Giants Re-Sign WR Isaiah Hodgins
The Giants have been busy re-signing some of their exclusive rights free agents this week. The biggest of those names re-signed with the team Thursday.
Isaiah Hodgins, who went from waiver claim to the team’s most reliable stretch-run wide receiver, re-signed for the 2023 season. The Giants still have two more years of control with Hodgins, who is not eligible for unrestricted free agency until 2025. This is likely a one-year agreement, tabling this matter to restricted free agency in 2024.
Evolving from the “Minor NFL Transactions” space, Hodgins made a quick assimilation from Bills reserve to Daniel Jones‘ go-to guy. A former Brian Daboll charge in Buffalo, Hodgins caught four passes in the Bills’ Week 5 blowout of the Steelers and played for the team against the Chiefs the following week. Those cameos did not provide much indication of where his season would go.
Hodgins, 24, finished with 37 receptions for 392 yards and four touchdowns — almost all of those numbers coming as a Giant — and filled a void for a team that had seen its once-intriguing receiver situation turn into a borderline emergency. Season-ending injuries to Sterling Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson, a trade of Kadarius Toney and Kenny Golladay becoming one of the worst free agent signings in recent NFL history left Darius Slayton as the last man standing. Hodgins, whom the Bills waived on November 1, did well to fill in the gaps and should be a notable cog for the 2023 Giants as well.
A second-generation NFLer, Hodgins caught eight passes for 89 yards and a touchdown in the Giants’ last-second loss to the Vikings in Week 17. Two weeks later, the 6-foot-4 pass catcher totaled eight receptions for 105 yards and a score to help the Giants upset the Vikes in the franchise’s first playoff win in 11 years.
Shepard’s restructured contract voided this week, and Slayton is on track for unrestricted free agency. Golladay will soon be released. The Giants are expected to pursue free agent wide receivers next month, but Hodgins will almost definitely factor into the team’s equation next season.
Bucs To Hire Seahawks’ Dave Canales As OC
The Buccaneers have landed on their new offensive coordinator, hiring Seahawks quarterbacks coach Dave Canales to call plays in Tampa Bay next season, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. The longtime Seattle staffer made a true name for himself with the help of a resurgent season by veteran quarterback Geno Smith and will now get the opportunity to lead an entire offense. 
The Seahawks gave Canales his first opportunity in the NFL back in 2010 as their wide receivers coach. Before that his only coaching experience was as the offensive coordinator at his former high school, the special teams & tight ends coach at El Camino College, and the assistant strength and conditioning coach at USC. Over seven years in his initial role in Seattle, Canales developed Seahawks receivers like Doug Baldwin, Golden Tate, Sidney Rice, Jermaine Kearse, Percy Harvin, Paul Richardson, and Tyler Lockett. Despite the many big names, only Baldwin ever eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards in a season under Canales, who typically developed a versatile room of targets.
In 2018, Canales was granted the quarterbacks coaching position, tasked with mentoring seventh-year veteran Russell Wilson and backup quarterback Brett Hundley. Although he wouldn’t play, Smith would join the roster the following season. For the next four years, two of which he spent under the title of passing game coordinator, Canales worked primarily with Wilson as the starter, tutoring Smith through the few appearances he would make during the time.
In 2022, with the trade that would send Wilson to the Broncos, Canales’s years of tutelage over Smith would be put to the test. Today, it’s fair to say that both Smith and Canales passed with flying colors as Smith would go on to lead the NFL in completion percentage, lead the Seahawks to the playoffs in their first season without Wilson, earn a Pro Bowl bid, and win the Comeback Player of the Year award.
Canales is now getting his due credit, as well, being rewarded with the opportunity to lead an NFL offense for the first time in his career. Canales will be tasked with a similar challenge as he faced this past season. After three seasons with Tom Brady at quarterback, Tampa Bay, barring a move in free agency, trade, or the draft, will be turning to either a veteran backup who started early in his career in Blaine Gabbert or a young developing quarterback in Kyle Trask.
Canales received recognition for his coaching of Smith early, receiving coordinator interest from both Tampa Bay and Baltimore. He actually was a strong candidate for the Ravens’ position, receiving a second interview for the job that would eventually go to Todd Monken. Regardless, Canales is the man for the Buccaneers. Under head coach Todd Bowles, Canales and the Buccaneers will look to return to playoffs in the post-Brady era.
