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Commanders Conduct DC Interview With Dennard Wilson

By | at January 10, 2026 9:17 pm

The Commanders have filled one of their coordinator positions, promoting David Blough to serve as Kliff Kingsbury‘s successor. Attention will increasingly turn to the defensive coordinator gig.

Washington moved on from Joe Whitt earlier this week in a move which came as little surprise. A DC change was foreshadowed when head coach Dan Quinn took over play-calling duties midway through the season. The team has already interviewed Joe Cullen as a potential Whitt replacement, and another candidate has emerged.

The Commanders completed an interview today with Dennard Wilson, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports. Wilson is currently in place with the Titans as their defensive coordinator. Tennessee’s head coaching position is currently vacant, however, so there is a strong chance of substantial staff changes once a hire on that front winds up being made.

Wilson’s coaching career started at Maryland. After two years spent there as a graduate assistant, he entered the NFL as a scout. Over time, Wilson worked his way up the coaching ranks during stints with the Rams, Jets, Eagles and Ravens. The 43-year-old was an internal candidate for Philadelphia’s D-coordinator gig after the 2022 season, but after not receiving the role he spent one season in Baltimore. That was followed by his first coordinator opportunity coming about in Tennessee.

The Titans struggled in terms of scoring defense in 2024, but the team did rank second in yards allowed. Wilson and Co. were not able to duplicate that success this season, though. Tennessee finished 21st in total defense and 28th in points allowed. Those figures could hinder Wilson’s stock to a degree, and it was recently learned he will not receive an interview for the Titans’ full-time head coaching position.

In situations such as this one, departures are commonplace. A change of scenery could be coming soon for Wilson as a result, and it will be interesting to see if he emerges as a finalist with the Commanders in their search.

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Titans Schedule Mike McDaniel HC Interview

By | at January 9, 2026 3:08 pm

Mike McDaniel is drawing extensive OC interest, but the recently fired Dolphins leader is not certain to fall past the HC level just yet. Browns interest in the four-year Dolphins coach has emerged, and the Titans will take it a step further by setting up an interview.

The Titans will meet with McDaniel about their HC job Wednesday, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports. McDaniel is generating “significant” interest, so it will be interesting to see how many HC interviews he books. This is McDaniel’s first scheduled HC interview since the firing.

Tennessee’s search is already wide-ranging, as the AFC South team has been without a full-time HC since October. McDaniel is the 10th former head coach to receive a Titans interview slip thus far. With other candidates in the mix as well, this search is starting to remind of the Jets’ exhausting 2025 process. GM Mike Borgonzi was part of that search as a candidate, and with full roster control now, the second-year Titans exec is operating similarly as he looks to make his first HC hire.

We heard before the Titans’ season ended the team would prioritize experience. The Titans missed on Brian Callahan, firing the former Bengals OC after just 23 games, but hit on Mike Vrabel. The latter did not have HC experience, either. The team gave Mike Mularkey a third HC opportunity previously; that came after retread Ken Whisenhunt did not make it out of a second season in the role. While first-timers are present on Tennessee’s interview docket, signs are pointing to a second- or third-chance HC being the pick.

Borgonzi has an extensive history with Matt Nagy, who has been a candidate since this process started. Nagy is a former play-caller who has settled back into a non-play-calling role in Kansas City. The two-time Chiefs OC and former Bears HC likely will be a finalist for this job given his ties to Borgonzi, but McDaniel called plays throughout his time in Miami.

That included two upper-crust offenses, despite the ex-49ers OC inheriting a quarterback the previous coaching staff could not unleash. Tua Tagovailoa led the NFL in yards per attempt in 2022, passing yards in 2023 and completion percentage in 2024. McDaniel played a central role in the former top-five pick taking off, though he later benched him weeks before his own dismissal. The Titans have their own holdover quarterback whose development represents the top organizational priority, as Cam Ward finished last in QBR as a rookie but will obviously go into the 2026 season as the starter.

McDaniel, 42, will likely receive multiple OC offers, per veteran insider Jordan Schultz. The Lions reached out hours after his Dolphins ouster. The Browns have lurked as an interested party since before season’s end. Considering Kevin Stefanski‘s background under Gary Kubiak, it would be quite interesting for the Browns to pivot to an ex-Kyle Shanahan disciple. But McDaniel has been on their radar for a bit. An interview should be expected. Despite the Dolphins briefly including McDaniel in their GM search only to fire him soon after, the two-time playoff qualifier looks set to land on his feet.

