant special teams coach. The 41-year-old Izzo played for three Patriots Super Bowl champion teams in the 2000s and is a Houston-area native.
- Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has taken a lot of heat for deploying the likes of Vontaze Burfict and Adam Jones this week, but other coaches and executives believe the responsibility falls more on the Bengals’ ownership, Albert Breer of NFL.com reports. “I don’t think Marvin and that staff are about that stuff. Ownership is. They look at value, and see a way to gain an advantage,” one head coach told La Canfora. An NFC personnel man echoed that, questioning Mike Brown‘s organization’s offseason choices. “People want Marvin to pay with his job, but what about the GM? They went through this period of time where they had a bunch of dirtbags in there, guys like Corey Dillon, and they’ve changed some. But it’s still there. The Brown family, I love and respect them. They’re as high character and have as much integrity as any owners I’ve met. Yet, sometimes, the player selections make you scratch your head.”
- Both Brock Osweiler and Malik Jackson will command contracts “well north” of $10MM per year, Mike Klis of 9News estimates. Both will be the Broncos‘ top priorities once Von Miller is likely franchise-tagged, Klis notes. The Broncos opted to let most of their departing talent walk the past two offseasons, save for Demaryius Thomas and Chris Harris, but today signed Derek Wolfe to a contract paying $9MM AAV. That figure sits seventh among 3-4 defensive ends, according to OverTheCap. The Broncos have $20MM+ worth of cap space heading into 2016, and that’s before factoring in Peyton Manning‘s likely departure, freeing up more than $20MM of additional dollars.
Titans To Interview Ray Horton For HC Job
3:54pm: The Titans have confirmed that their interviews with Austin and Mularkey have been completed. Horton will be the fourth candidate to formally speak to the team about the job.
4:11pm: Mike Mularkey isn’t the only in-house candidate for the Titans’ permanent head coaching job. According to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Tennessee defensive coordinator Ray Horton is scheduled to interview for the club’s head coaching vacancy on Saturday.
[RELATED: Titans hire Jon Robinson as general manager]
Horton is expected to become either the third or fourth candidate to formally interview for the Titans’ job. The club confirmed that it met with Jaguars assistant head coach Doug Marrone on Thursday to discuss the head coaching job, and Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin was scheduled to meet with the team today. Mularkey, who is considered the front-runner, was also expected to sit down for an interview at some point this week.
In addition to those candidates, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has been mentioned as a possible target for new Titans GM Jon Robinson. However, he and other coaches on active playoff teams aren’t eligible to interview this week.
Horton, who served as the defensive coordinator in Arizona and Cleveland prior to joining the Titans, has reportedly received interest from the Browns for their defensive coordinator job under new head coach Hue Jackson.
While the Titans will have the first overall pick this year after finishing with a league-worst 2-14 record, Horton’s defense shouldn’t bear the brunt of the blame for the team’s poor showing. The Titans’ average of 342.2 yards per game placed them 12th in the NFL, while their 229.9 passing yards allowed per game placed seventh in the league.
Browns Coach Hue Jackson Eyeing Titans DC Ray Horton
Browns head coach Hue Jackson is looking to bring Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton aboard as his own DC, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. However, it is uncertain whether the Titans will grant him permission to leave, according to a source.
The Titans, of course, can block the Browns from interviewing Horton since it would be for another coordinator position. In the case of any non-head coaching vacancy, teams always reserve the right to block their coaches from interviewing.
Last year, the Titans defense allowed 26.4 points per contest, putting them at 27th in the league. Their 342.2 total yards surrendered per game only put them at No. 12 but their 229.9 passing yards allowed per game was good for No. 7 in the league. If Horton is brought over to Cleveland, it will mark the second time he served as Browns DC. Horton was Cleveland’s defensive coordinator during the 2013 season and left after Rob Chudzinski was axed.
Coaching Notes: LeBeau, Rams, Dolphins
The Titans announced that new coach Dick LeBeau will be “in charge of the defense” while defensive coordinator Ray Horton will “work with him to implement it,” according to Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean (on Twitter). LeBeau, 77, was originally said to be seeking a defensive coordinator position when he parted ways with the Steelers. He doesn’t exactly have that in Tennessee, but he’ll have plenty of authority with his new club. More coaching news from around the National Football League..
- Meanwhile, the Titans are promoting Mike Mularkey to assistant head coach on offense, where he’ll be in charge of the team’s run game, according to Wyatt (on Twitter). The Bears requested permission to interview Mularkey for their OC vacancy last month but were denied. The Titans also plan to hire Jason Tucker as assistant receivers coach (link). He was formerly with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.
- Tight ends coach Rob Boras, who lost out to quarterbacks coach Frank Cignetti for the Rams‘ offensive coordinator opening, will be elevated to the assistant head coach of the offensive side, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). The formal announcement on both promotions is expected to come next week.
- Terrell Williams has been named as the Dolphins‘ new defensive line coach, according to Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (on Twitter). Williams served as the Raiders’ defensive line coach from 2012 through 2014.
- The Bears announced (on Twitter) that they have hired Stan Drayton as their running backs coach. Drayton spent the last four years at Ohio State and helped them win the national title in 2014.
- The Buccaneers announced (on Twitter) that they have named former Central Michigan offensive line coach Butch Barry as their new assistant offensive line coach.
- Rams assistant line coach Clyde Simmons is interviewing for the head defensive line coach job with the Raiders, according to Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch (on Twitter).