49ers Nearing HC Decision, Shanahan In Mix
Earlier today, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com reported that the 49ers don’t have any additional head coaching interviews on their schedule, and seem to be nearing the end of their search. Dianna Marie Russini of ESPN.com echoes that sentiment this afternoon, tweeting that San Francisco looks to be closing in on a decision.
[RELATED: PFR’s 2016 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]
Russini provides another interesting tidbit within her tweet, noting that Mike Shanahan is “strongly back in the mix” for the 49ers’ head coaching job. A Niners source tells Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) that the team likes Shanahan because of the discipline and foundation he could bring to the organization, as well as his connection to the Bill Walsh era.
Of course, if the 49ers do decide to hire Shanahan, it would raise some eyebrows, since the club could’ve brought him aboard a year ago, but elected to go with Jim Tomsula instead. After Tomsula lasted just a year as the team’s head coach, reports surfaced last week that Shanahan would once again interview for the San Francisco job, though it’s not clear if he came in for a full-fledged interview, or if the club has simply discussed the position with him.
Shanahan has a lengthy coaching resume, having served as the head coach in Los Angeles (1988-89), Denver (1995-2008), and Washington (2010-2013). Although he has a 170-138 regular season record overall, and has won a pair of Super Bowls, Shanahan produced a mixed bag of results during his most recent head coaching stint. Washington was 24-40 during his four years with the franchise, with just one winning season.
Hue Jackson is no longer a candidate for the 49ers, having been hired by the Browns today, but there are still five available candidates with whom the club conducted interviews. Bills assistant Anthony Lynn and Browns offensive coordinator John DeFilippo aren’t believed to be favorites for the Niners’ job, but former Eagles coach Chip Kelly, ex-Giants HC Tom Coughlin, and Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter are in play.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Coach Rumors: Bengals, Titans, Philbin, Colts
The Browns struck a deal today to bring Hue Jackson aboard as their new coach, leaving five teams with active head coaching searches. Additionally, plenty more clubs are looking to hire assistants to fill out their staffs, so we’ve got plenty of coaching-related notes and rumors to round up this afternoon. Let’s dive in….
- According to Michael Silver of NFL Media (via Twitter), before Jackson agreed to join the Browns, Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis approached his offensive coordinator with a last-ditch attempt to keep Jackson in Cincinnati. Silver notes that the proposal included a succession plan, which would mean Jackson eventually replacing Lewis as the Bengals’ coach, but it wasn’t enough to keep him from moving on.
- The Titans‘ interview with Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin will take place on Friday, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the club will interview Doug Marrone one day earlier, on Thursday.
- The Colts have reached out to former Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin to see if he’s interested in the team’s offensive line coach job, a source tells Andrew Abramson of the Palm Beach Post.
- Falcons secondary coach Marquand Manuel had a good meeting with Gus Bradley regarding the Jaguars‘ defensive coordinator opening, but Jacksonville has yet to make a decision on the position, tweets Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
- Alex Marvez of FOX Sports has several updates on assistant jobs around the NFL. Here’s the breakdown:
- The Colts have agreed to a deal with former Giants linebackers coach Jim Herrmann for the same position in Indianapolis (Twitter link).
- Former Dolphins head coach and current 49ers assistant Tony Sparano is interviewing today for the Vikings‘ offensive line coach opening and is a strong candidate to get the job (Twitter links).
- Former Vikings offensive line coach Jeff Davidson is interviewing for the same role with the Chargers (Twitter link).
- Former Dolphins defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle is expected to replace Vance Joseph as the Bengals‘ defensive backs coach (Twitter link).
Checking In On NFL Head Coaching Searches
So far, seven teams have parted ways with their head coaches this month, and it’s possible that one or two more clubs will ultimately decide to make a change. While most of those firings occurred within a day or two of the regular season ending, only one team – the Dolphins – has hired a replacement so far. Miami tabbed Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase as its new head coach.