Here is how the Titans’ HC search looks as of Friday afternoon:

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Jason Garrett To Interview For Titans’ HC Position

By | at January 9, 2026 12:41 pm

JANUARY 9: Garrett’s interview will take place today, and veteran Titans reporter Paul Kuharsky adds it will be in person. Staffers currently unemployed are free to conduct virtual or in-person interviews with interested teams at any time. Depending on how today’s sit-down goes, it will be interesting to see if Garrett winds up earning another look with Tennessee.

JANUARY 6: Jason Garrett has made a somewhat surprising return to the NFL radar. The former Cowboys coach-turned-NBC analyst is on track to interview for the Titans’ HC job, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano reports.

Virtually off the PFR pages since the 2021 season, Garrett last worked in the NFL as Giants OC from 2020-21. He is best known, of course, for a nine-plus-season run as the Cowboys’ HC. Certainly a polarizing figure in the NFL, Garrett represents the second ex-Cowboys HC to land on the Titans’ radar during this cycle. The team has been linked to Mike McCarthy as well.

Now 59, Garrett has served as a Football Night in America analyst (with occasional booth work in place of Cris Collinsworth) and a Notre Dame announcer. He was linked to the Duke and Stanford jobs earlier this decade but has been off the coaching radar since.

Viewed as a high-end coaching candidate once upon a time, Garrett succeeded in spurts and certainly was on a long leash under Jerry Jones. Regularly viewed as a coach who avoided the chopping block, Garrett did lead the Cowboys to three playoff berths during his time at the helm. This included divisional-round trips in each season, though the second of those involved a one-and-done as the NFC’s No. 1 seed. The Cowboys missed the playoffs in 2019, representing a disappointment as Dak Prescott played the season on his fourth-round contract after failed extension talks, and Jones finally cut the cord several days after the season.

Garrett went 85-67 as Cowboys HC, and while he did interview for the Chargers’ HC job in 2021, the former Dallas quarterback has been mostly out of the mix for a top sideline role since his 2020 firing. The Giants fired Garrett in November 2021. Daniel Jones did not show much progress under Garrett, who coached the Eli Manning successor in his second and third seasons.

Garrett did do well mentoring Tony Romo, and Prescott emerged quickly despite being a fourth-round pick. Garrett was not the Cowboys’ play-caller throughout this period, though, regularly operating as a CEO coach. This interview, however, surely will not go over well with a sizable sect of Titans fans. A number of candidates are in the mix for this position, as GM Mike Borgonzi is running his first coaching search.

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Titans Submit HC Interview Requests For Jesse Minter, Chris Shula

By | at January 9, 2026 10:26 am

The Titans‘ list of interview targets regarding their head coaching vacancy has continued to grow. Two of the top defensive candidates in this year’s cycle have received a slip from Tennessee.

The team has issued an interview request with Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter along with Rams DC Chris Shula, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. In both cases, Tennessee loomed as one of the teams mentioned as a potential suitor during the early portion of the hiring cycle. Today’s update thus comes as little surprise.

Minter is currently preparing for the Chargers’ wild-card game against the Patriots. Likewise, the Rams will play the Panthers during the opening round of the playoffs. By rule, neither staffer is allowed to conduct an interview until next week. All first-round interviews (which will be virtual) must be completed before the start of the divisional round.

A defensive coordinator with various college programs, Minter’s first NFL opportunity came with the Ravens in 2017. After a four-year run in Baltimore, he returned to the college ranks. Minter, 42, spent a pair of years as Michigan’s defensive coordinator under Jim Harbaugh, then jointly departed two years ago to join the Chargers. Los Angeles has posted a top-10 finish in points allowed during both of Minter’s seasons in his current role.

Shula has also spent the past two seasons handling an NFL coordinator role for the first time. Don Shula‘s grandson has been with the Rams dating back to Sean McVay‘s arrival in 2017, however. Shula has worked his way through the ranks on Los Angeles’ staff, serving as a position coach and defensive pass-game coordinator prior to taking on the DC gig. The 39-year-old is younger than most candidates in this year’s pool, but he is a name to watch as the next McVay assistant with a strong chance of landing a head coaching gig. Shula has also been linked to the Giants, but this represents his first interview request.

As the Titans continue to seek out their full-time Brian Callahan replacement, here is an updated look at their search:

3 comments Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams Tennessee Titans

Titans To Interview Mike McCarthy For HC Job

By | at January 8, 2026 5:51 pm

Mike McCarthy is now officially a candidate for two head coaching jobs. After scheduling his interview with the Giants, the former Packers and Cowboys head coach is also set to interview for the Titans vacancy, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The interview is scheduled for next Saturday.

