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2021 NFL General Manager Search Tracker

January 12th, 2021 at 8:02pm CST by Zachary Links

This year’s NFL GM carousel figures to be more active than usual. The Falcons, Lions, Panthers, Texans, and Jaguars are all on the hunt for a new front office leader. And that’s only the official list. The real tally shows six clubs looking for a GM, since the Washington Football Team is expected to install a GM to work alongside head coach Ron Rivera. By mid-January, we could easily see a couple more jobs opening up — that’d put ~25% of the NFL on the market.

We’ll keep track of the GM candidates for each club here, along with their current status. If and when other teams decide to make general manager changes, they’ll be added to this list. Here’s the current breakdown:

Updated 1-19-21 (7:02pm CT)

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers 

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Washington Football Team

2021 NFL Draft Order

January 11th, 2021 at 8:54am CST by Zachary Links

Wild Card weekend is in the books and 75% of the NFL’s 2021 Draft order has been set. Here’s the rundown, thus far:

1. Jacksonville Jaguars
2. New York Jets
3. Miami Dolphins (via Texans)
4. Atlanta Falcons
5. Cincinnati Bengals
6. Philadelphia Eagles
7. Detroit Lions
8. Carolina Panthers
9. Denver Broncos
10. Dallas Cowboys
11. New York Giants
12. San Francisco 49ers
13. Los Angeles Chargers
14. Minnesota Vikings
15. New England Patriots
16. Arizona Cardinals
17. Las Vegas Raiders
18. Miami Dolphins
19. Washington Football Team
20. Chicago Bears
21. Indianapolis Colts
22. Tennessee Titans
23. New York Jets (via Seahawks)
24. Pittsburgh Steelers

Coaching Notes: Quinn, Staley, Chargers, Pollack, Bengals, Simmons, Whitt, Cowboys

January 10th, 2021 at 6:03pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Hope you’re all enjoying Sunday’s three-game wild card slate, here are a new batch of coaching updates to pass along:

  • Dan Quinn’s star faded fast after taking the Falcons to the Super Bowl just a few years ago, and he was fired after starting 0-5 this season. His national reputation took a hit, but he’s apparently still fairly highly regarded in league circles and might not be out of a job too long. Quinn’s name is popping up frequently as a potential defensive coordinator for coaches interviewing for head coaching gigs, Peter Schrager of NFL Network is told (Twitter link). Quinn, of course, rose to prominence as the Seahawks’ defensive coordinator for a couple years during their dominant ‘Legion of Boom’ era, and won Super Bowl XLVIII with Seattle. His defenses were never anything special during his time in Atlanta though, and it was Kyle Shanahan’s offense carrying the team during the peak of their success.
  • Speaking of defensive minds, Rams DC Brandon Staley is turning into a hot name this cycle, and after his defense just dominated Russell Wilson it’s not hard to see why. The Chargers are one of the teams interested, and he’ll interview with them today, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. But interestingly, Breer writes that if Los Angeles doesn’t hire an offensive mind, the new coach will “have to have a very detailed plan for that side of the ball and the quarterback.” 49ers DC Robert Saleh is also in contention for this job, so that would obviously apply to him as well. Clearly, the Chargers want a bright offensive mind to pair with Justin Herbert. We’ve heard Herbert loves current offensive coordinator Shane Steichen, but Breer’s tweet certainly doesn’t make it sound like he’s all that likely to return.
  • Zac Taylor survived for another year, but the Bengals fired a few assistant coaches this week. Now, they’ve found one of the replacements. Cincy has hired Frank Pollack to be their new offensive line coach and run game coordinator, the team announced. Pollack spent the past two seasons as the Jets’ offensive line coach, and had the same role with the Bengals in 2018 under Marvin Lewis. Before that he was he Cowboys’ O-line coach, and obviously those units had a great deal of success. For what it’s worth, Bengals players are “thrilled” with the hire, Jay Morrison of The Athletic writes. “It’s exciting,” center Billy Price said. “I’m glad to have him back. I’m really, really, really, really glad to have him back.” Running back Joe Mixon also said he was “super excited” to have Pollack back in the fold.
  • The Cowboys fired defensive coordinator Mike Nolan earlier this week, and the search for his replacement is in full swing. Dallas interviewed Jason Simmons and Joe Whitt Jr. today for the position, a source told Calvin Watkins of The Athletic (Twitter link). Simmons is currently the passing game coordinator for the Panthers, while Whitt is the passing game coordinator for the Falcons. Both candidates have plenty of familiarity with Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy. Whitt was on Green Bay’s defensive staff from 2008-18, rising the ranks from quality control coach, while Simmons started with the Packers in 2015 as an assistant special teams coach. Neither has been a DC before.

