NFC North Coaching Updates: Lions, Packers, Vikings
The Lions announced earlier this month that they have finalized their coaching staff for the 2023 season. Much of the staff remains identical to last year’s coaches who helped the Lions to some surprising success. Many of the minor changes that did occur, such as promotions and the additions of assistants, have already been covered on this site. There were a couple that still need to be announced.
On the offensive side, the Lions hired Jim Hostler as a senior offensive assistant. Hostler has served in Washington for the last three years and has an extensive history as a position coach in the NFL for several franchises, including a stint as offensive coordinator for the 49ers back in 2007. Hostler’s most recent experience was assisting with wide receivers for the Commanders, but there didn’t appear to be a place for him on Eric Bieniemy‘s new staff in Washington.
On the defensive side of the ball, Detroit has hired John Scott Jr. to take over as defensive line coach. With Todd Wash departing to rejoin Frank Reich in Carolina, the Lions went to the college ranks for their next defensive line coach. Scott will return to the NFL for the first time since serving as the assistant defensive line coach for the Jets in 2016. Since then, Scott has coached the defensive lines at Arkansas, South Carolina, and Penn State, adding the title of run game coordinator for the Nittany Lions in 2022.
Here are a few more coaching updates from around the NFC North:
- The Packers made a couple additions to their coaching staff near the start of the month. Similar to Detroit, Green Bay also pulled from the college ranks, hiring recently dismissed Western Michigan head coach Tim Lester to a senior analyst position, according to Matthew Ehler of MLive.com. Lester has worked plenty with college quarterbacks but will be making his NFL debut in 2023. The team also hired two new quality control coaches, according to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. Rob Grosso joins as offensive quality control and Kyle Wilber will be special teams quality control. Grosso, a former defensive assistant who followed Vance Joseph from Denver to Arizona, was expected to once again follow Joesph back to Denver but will part ways with Joseph while switching from defense to offense. Wilber, a former NFL linebacker, recently finished a 10-year career in which he played for Packers assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia at both Dallas and Las Vegas.
- The Vikings joined the Lions and Packers in dipping into the college ranks of coaching, hiring Michael Hutchings as assistant linebackers coach, according to Matt Zenitz of On3 Sports. Hutchings most recently served as outside linebackers coach at Western Kentucky and previously worked at USC and Oregon.
Cowboys Re-Sign DT Johnathan Hankins
Dallas has checked another item off their offseason to-do list, signing defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins to a new contract, according to Cowboys staff writer Patrik Walker. The team had previously let it be known that they had every intention of bringing Hankins back for another year. 
The veteran lineman joined the Cowboys as a part of a midseason trade last year that sent Hankins and a 2024 seventh-round pick to Dallas in exchange for a sixth-round pick in this year’s draft. Hankins played in five games for the Cowboys, starting three, before being placed on injured reserve for the rest of the regular season. He made it back to the active roster in time for the playoffs, though, and played a strong snap percentage in the team’s two postseason contests.
Hankins doesn’t light up a stat sheet, but he does the dirty work in the trenches that allows his teammates to steal the spotlight. He showed up last season for a Cowboys defense that was struggling mightily against the run. The impact he was able to make in his short time with the team was enough to convince Cowboys decision makers to bring him back.
The 30-year-old will be coming back on a one-year deal worth approximately $1.5MM. He’s set to receive a $1.17MM base salary with a bonus of $152,500. The deal is a veteran salary benefit contract, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, meaning Hankins should have a cap hit of just under $1MM.
Hankins’s re-signing continues a strong offseason for Dallas, which has made strong moves to bring in cornerback Stephon Gilmore and wide receiver Brandin Cooks while securing in-house free agents on defense like safety Donovan Wilson, linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, and defensive end Dante Fowler. According to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News, the Cowboys also have interest in bringing back another defensive line depth piece in Carlos Watkins. Watkins and Hankins would team up once again with Neville Gallimore to provide some serious depth on the interior defensive line behind starters Quinton Bohanna and Osa Odighizuwa.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/29/23
Today’s only minor move:
Detroit Lions
- Waived from reserve/retired list: DL John Penisini
Penisini was a surprising contributor for the Lions two years ago when he started 12 games as a rookie sixth-round pick. The Utah-product didn’t give a reason for his retirement at the time, but many thought it was related to a fairly serious injury he experienced before the 2021 season that resulted in calcium deposits building up in his shoulders the size of softballs.
Raiders To Re-Sign OL Alex Bars
A starting member of the Raiders’ 2022 offensive line will remain in place next season. Guard Alex Bars is re-signing on a one-year deal, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link).
The 27-year-old spent the first three seasons of his career with the Bears. Over that time, he logged a total of 11 starts across 38 total appearances. In the 2020 campaign, he saw work at center, as well as both guard positions. After primarily being used as a backup, his arrival in Vegas last offseason paved the way for his first full-time starting opportunity.