Besides being one of the most experienced head coaching options on the market, McCarthy also has a connection to Titans leadership. Tennessee’s President of Football Operations Chad Brinker worked alongside McCarthy during their decade-plus tenures in Green Bay. Brinker worked his way up from a scouting intern to football administration executive. He left to be the Titans assistant GM in 2023, and he was given full control of the team’s roster in 2024 following Ran Carthon‘s ouster.

Following a 7-10 showing in 2024, McCarthy wasn’t retained as the Cowboys head coach. He still remained in the HC circuit last offseason, interviewing for open positions with the Bears and Saints. He obviously didn’t get either of those two gigs, and he ended up spending the 2025 campaign out of the NFL.

McCarthy made a name for himself as an offensive-minded coach while working with the likes of Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, and Dak Prescott. That would make him a natural fit for the Titans, who are looking to maximize 2025 first-overall pick Cam Ward. In 18 years as a head coach, McCarthy only had five seasons where he finished with a losing record. This would surely be alluring for a Titans organization that hasn’t finished above .500 since the 2021 season.

As mentioned, the Titans aren’t the only team eyeing McCarthy. The coach is set to interview for the open Giants job next week. New York will have the first opportunity to speak to the long-time coach, with that interview scheduled for Tuesday.

McCarthy joins a growing list of candidates for the Titans gig. The current list of definitive and potential targets includes:

More to come…

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Ravens, Titans Request HC Meetings With Kliff Kingsbury

By | at January 8, 2026 3:16 pm

Connected to both the Ravens and Titans this week, Kliff Kingsbury now has a path to interviewing with both teams. Each sent out a request to the newly available coach, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports.

The Titans were believed to be in on Kingsbury before his Commanders exit, making it all the more unusual Washington let him go. The Ravens came up as a potentially interested party shortly after firing John Harbaugh. This market did not initially have much in terms of offense-oriented talent, but some changes have shaken things up a bit.

[RELATED: 2026 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]

Although Harbaugh is the top prize, the Browns and Dolphins respectively firing Kevin Stefanski and Mike McDaniel adds two more experienced play-callers for teams to study. Kingsbury received extensive interest last year, and even though the Commanders’ season tanked thanks largely to Jayden Daniels‘ three-injury year, the two-year Washington play-caller is a notable name to watch now that he’s free to meet with teams without restrictions.

The Ravens certainly have an interesting position to offer based on Lamar Jackson‘s status. Kingsbury has done quite well with dual-threat quarterbacks, overseeing both Kyler Murray Pro Bowl years before being at the controls for Daniels’ Offensive Rookie of the Year slate that produced Washington’s first NFC championship game berth since 1991. In between, Kingsbury coached Caleb Williams during his final USC season. The Ravens are searching for someone to maximize Jackson, with team brass pushing Harbaugh to move on from OC Todd Monken despite the QB’s back-to-back first-team All-Pro appearances on the play-caller’s watch.

The Titans have been preparing for a full-on overhaul for months, firing Brian Callahan in October. A host of candidates are on Tennessee’s radar in what is shaping up as a thorough search. The team has yoyoed between offensive and defensive coaches lately, going from Mike Mularkey to Mike Vrabel to Callahan. It certainly appears Titans ownership made a mistake in firing Vrabel, a Coach of the Year frontrunner. But a new voice is running this search; now holding roster control, Mike Borgonzi is at the controls of the latest Tennessee HC hunt.

Kingsbury, 46, can interview in-person at any point moving forward. These are his first two interview summons on this year’s carousel. His stock high after Daniels’ breakthrough season, Kingsbury opted not to take any interviews in 2025. He preferred to stay in Washington and mentor Daniels, but disagreements between he and GM Adam Peters — among some overarching concerns about front office-coaching staff friction — helped lead him out of town with one season left on his contract. The former four-year Cardinals HC will be a strong candidate, like McDaniel, for OC positions. But with offensive play-callers still the gems of the coaching market, opportunities to land a second-chance HC job first have come up.

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Titans Request HC Interviews With Arthur Smith, Jeff Hafley, Robert Saleh

By | at January 8, 2026 1:22 pm

The Titan have submitted requests to interview Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley and 49ers DC Robert Saleh, per Titans inside Paul Kuharsky.