[RELATED: PFR’s 2016 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]
With the NFL’s owners meetings in Houston coming to an end, teams seeking a new head coach can resume that process in earnest, and it’s possible some of those clubs will conclude their searches by week’s end. Here’s where each situation stands:
Cleveland Browns
Interviewed:
Teryl Austin (Lions DC), Hue Jackson (Bengals OC), Doug Marrone (Jaguars OL coach), Sean McDermott (Panthers DC), Matt Patricia (Patriots DC)
In addition to the candidates listed above, the Browns also interviewed Gase, who has since joined the Dolphins, and Cowboys defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson, who appears poised to remain in Dallas.
It looks like Jackson is the top candidate in Cleveland, with the Browns said to be pursuing him most aggressively, though the club hadn’t put a formal offer on the table as of last night. Jackson is set to interview with the Giants today or tomorrow, and if he isn’t hired by New York, he looks like a decent bet to land in Cleveland.
It’s not clear who the Browns’ second choice would be, but it will have to be someone willing to work with the new analytics-oriented front office that includes former MLB executive Paul DePodesta. Despite Cleveland’s history and the club’s unusual front office structure, this job has some appeal, since the Browns’ new head coach will report directly to owner Jimmy Haslam and should have a say in personnel decisions.
New York Giants
Interviewed:
Teryl Austin (Lions DC), Doug Marrone (Jaguars OL coach), Ben McAdoo (Giants OC), Mike Smith (former Falcons HC), Steve Spagnuolo (Giants DC)
The Giants reportedly value previous head coaching experience, which could make Marrone and Smith strong candidates, but the team also doesn’t want to lose McAdoo, which may mean promoting him. Giants owner Steve Tisch said on Tuesday that New York would like to wrap up its coaching search by the end of the week, but there’s still one notable interview on tap, with Hue Jackson set to meet with the club on Wednesday or Thursday.
Jackson is another candidate who has previous head coaching experience, and the fact that he plans on meeting with the Giants even after drawing strong interest from other clubs suggests that he’s intrigued by the job in New York. The Giants’ decision may hinge on how that interview goes.
Philadelphia Eagles
Interviewed:
Tom Coughlin (former Giants HC), Ben McAdoo (Giants OC), Doug Pederson (Chiefs OC), Pat Shurmur (Eagles interim HC), Duce Staley (Eagles RBs coach)
After being initially linked to Gase, the Eagles were believed to be targeting Pederson as their next head coach, but that decision is far from final. While Shurmur and Staley don’t appear to be likely candidates to become Chip Kelly‘s permanent replacement, any of the team’s three other interviewees could be in play.
As Matt Lombardo of NJ.com details, ESPN’s Adam Schefter suggested during a radio appearance that McAdoo is drawing serious consideration from the Eagles and may be the front-runner. Coughlin’s interview went well too, though he probably isn’t the type of long-term option the Eagles would prefer. Unless the Eagles conduct additional interviews, the team’s decision may come down to Pederson or McAdoo.
San Francisco 49ers
Interviewed:
Tom Coughlin (former Giants HC), John DeFilippo (Browns OC), Hue Jackson (Bengals OC), Chip Kelly (former Eagles HC), Dirk Koetter (Buccaneers OC), Anthony Lynn (Bills RBs coach)
The 49ers’ search has been one of the most confusing to follow over the last week to 10 days. After firing Jim Tomsula, the team was believed to be targeting coaches like Sean Payton and Stanford’s David Shaw, but both of those men preferred to stay where they were.
Jackson was then identified as the likely favorite for the 49ers’ job – or at least the team’s top choice – but a Tuesday report suggested San Francisco may be backing off that pursuit, perhaps due to the strong interest the Bengals OC is generating from other teams. Meanwhile, DeFilippo may be more of a target at offensive coordinator and Koetter is considered the odds-on favorite for the Bucs job, so it’s not clear if they’re seriously in the mix for the top job in San Francisco.
Could Coughlin or Kelly end up with the Niners’ job? Perhaps. According to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com, the team doesn’t have any additional interviews on its schedule, and seems to be nearing the end of its coaching search. Although there has been speculation that the 49ers could circle back to a candidate they interviewed a year ago – such as Mike Shanahan or Josh McDaniels, among others – it doesn’t look like any of those potential candidates will get new interviews this time around.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Interviewed:
Harold Goodwin (Cardinals OC), Dirk Koetter (Buccaneers OC), Sean McDermott (Panthers OC)
The Buccaneers’ head coaching search certainly hasn’t been as expansive as some others so far. The club got in meetings with Goodwin and McDermott during their teams’ respective bye weeks, and former Falcons coach Mike Smith has been mentioned as a candidate here. But Koetter, who had a formal interview this week, continues to look like the front-runner to replace Lovie Smith.