Bars started 14 of 15 contests with the Raiders in 2022, seeing a snap share of 87%. A member of the team’s in-flux offensive line, he saw time at left guard, but primarily worked at the opposite position during the year. As was the case during his tenure in Chicago, however, Bars delivered a highly underwhelming performance in terms of PFF ratings. He ranked 71st out of 77 qualifying guards in terms of overall grade (45.4).
That made Bars one of several Raiders linemen to underperform in 2022, though the unit is set to look quite familiar in at least the summer, if not the fall. Bars joins fellow interior contributors Hroniss Grasu and Netane Muti, along with tackles Brandon Parker, Jermaine Eluemunor and Justin Murray, as free agents who have re-upped with Vegas or inked a futures contract thus far.
As the Raiders continue to search for outside additions up front, Bars is now in place as an experienced backup or someone who can take on a starting role if needed. Given his level of play, however, a more notable move along the interior on Vegas’ part would come as little surprise.
Lions, WR Marvin Jones Agree To Deal
A reunion is in store for the Lions and a familiar face on offense. Veteran wideout Marvin Jones Jr. is signing in Detroit on a one-year deal, reports Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link). 
The contract has a base value of $3MM, while incentives could push it to $5MM. This deal will allow the 33-year-old to return to the Motor City, where he played between 2016 and 2020. It was during that span that he enjoyed the most productive campaigns of his career.
After starting his career with the Bengals, Jones established himself as one of the NFL’s top deep deep threats with the Lions. In 2017, he posted 1,101 yards and nine touchdowns on a league-leading average of 18 yards per reception. While his production dipped in the following seasons with injuries, the former fifth-rounder rebounded with 978 yards and another nine touchdowns in his final Lions term.
That helped earn Jones a two-year, $14.5MM contract with the Jaguars on the open market. The Cal product was brought in to serve as a veteran presence on an otherwise young team, and he was relied on heavily in 2021. Drawing a career-high 120 targets that year, Jones put up a 73-832-4 statline. His workload took a signficant step back this past season, after Jacksonville had made a number of investments in their pass-catching corps. As a result, Jones’ yardage total dropped to its lowest figure since 2018.
Still, he should be able to operate as a consistent secondary option amidst the Lions’ WR options. Detroit had a surprisingly efficient passing attack in 2022, but Amon-Ra St. Brown easily distanced himself from the rest of the team’s wideouts in terms of production. Especially since one-year signing DJ Chark has departed for the Panthers, Jones will be able to fill a veteran void at the position upon his return.
In addition to St. Brown, and now Jones, the Lions will of course also have 2022 first-rounder Jameson Williams in place for 2023. The latter was, as expected, limited in his game action and workload during his rookie campaign due to his recovery from a torn ACL. Now healthy, the Alabama product should give Detroit significant upside in their downfield passing game. Jones will give the team an additional boost in that regard, as he looks to regain his previous form with the team in the coming season.
Bills To Re-Sign DT Jordan Phillips
After returning to Buffalo last year, Jordan Phillips will be sticking around. The veteran defensive tackle agreed to a new deal with the Bills on Wednesday, Ari Meirov of The33rdTeam.com tweets. 
Phillips agreed to a new one-year Bills contract worth $3MM, and ESPN.com’s Alaina Getzenberg adding the deal can max out at $4.6MM (Twitter link). Although this Bills regime is quite familiar with Phillips, the free agent defensive tackle visited earlier this week.
This represents a slight pay cut for Phillips, who came back to Buffalo — after an underwhelming Arizona stay — on a one-year, $5MM pact. The Cardinals released Phillips in March 2022, and he agreed to terms with the Bills days later. The former second-round pick waited in free agency a bit longer this year, but he now has a contract that positions him for a ninth NFL season.
Phillips, 30, enjoyed a strong contract year in Buffalo in 2019, but the Bills used him as a rotational player off the bench during his second stay with the team. Phillips still played often, logging a 49% snap rate. Phillips’ 9.5-sack 2019 looks like an outlier still; he tallied 1.5 last season and has not eclipsed three in any other year. Pro Football Focus did not view Phillips’ Bills comeback as especially effective, slotting him just inside the top 100 among interior D-linemen last season.
But this accord sets up Phillips, whom the Bills claimed off waivers from the Dolphins back in 2018, for a fourth season in Buffalo. He will rejoin Ed Oliver, DaQuan Jones and Tim Settle on the Bills’ interior D-line. The Bills also brought former first-round defensive end Shaq Lawson back in 2022, but he remains a free agent.
Raiders To Add WR DeAndre Carter
DeAndre Carter‘s Raiders visit will end up producing an agreement. Going very John Facenda as he prepares to join a new team, the veteran wide receiver/return man confirmed he will move from Los Angeles to Las Vegas (Twitter link).