Smith, 43, spent most of his coaching career in Tennessee. He started as a quality control assistant in 2011 with a season on both sides of the ball before spending six years working with the Titans’ tight ends. He was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2019 and took a bottom 10 offense to top-12 ranks in points and yards in his debut season. Smith then led a top-five unit in 2020, which got him hired as the Falcons’ head coach the following offseason. He went 7-10 in three straight season in Atlanta and was fired in 2024. Mike Tomlin picked him up as the Steelers’ OC, but Smith has not found the same success as his time in Tennesee. Pittsburgh’s offense has ranked among the NFL’s bottom 10 teams in points and finished in the middle of the pack in terms of yardage.

Hiring Smith does not have obvious appeal outside of a reunion with a former coach. He does not have a strong history of working with young quarterbacks, a key part of the Titans’ current search, and his success has primarily come in the run game. Cam Ward has good movement skills, but he was not a dual-threat quarterback at Miami and will not be one in the NFL. His connections with Tomlin and Mike Vrabel could help him land a solid defensive coordinator.

Hafley, 46, has quickly risen up the list of hot coaching candidates after two successful years in Green Bay. His coaching career began in college in 2021 with stints at a variety of schools before moving to the NFL in 2012. He coached defensive backs in Tampa Bay (2012-2013), Cleveland (2014-2015), and San Francisco (2016-2018) before accepting a co-DC gig at Ohio State. Boston College hired Hafely as their next head coach in 2020; four years later, he took his current position with the Packers. In his debut year in Green Bay, Hafley led the team to a top-six finish in points and yards before taking a step back to a top-12 ranking this season.

Hiring a defensive-minded head coach to lock down one side of the ball while searching for a young OC to work with Ward seems like a viable strategy for the Titans, especially given this year’s hiring cycle. There are far more potential head coaches on the defensive side of the ball with a number of young offensive assistants who may be ready for an OC job.

Saleh is of course among the top options with a defensive background. He, like Smith, also has experience as a head coach at the NFL level. The 46-year-old returned to San Francisco for 2025, the first season after his Jets firing. Saleh’s unit dealt with a slew of notable injuries but still managed to finish 13th in points allowed. It thus comes as little surprise he is among the most in-demand staffers so far in the 2026 hiring cycle.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

11 comments Green Bay Packers Pittsburgh Steelers San Francisco 49ers Tennessee Titans

2026 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker

By | at January 7, 2026 9:50 pm

The Browns, Cardinals, Falcons and Raiders followed the Giants and Titans in firing head coaches, making those calls between the Week 18 conclusion and Black Monday. The Ravens then moved on from John Harbaugh after 18 seasons; two days later, the Dolphins canned Mike McDaniel. Following a wild-card loss, the Steelers and Mike Tomlin are separating after 19 years. Now, after an overtime divisional-round loss in Denver, Sean McDermott is out in Buffalo.

The 10 HC openings are tied with 1978, 1997, 2006 and 2022 for the most in one year. Here are the candidates connected to all those searches. If more teams make changes, they will be added to the list.

Updated 2-9-26 (9:40pm CT)

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cleveland Browns

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

12 comments Arizona Cardinals Atlanta Falcons Baltimore Ravens Buffalo Bills Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Denver Broncos Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Indianapolis Colts Jacksonville Jaguars Kansas City Chiefs Las Vegas Raiders Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins Minnesota Vikings New England Patriots New York Giants PFR Originals Pittsburgh Steelers San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks Tennessee Titans

Cardinals, Falcons, Giants, Raiders, Ravens, Titans To Interview Vance Joseph

By | at January 7, 2026 8:58 pm

JANUARY 7, 8:58pm: Another new team has been added to Joseph’s docket. According to senior NFL insider Josina Anderson, in addition to the Giants and Raiders, Joseph will interview with the Ravens on Thursday for an opportunity to replace John Harbaugh in Baltimore.

The Browns remain the only team leaving Joseph off the invite list at the moment. Luca Evans of the Denver Post confirmed today through sources that Cleveland had not yet requested an interview. Instead, it’s the former Browns who could be looking to Vance to help their defense reestablish the identity that made the Ravens so notorious for years.

JANUARY 6, 3:48pm: Add the Falcons to Joseph’s itinerary. Atlanta brass will discuss its recently vacated HC position with the Denver DC this week, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini tweets. This makes Joseph on the radar for five of the six available positions thus far. The Browns can make it a sweep.

Last year, Joseph met with only the Jets and Raiders. After the Broncos’ defense delivered a second straight strong season under Joseph, more teams have taken notice. While Joseph will shift his focus back to the Broncos’ divisional-round game next week, his bye period will be eventful.