GM/Staff Notes: Staley, Schoen, Jets, Eagles

January 7th, 2021 at 5:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Falcons have secured an interview with Bills assistant GM Joe Schoen, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (on Twitter). This will be Schoen’s second GM interview this offseason. He met with the Panthers earlier this week. Schoen has been on the rise for a bit now, moving from Dolphins player personnel director (2014-17) to the assistant GM of a Bills franchise that has raised its profile considerably during his tenure under Brandon Beane. Under Beane, Schoen and Sean McDermott, the Bills have made three playoff berths in four years. They were 0-for-17 in the 21st century previously.

Here is the latest from the GM and coaching carousels:

  • Brandon Staley‘s Rams defense ranked first in scoring defense this season, and that could allow him to continue a meteoric NFL rise. In addition to the Jets requesting an interview with Staley, the Chargers are interested in speaking with the first-year coordinator, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic tweets. Staley spent the 2018 season as the Bears’ outside linebackers coach before following Vic Fangio to Denver and working in the same capacity there. But he has become a hot coaching commodity who could end up in a leading role soon.
  • The assistant leading the charge against Staley’s defense Saturday may be competing with him for the Jets‘ top coaching job. Seahawks OC Brian Schottenheimer is expected to be on the Jets’ radar to replace Adam Gase, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. Schottenheimer has been Seattle’s OC for three seasons but served in that role in New York longer, working as offensive coordinator under Eric Mangini and Rex Ryan from 2006-11.
  • While the Eagles are retaining Doug Pederson, they will lose DC Jim Schwartz and part ways with two offensive assistants. Marty Mornhinweg and Rich Scangarello will not be back in Philly next season, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com tweets. Despite both joining the Eagles last season, each was on an expiring contract. This marks another offseason of shakeups to Pederson’s offensive staff. Both Frank Reich and John DeFilippo departed in 2018, while the Eagles fired OC Mike Groh last year. Both Mornhinweg and Scangarello held non-position-coaching titles; the former worked as a senior consultant and the latter functioned as a senior assistant. Mornhinweg is a veteran NFL OC who served as Lions HC from 2001-02, while Scangarello was the Broncos’ OC last season.
  • The Washington GM search is beginning to take shape. In addition to ex-GMs Marty Hurney, Martin Mayhew and Rick Smith, Washington is expected to show interest in ex-Panthers exec Ryan Cowden, per La Canfora. While Cowden worked with Ron Rivera in Carolina, he has been with the Titans since 2016. He currently works as their VP of player personnel.

Chargers Request Interview With 49ers DC Robert Saleh

January 5th, 2021 at 3:01pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh continues to be a busy man. He’s already been linked to the jobs in Detroit and Atlanta, and now Los Angeles has come calling. The Chargers have requested an interview with the Kyle Shanahan deputy, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Saleh is from the Michigan area and coached for a while at Michigan State, which has led to some reports that he’s high on the Lions’ wish list. But if Detroit wants him, they’re going to have some competition. On paper, the Chargers might be the most attractive job opening. Not only do they have a rookie sensation at quarterback in Justin Herbert, but there’s a ton of talent on defense for someone like Saleh to work with as well.

Safety Derwin James missed the entire 2020 season, but should be back at an All-Pro level in 2021.Then there’s Casey Hayward and Chris Harris at cornerback, and Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa at edge rusher. With Pro Bowl defensive tackle Linval Joseph clogging up running lanes in the middle. The 49ers were besieged by injuries this past year, but they had one of the best defenses in the league in 2019.

If Saleh were hired, it’d be very interesting to see what OC he paired Herbert with. Herbert apparently “loves” his current OC Shane Steichen, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports (Twitter video link), so maybe Chargers GM Tom Telesco will be looking for a candidate willing to keep Steichen on staff.

Texans, Falcons, Chargers To Interview Panthers OC Joe Brady For HC Openings

January 5th, 2021 at 12:37pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

There’s been a trend around the league in recent years of teams with head coach openings going after young and innovative offensive minds, and there’s no reason to believe it’s slowing down. To that end, Panthers offensive coordinator Joe Brady is starting to get a lot of buzz.

Brady received interview requests from the Texans, Falcons, and Chargers, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets. Houston already completed their interview on Tuesday with the 31-year-old, the team announced. The man running Matt Rhule’s offense has seen a meteoric rise through the ranks in the past handful of years, and as recently as 2016 he was only a graduate assistant at Penn State.

He then became and offensive assistant with the Saints for two years before landing the gig as LSU’s passing game coordinator for the 2019 season. We all know what happened then, as he turned LSU’s offense into a juggernaut, helped Joe Burrow win the Heisman and become the first overall pick, and helped LSU win a national title.