Of course, the longer the Buccaneers’ process lasts, the more it’ll look like the team is waiting for a second interview with someone like Goodwin or McDermott, so it’ll be interesting to see how this search plays out within the next few days.
Tennessee Titans
Interviewed:
None
Interim Titans head coach Mike Mularkey, Jaguars offensive line coach Doug Marrone, and Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin are all believed to have meetings on tap with Tennessee, but the club has yet to conduct any of those interviews. Chip Kelly and others have also been linked to the job.
The Titans have prioritized hiring a general manager, and are expected to name one very soon. Frankly, while Mularkey has been considered the favorite for the team’s permanent head coaching job, it’s hard to get a real idea of what direction the franchise will go until that new GM takes over.
Other potential openings
New Lions general manager Bob Quinn is still considering whether or not to retain head coach Jim Caldwell, so Detroit could become the eighth team to seek a replacement if Quinn decides to make a change.
Additionally, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that one of the eight teams still alive in the playoffs makes a head coaching change, though I don’t think it’s likely, since none of those eight coaches are presumed to be on the hot seat. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy may have been at risk if his team had lost last weekend, but barring a total meltdown in round two, I’d be surprised if Green Bay makes a change.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
49ers Backing Off Hue Jackson Pursuit?
Last week, Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson was viewed as the potential frontrunner for the 49ers’ head coaching job. But with Jackson also drawing legit interest from the Browns and Giants, it sounds like the Niners are backing off their pursuit of the Cincinnati assistant, tweets Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News. Kawakami says the team could double back to Jackson, but for now he appears more likely to land in Cleveland or New York.
[RELATED: Browns pursuing Hue Jackson most aggressively, could make offer on Tuesday]
Michael Silver of NFL Media, who reported earlier today that the Browns are Jackson’s most aggressive suitor, tweets that no teams are out of the running for him yet. Silver suggested a few hours ago that the Niners remained “very interested.”
With Jackson’s Bengals out of the playoffs, the offensive coordinator is free to pursue head coaching opportunities and speak to any team. Now that Adam Gase has joined the Dolphins, Jackson has become perhaps the hottest name on the market — Cleveland is reportedly making a “big push” to land him, though he may speak to the Giants before making a decision. A report this morning indicated that Jackson and the Giants will meet by Thursday morning at the latest.
The 49ers have interviewed five candidates for their head coaching opening so far — Anthony Lynn (Bills), Chip Kelly (ex-Eagles), Dirk Koetter (49ers), John DeFilippo (Browns), and Jackson have all met with the team, though DeFilippo is believed to be targeted as a potential offensive coordinator rather than a head coach.
San Francisco is conducting its sixth head coaching interview today, and it’s perhaps the most intriguing of the bunch, as former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is meeting with the 49ers. Per Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, the interview will take place in the New York area, and will be conducted by GM Trent Baalke — CEO Jed York is in Houston at the NFL’s owners meetings to discuss the Los Angeles situation.
As Barrows observes, DeFilippo worked on the Giants’ coaching staff in 2005 and 2006 when Coughlin was the head coach, so the Niners could be contemplating a scenario where they hire Coughlin as their new head coach and DeFilippo as the OC and heir apparent. DeFilippo is meeting today with the Rams about their offensive coordinator job.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
49ers To Interview Tom Coughlin
TUESDAY, 11:23am: The 49ers will meet with Coughlin today, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).
MONDAY, 2:36pm: After resigning last week from his job in New York, Tom Coughlin is meeting today with one of the team’s division rivals in Philadelphia, and it appears the Eagles won’t be the only team to interview the former Giants head coach. According to Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (Twitter link), the 49ers have been granted permission to speak to Coughlin about their head coaching vacancy. 