JANUARY 6, 12:03pm: Vance Joseph‘s second Broncos stint has boosted his stock, and after seven years back on the coordinator level, the former head coach is poised to become a strong candidate for a second-chance opportunity. Several teams will meet with the Denver DC about HC vacancies.

The Cardinals, Giants, Raiders and Titans will huddle up with Joseph, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Because the Broncos secured the AFC’s bye slot, Joseph can discuss HC jobs with teams beginning Wednesday of this week. The interviews must be virtual, but Joseph will conduct them all this week.

Joseph’s Cardinals interview is perhaps the most interesting, as he spent four years as their DC. The veteran staffer’s Denver return showed a willingness to return after being fired. While the Cardinals did not technically fire Joseph in 2023 — as they dismantled Kliff Kingsbury‘s staff upon dismissing the HC — they passed on Joseph as the Kingsbury successor.

Joseph interviewed for the Arizona job shortly after Kingsbury’s ouster but did not meet about the position a second time. The Cards gave the job to another defensive-minded coach, Jonathan Gannon, whom they fired Monday.

The Raiders met with Joseph about their HC vacancy last year, eventually giving the job to Pete Carroll. That will make for an interesting meeting this time around, as the team fired Carroll after a 3-14 season. The Giants and Titans came up as interested parties for Joseph ahead of this year’s carousel launch.

There are a host of defensive-minded HC candidates this year but few offense-oriented options for teams. This has allowed Joseph, 53, to move into stronger position to become a second-chance HC. Joseph went 11-21 as the Broncos’ HC from 2017-18, but his quarterback situation — headlined by Case Keenum and the Paxton Lynch draft miss — did plenty to hurt those teams’ chances. After helming a third-ranked defense last season, Joseph repeated that finish in 2025.

The Broncos enter the playoffs third in scoring defense and second in yardage, as Joseph’s defense has powered them to the No. 1 seed for the first time since 2015. While Denver is highly unlikely to lose OC Joe Lombardi, the prospect of losing Joseph and QBs coach Davis Webb is firmly in play.

8 comments Arizona Cardinals Atlanta Falcons Denver Broncos Las Vegas Raiders New York Giants Tennessee Titans

Raheem Morris Sets Up HC Interviews With Giants, Cardinals

By | at January 7, 2026 11:02 am

Just days after the Falcons fired him, Raheem Morris is drawing plenty of interest from teams looking for a head coach. After scheduling a Titans interview, he’ll also meet with the Giants and Cardinals in the next week, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

The 49-year-old Morris has worked as a full-time NFL head coach twice. His first opportunity came with the Buccaneers from 2009-11. The Bucs put together a 10-win campaign in Morris’ second year, but that was sandwiched between seasons in which they went 3-13 and 4-12. First-round quarterback Josh Freeman didn’t pan out as hoped, which helped lead to Morris’ demise.

Morris primarily served as defensive assistant with Washington and Atlanta from 2012-20, though he was also the Falcons’ wide receivers coach for three years and their passing game coordinator for one. Morris also had a stint as the Falcons’ interim head coach in 2020. He went 4-7 replacing the fired Dan Quinn. The Falcons hired Arthur Smith during the ensuing offseason.

With Smith taking over, Morris temporarily departed Atlanta to serve as Sean McVay‘s defensive coordinator in Los Angeles. Morris held that role through 2023. He was a key figure on the Rams’ Super Bowl-winning staff in 2021.

Morris’ efforts with the Rams earned him another head coaching shot in Atlanta, where he succeeded the fired Smith, but the reunion didn’t go well. The Falcons posted a subpar 16-18 record under Morris from 2024-25. Although the Falcons made big investments in quarterbacks Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix Jr, neither provided an obvious solution under center over the past two years. The franchise cleaned house in giving Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot their walking papers last Sunday night.

Any coach who has a suboptimal QB situation is likely to struggle. Finding an answer at the position has been a problem so far for Morris, who has gone a woeful 37-56. However, he’d inherit a potential franchise signal-caller in New York. The Giants are hopeful they found one when they used the 25th pick in the 2025 draft on Jaxson Dart, who had a promising rookie year despite concussion issues.

Morris would work with Dart in New York, but there’s less clarity in Arizona. Veteran Jacoby Brissett is under contract for another year. He may stick around as a bridge QB, though the Cardinals could find their next starter in the draft. They’re slated to pick third overall in the spring. Former No. 1 overall selection Kyler Murray is still on the roster, but the Cardinals are likely to trade or release the seven-year veteran in the next couple of months.

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