This is a one-year deal worth up to $2.38MM, The Score’s Jordan Schultz tweets. Carter visited the Raiders last week and will join multiple depth-level additions among Las Vegas’ receiving corps.
Jakobi Meyers signed with the Raiders on starter-level terms — three years, $33MM; $16MM fully guaranteed — but the team also re-signed Keelan Cole, added ex-Josh McDaniels charge Phillip Dorsett and agreed to terms with Steven Sims. Carter, who played with Sims in Washington, will provide more competition for roster spots behind the Meyers-Davante Adams–Hunter Renfrow starter trio.
The Raiders will be Carter’s sixth NFL team. The career return specialist showed he can contribute in the passing game. Keenan Allen‘s hamstring injury moved Carter into a regular role on the Chargers’ offense, and the 5-foot-8 performer established new career-high marks for receptions (46) and receiving yards (538). The former Eagles, Texans and Bears contributor will turn 30 next month.
A handful of teams have used Carter on both kick and punt returns. The Division I-FCS product notched a kick-return score with Washington in 2021 and served as Los Angeles’ full-time returner last season. His 11.7 yards per punt return ranked second in the NFL in 2022. Ameer Abdullah served as the Raiders’ kick returner in 2022; he re-signed with the team earlier this month. Cole and Renfrow split punt-return duties during McDaniels’ first season; Carter should be expected to take over.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/28/23
Only one minor move to pass along this evening:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Re-signed: DT Deadrin Senat
A former third-round pick by the Falcons, Senat joined the Buccaneers last offseason. Despite not making the initial roster, he ended up getting into 12 games for Tampa Bay, collecting 17 tackles and one sack.
Falcons, WR Scotty Miller Agree To Deal
Making the opposite move of Russell Gage, Scotty Miller will venture from the Buccaneers to the Falcons. Atlanta is adding the former Tampa Bay wide receiver on a one-year deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
A former Bucs sixth-round pick, Miller played out his rookie contract with the team last season. Miller will join Mack Hollins as offseason Falcons receiver additions.
Miller made steady contributions to the Bucs’ Super Bowl LV-winning team two years ago but did not factor into the team’s final two Tom Brady-piloted passing attacks much. The diminutive speedster has totaled just 223 receiving yards, along with no touchdowns, since 2021. Miller will aim to bounce back in Atlanta.
In 2020, however, the Bowling Green alum worked alongside Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to give Brady a nice receiving trio. Miller caught 33 passes for 501 yards and three touchdowns that year. He eclipsed 70 receiving yards four times from Week 1 to Week 7. But the Bucs’ about-face on Antonio Brown led to Miller’s role being reduced. Although Miller’s first-half-ending deep TD grab helped the Bucs hold off the Packers in the 2020 NFC championship game, he never could bounce back as a steady target after Brown’s arrival.
A severe turf toe bout limited Miller to nine games in 2021, and the team’s offensive freefall last season did not leave much room for non-Evans or Godwin options to display much. Gage’s $10MM-per-year deal to come over from Atlanta and replace Brown lowered Miller’s ceiling as well.
The Falcons have added Hollins and Miller to complement Drake London. The team tendered Olamide Zaccheaus as an RFA last year but has not re-signed the Thomas Dimitroff-era investment. Hollins signed a one-year, $2.5MM deal; it is unlikely Miller’s pact matches that number.
Buccaneers To Sign K Chase McLaughlin
Days after cutting Ryan Succop, the Buccaneers have settled on a new kicker. They are signing Chase McLaughlin, according to JoeBucsFan.com. It is a one-year agreement.
McLaughlin will head to Tampa after being replaced in Indianapolis. The Colts, who used McLaughlin as their Adam Vinatieri injury replacement in 2019 and as Rodrigo Blankenship‘s fill-in last season, signed Matt Gay to the league’s second-most lucrative kicker deal early in free agency.
The Bucs released Succop last week, doing so despite having already cleared the cap room necessary to retain Jamel Dean and Lavonte David. The Succop release saved the team $3.75MM, and McLaughlin will be positioned to replace him. Succop, however, represented the only kicking constant over the past decade. The team will see if McLaughlin can effectively replace the veteran.
McLaughlin, 27 in April, has been a primary kicking option for two teams — the Browns and Colts — since 2021. He struggled in Cleveland, making only 71% of his field goal tries, and the Browns then drafted Cade York last year. The Colts brought McLaughlin in after Blankenship played the lead role in a Week 1 tie with the Texans. McLaughlin fared better in 2022, making 83% of his field goal tries — including 9 of the 12 attempts from beyond 50 yards. McLaughlin also made 9 of 11 tries from 40-49 yards, representing a significant improvement on his 2021 work (4-for-10).
Although McLaughlin only began his run as an NFL kicker in 2019, he is already on team No. 7. He will come cheaper than Succop, whom the Bucs had signed to a three-year, $12MM extension shortly after Super Bowl LV.