[RELATED: Eagles interview Doug Pederson, will meet with Tom Coughlin]
Having stepped down from his head coaching position with the Giants last week, Coughlin was offered the opportunity to remain with the organization in a new role, but suggested at the time that he wasn’t closing the door on continuing to coach. At age 69, if Coughlin is going to get a new head coaching job, it probably makes sense for him to explore new opportunities sooner rather than later, so he didn’t waste much time in lining up interviews with potential suitors.
Coughlin, who previously served as head coach of the Jaguars, led the Giants to a 102-90 record during his 12 seasons with the team. He also added eight victories in 11 postseason contests, with all of those wins coming in two seasons – 2007 and 2011 – during which the Giants won the Super Bowl.
In recent years, however, Coughlin’s Giants struggled, having failed to earn a postseason berth since that 2011 Super Bowl season. After going 9-7 in 2012, New York has had three straight losing years, finishing 6-10 in a weak NFC East in 2015 and sealing Coughlin’s fate — the Giants were expected to make a change if the veteran head coach hadn’t resigned.
The 49ers have interviewed five candidates for their head coaching opening so far — Anthony Lynn (Bills), Chip Kelly (ex-Eagles), Dirk Koetter (49ers), John DeFilippo (Browns), and Hue Jackson (Bengals) have all met with the team, though DeFilippo is believed to be targeted as a potential offensive coordinator rather than a head coach.
Of those candidates, Jackson is viewed as the front-runner, but he is also being pursued by the Browns and Giants, so it appears the Niners are trying to come up with a strong Plan B. Reports have suggested that San Francisco could also double back to candidates that interviewed for the team’s HC position a year ago. Teryl Austin, Doug Marrone, Josh McDaniels, and Mike Shanahan all fall into that category.
[RELATED: Hue Jackson Favorite For 49ers’ Job]
Coughlin’s interview with the Niners hasn’t been formally scheduled yet, according to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, who tweets that it could happen in Houston this week, with team owners there for Los Angeles meetings. Those relocation discussions could have an impact on a few teams’ coaching searches, with owners focusing their attention for a couple days on the respective futures of the Rams, Chargers, and Raiders.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Browns To Make “Big Push” For Hue Jackson
TUESDAY, 10:54am: With the 49ers still considering him and the Giants intending to interview him later this week, the Browns continue to pursue Jackson most aggressively, tweets Michael Silver of NFL Media. It wouldn’t be surprising if Cleveland makes a formal offer today to Jackson, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link).
It’s worth noting that Browns owner Jimmy Haslam isn’t at the NFL’s owners meetings in Houston, with his wife Dee in attendance instead, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). That means the Browns won’t necessarily have to put their search for a new head coach on hold during those L.A. meetings.
MONDAY, 5:02pm: The Browns are set to make a big push to hire Hue Jackson, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Cleveland will look to close things out quickly with Jackson and hire him before he can get scooped up by another NFL team. If the Browns were to hire Jackson, they would be able to give him significant personnel control, Rapoport tweets. That’s something the other interested clubs might not be able to offer.
[RELATED: Giants Request Permission To Interview Hue Jackson]
Jackson has drawn strong interest from both the 49ers and Browns, interviewing with both organizations on Sunday in Cincinnati. Both meetings reportedly went well, but neither team has made an offer yet. On Monday morning, the Giants formally submitted a request to interview Jackson, so they appear intent on getting into the mix for the Bengals’ offensive coordinator.
Sandwiched around his one-year stint with the Raiders, an 8-8 season in 2011, Jackson’s been an OC for four teams — the Bengals, Raiders, Falcons and Washington — since 2003. Interestingly, Jackson’s only had one of those tenures extend beyond one season. That would be his current position in Cincinnati, where he’s served as the OC since 2014.
As PFR’s 2016 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker shows, the Browns have cast a wide net so far in their search. So far, the team has interviewed Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, Jaguars offensive line coach Doug Marrone, and Panthers defensive coordinator Sean McDermott. Adam Gase was also interviewed before he hooked on with the Dolphins.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Giants Request Permission To Interview Hue Jackson
MONDAY, 9:58am: The Giants have submitted their request to interview Jackson, sources tell Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
SUNDAY, 6:25pm: Now that Hue Jackson‘s most recent season with the Bengals has concluded, the Cincinnati offensive coordinator continues to draw significant interest for head-coaching openings.