After just one season at LSU, Rhule plucked him to be on his inaugural staff in Carolina. The Panthers were a mixed bag this year, but they did get pretty creative on offense even while missing Christian McCaffrey for pretty much the entire season. Even by today’s standards Brady would be pretty young and inexperienced, but more and more teams are learning that fortune often favors the bold. Even if he doesn’t land a job this cycle, Brady will be a candidate next year and the one after.

Chargers To Interview Matt Eberflus

January 5th, 2021 at 11:45am CST by Zachary Links

Make it three teams for Matt Eberflus. The Chargers plan to interview Colts defensive coordinator for their head coaching vacancy, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.

[RELATED: Jets, Texans To Interview Eberflus]

Eberflus has also drawn the attention of the Jets and Texans, signaling that he could be poised to climb the ladder. Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy is also on the Bolts’ radar; ditto for Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

There’s some belief that the Chargers will look for an offensive-minded coach to groom quarterback Justin Herbert and deviate from the previous administration, but Eberflus comes with credentials. When he arrived in Indy (originally as the chosen lieutenant of Josh McDaniels), the Colts had one of the league’s worst defenses. They’ve made strides with Eberflus, managing to rank eighth in total defense in 2020. If the wheels didn’t come off towards the end of the year, they would have placed even higher.

Eberflus has been eyeing a head coaching opportunity for some time now, and the Chargers job could give him a chance to make an immediate mark in the league. The Bolts were a sub-.500 team in 2020, but they easily could have been a playoff team with a healthy roster and fewer managerial mistakes.

Chargers Request Eric Bieniemy Interview

January 5th, 2021 at 9:26am CST by Zachary Links

The Chargers have requested permission to interview Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy for their head coaching job, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The Lions, Falcons, and Jets are also expected to chat with Bieniemy, who profiles as one of the hottest candidates in this cycle.

The former running back spent four years with the Chargers back in the day and was even with the club for their early 90s Super Bowl trip. These days, he’s known as the mastermind behind one of the game’s most electric offenses. The Chargers are looking for someone to develop Justin Herbert into an elite quarterback, and Bieniemy has been widely credited for Patrick Mahomes‘ success.

In 2020, Bieniemy met with the Browns, Giants, and Panthers about their head coaching vacancies. Last year, he chatted with the Bucs and Dolphins. He didn’t land a HC job either time, but it would be a shock to see him passed over in 2021.

After a losing year full of near-victories, the Chargers are set to pick No. 13 overall in the spring.

Chargers Request Jason Garrett Interview

January 4th, 2021 at 10:27pm CST by Zachary Links

The Chargers have requested an interview with Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The former Cowboys head coach would be one of several candidates to interview after the firing of Anthony Lynn. 

[RELATED: Chargers To Meet With Arthur Smith] 

Garrett posted a regular season record of 85-67 for the Cowboys across nine seasons. Although they came up short in the playoffs, Garrett remains a highly-respected offensive mind. He also played quarterback in the league for nearly 15 years, making him a solid choice to develop youngster Justin Herbert. Of course, this past year wasn’t a banner season for the Giants, but there’s plenty of blame to go around in Northern New Jersey.

The Chargers will also look to interview Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Daboll is also being targeted by the Jets, who got an up-close look at Josh Allen‘s transformation in 2020.

So far, the Chargers have put at least three candidates on their HC list in Garrett, Daboll, and Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. It’s worth noting that the competition for Smith will be fierce — all six teams with openings have asked to meet with the 38-year-old.

All 6 Teams With HC Openings To Interview Titans OC Arthur Smith

January 4th, 2021 at 5:09pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Well it wouldn’t really be possible for Arthur Smith to be in higher demand right now. All six teams with head coach vacancies either already have or will request to interview the Titans offensive coordinator, sources told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Those six teams, of course, are the Chargers, Jets, Jaguars, Lions, Falcons, and Texans. The Jags and Texans are both in the same division as Smith. Teams can’t prevent an assistant from interviewing for a promotion to head coach, so Smith can make the rounds if he so chooses. Still only 38, Smith has seen his stock take a meteoric rise in league circles the past couple of seasons even though just two years ago he was a tight ends coach who had never called plays before.

Smith joined the Titans as a quality control coach in 2011, and was so highly regarded within the building that he was able to survive multiple head coach regimes. After Matt LaFleur was hired to be the Packers head coach after the 2018 season, Mike Vrabel promoted Smith to offensive coordinator, and the rest is history.

Ryan Tannehill has had a sudden resurgence to become one of the league’s most efficient quarterbacks under Smith’s tutelage, and the running game led by Derrick Henry has been unstoppable at times. Whether it’s this year or not, it seems like only a matter of time before Smith lands a head coaching gig and becomes the next young offensive mind to lead a team alongside the likes of Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, and LaFleur.

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