His latest comes from the league’s biggest market, with the Giants requesting permission to talk with Jackson on Monday, according to Michael Silver of NFL.com (on Twitter).
Jackson, however, has drawn strong interest from both the 49ers and Browns, interviewing with both organizations on Sunday in Cincinnati. Silver tweets both meetings went well, but neither team’s made an offer yet.
Silver adds, via Twitter, the 50-year-old Jackson may end up declining the Giants’ request should the Browns or 49ers’ overtures lead to an offer. San Francisco reportedly views the Bengals OC as its preferred choice to succeed Jim Tomsula.
However, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report hears (video link) Jackson regards the New York job as the No. 1 position available and will wait for this interview before deciding on whether to accept any potential Browns or 49ers offer. The Giants will attempt to set up an interview after the owners’ relocation-based meetings in Houston this week.
With the meetings set for Tuesday and Wednesday, the Browns and 49ers could be waiting a bit to fill their jobs, if they’re in fact enamored enough with Jackson to do so.
The Giants and Jackson have yet to make this connection, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee tweets. But it appears that news will emerge soon. Big Blue’s already interviewed Ben McAdoo, Steve Spagnuolo, Teryl Austin, Doug Marrone and Adam Gase. It plans to meet with Mike Smith on Monday.
The Browns confirmed they interviewed Jackson on Sunday, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com tweets.
Sandwiched around his one-year stint with the Raiders, an 8-8 season in 2011, Jackson’s been an OC for four teams — the Bengals, Raiders, Falcons and Washington — since 2003. Interestingly, Jackson’s only had one of those tenures extend beyond one season. That would be his current position in Cincinnati, where he’s served as the OC since 2014.
Jackson also drew interest from the Dolphins before Gase became their next coach.
Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images
Coaching Rumors: Dolphins, Giants, McDermott
After hiring Adam Gase, the Dolphins are acting quickly to form their new coaching staff.
But few holdovers are expected. According to Fox Sports’ Alex Marvez (on Twitter), only special teams coach Darren Rizzi to be retained. All of the Dolphins’ other assistants, excepting possibly Dan Campbell, will be fired.
Campbell’s status remains uncertain. The interim coach for most of 2015, Campbell reportedly finished second in the race to become the Fins’ next full-time head coach.
A Marvez report Saturday linked Bengals secondary coach Vance Joseph, whom the Fox reporter has set to head to Miami as the team’s defensive coordinator, and a number of position coaches to comprise Gase’s defensive staff.
Here are some more coaching-related items as wild-card weekend concludes.
- Although Hue Jackson has emerged as a candidate late in the process, the frontrunners to become Tom Coughlin‘s successor with the Giants are offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo and Jaguars assistant head coach Doug Marrone, Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News reports. McAdoo’s familiarity with Eli Manning and his helping the quarterback to a career resurgence is driving his candidacy, with the 38-year-old only having two seasons of coordinator experience. With Vacchiano noting the 51-year-old Marrone may not retain McAdoo if he becomes coach, Big Blue avoiding another offensive reboot will factor into its decision.
- Both Vacchiano and the New York Post’s Paul Schwartz report John Mara prefers a candidate with head-coaching experience. Vacchiano points McAdoo in the Eagles’ direction if they are indeed serious about hiring Tom Coughlin. Schwartz believes Mara sees similarities in Mike Smith, who will interview with the team on Monday, and Coughlin. Their ages (Smith is 56; Coughlin was 57 when hired in 2004) and histories as head coaches are similar, and Schwartz notes Smith is one of Coughlin’s top confidants among head coaches.
- The Giants, per Vacchiano, have also discussed requesting permission to interview Panthers defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, but since they didn’t do so during the Panthers’ bye week, the Giants must wait until either Carolina’s season concludes or the Panthers’ potential Super Bowl bye week.
- The Browns did interview the 41-year-old McDermott on Sunday, Andrew Gribble of ClevelandBrowns.com reports. A defensive coordinator since 2009, with the Eagles and Panthers, respectively, McDermott also interviewed with the Buccaneers.
- Jackson spoke with the Browns for 3 1/2 hours and talked with the 49ers for five hours Sunday in Cincinnati, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal reports. Cleveland’s now interviewed seven candidates. The 49ers have met with five, according to Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News.
- The Colts offered 49ers offensive line coach Chris Foerster the same position in Indianapolis, Marvez reports (on Twitter). The Dolphins offensive coordinator in 2004, Foerster’s been an offensive line coach with the Ravens, Washington and the 49ers since 2005. He’s served multiple stints in San Francisco, presiding over the 49ers’ line from 2008-09 and returning to the Bay Area in 2015 after five seasons in Washington.
49ers To Name Head Coach Soon?
Although the 49ers aren’t likely to name a new head coach today, their search does appear to be wrapping up, and a new hire could be named “fairly soon,” sources tell Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson (whose interview is now complete, a source tells Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee on Twitter) still looks like the favorite for the job, and Maiocco reports that today’s meeting between Jackson and San Francisco management was “productive.”
[RELATED: 49ers fire Jim Tomsula]
As our head coaching search tracker shows, Jackson is the fifth candidate to interview with the 49ers, joining Anthony Lynn, Chip Kelly, Dirk Koetter, and John DeFillipo (the latter’s meeting may have been geared toward’s San Francisco’s offensive coordinator position). Additionally, Mike Shanahan is expected to interview at some point, while Mike Shula and Mike Holmgren have also been mentioned as candidates.
The Niners’ hunt for a new coach appears to be decidedly offensive in nature, as every coach mentioned above has a history on the offensive side of the ball. Jackson definitely fits that bill, but he also has other options, as he’s expected to meet with the Browns today as well. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported earlier today (Twitter link) that if Jackson’s interview went well, he could be named San Francisco’s head coach by the end of today. While it doesn’t look like that announcement will come today, there’s no denying the strong link between Jackson and the 49ers.
One last interesting note: As Raiders head coach, Jackson was apparently a big fan of Colin Kaepernick when the quarterback was entering the 2011 draft, according to Rand Getlin of the NFL Network (Twitter link), and pushed for Oakland to draft the Nevada QB. If that’s the case, maybe the appeal of salvaging Kaepernick’s career could be alluring to Jackson.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Sunday Roundup: Wood, Burfict, Koetter
As the Vikings and Seahawks do battle in frigid Minneapolis, let’s take a look at some links from around the league:
- New Lions president Rod Wood admits to not having any football experience, but no one was especially concerned about that, as Wood is expected to handle the business side of the club while new GM Bob Quinn will handle the football side. But as Kyle Meinke of MLive.com writes, Detroit’s press release announcing Quinn’s hire noted that Quinn would report to team ownership and to Wood, which suggests that Wood could be wielding more power than initially believed.
- Unsurprisingly, Bengals LB Vontaze Burfict is facing a suspension for his hit on Antonio Brown last night, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
- ESPN’s Ed Werder believes it is “unlikely” that the Bengals will part ways with head coach Marvin Lewis (Twitter link), and Mark Maske of the Washington Post lays out the reasons for his belief that Lewis should stay.
- Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel believes the Packers‘ efforts this season have been hampered by GM Ted Thompson‘s lack of in-season roster moves to address the team’s weaknesses. Since 2010, Green Bay has been awarded just two players on waivers, and Thompson has gone to the practice squad 70% of the time to fill vacancies on the 53-man roster.
- Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune tweets that Dirk Koetter is still the leading candidate for the Buccaneers‘ head coaching job, though Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times tweets that Koetter “really impressed” the 49ers during his interview with San Francisco yesterday. Tampa Bay also interviewed Panthers DC Sean McDermott yesterday.
- Gus Bradley is taking his time with the Jaguars‘ search for a new defensive coordinator and has yet to establish a deadline for the decision, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida-Times Union.
- Texans unrestricted free agents Ben Jones and Jared Crick both expressed their desire to remain in Houston, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).
- Meanwhile, two notable players have declared that they will enter the NFL draft: Arkansas RB Alex Collins (Twitter link via ESPN’s Joe Schad) and Utah State LB Nick Vigil (Twitter link via Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net).