AFC Coaching Rumors: Broncos, Henry, Texans, Donatell
As has been expected for a little while now, Saints offensive assistant Declan Doyle will be departing New Orleans to join Sean Payton‘s new staff in Denver, according to Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football. The original reports about Doyle indicated that he was in consideration for a first-time position coaching role leading the tight ends for the Broncos, but Underhill’s recent report didn’t specify what his role would be.
The Broncos made another minor coaching staff addition today, hiring someone who has a bit of a different connection to New Orleans, as reported by Zach Barnett of Football Scoop. While not a former Saints staffer, new Broncos passing game quality control coach Logan Kilgore was the offensive coordinator for new Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning during their time together at the Isidore Newman School in New Orleans. Kilgore was set to rejoin head coach Butch Jones at Arkansas State as the Red Wolves’ tight ends coach after working as an offensive analyst with the team in 2021. Instead, Kilgore is headed to Denver, where he will work with many other former New Orleans coaches.
Here are a few other coaching rumors from around the AFC, starting with a new assistant coaching hire in Buffalo:
- The Bills have hired a veteran to their staff in longtime wide receivers coach Adam Henry, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Newtork. Henry has coached the position at McNeese State, LSU, and Indiana at the college level, serving, as well, as offensive coordinator at McNeese State, passing game coordinator at LSU, and co-offensive coordinator at Indiana. At the NFL level, Henry’s first position coaching role was as tight ends coach under Tom Cable in Oakland. Since then, he has coached receivers for the 49ers, Giants, Browns, and Cowboys. An interesting aspect of this hire is Henry’s connection to free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. Henry coached both Beckham and Jarvis Landry when the two were at LSU and in Cleveland.
- The Texans have made a number of decisions recently for new head coach DeMeco Ryans‘s staff, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. First, Houston hired former Browns defensive line coach Chris Kiffin as their new linebackers coach. The younger brother of Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin and former NFL defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, Chris formerly worked alongside Ryans during their time together in San Francisco. Second, the team chose to retain defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire from Lovie Smith‘s staff. Under Cesaire, the defensive line saw surprising contributions from defensive ends Jerry Hughes and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and defensive tackle Maliek Collins. Third, former 49ers defensive passing game specialist and secondary coach Cory Undlin is expected to reunite with Ryans as the Texans defensive passing game coordinator and secondary coach. Finally, fourth, after choosing not to retain offensive line coach George Warhop, Colts offensive line coach Chris Strausser has emerged as the leading candidate to replace him.
- The Dolphins have requested to interview Chargers assistant secondary coach Tom Donatell for the secondary coaching position in Miami, according to a tweet by Pelissero. The son of Vikings defensive coordinator Ed Donatell, Tom is making his own way up through the coaching ranks of the NFL.
Minor NFL Transactions: 2/15/23
Here are the only minor moves from today:
New England Patriots
- Waived: CB Tae Hayes, K Quinn Nordin, WR Kristian Wilkerson
Hayes has bounced around quite a bit in his first three years of NFL play with New England being his fifth destination. He played in the last two games for the Patriots this year. Wilkerson signed with the Patriots practice squad in 2020 after initially signing as an undrafted free agent with the Titans. The former All-OVC receiver out of Southeast Missouri State showed promise at the end of the 2021 season, catching four passes for 42 yards and two touchdowns in his first career start but was placed on injured reserve just before the start of the 2022 season. Nordin has had a bumpy road as a Patriot. Initially being chosen to kick for the team over Nick Folk as an undrafted rookie out of Michigan in 2021, despite a preseason game that saw him miss a 36-yard field goal and two extra points, Nordin never saw action in his rookie season due to injury. He spent the 2022 season on the reserve/non-football injury list.
NFL Reserve/Futures Deals: 2/15/23
Here are Wednesday’s reserve/futures contracts:
Kansas City Chiefs
- TE Kendall Blanton, CB Dicaprio Bootle, TE Matt Bushman, G Mike Caliendo, LB Cole Christiansen, RB Jerrion Ealy, QB Chris Oladokun, RB La’Mical Perine, WR Cornell Powell, C Austin Reiter, DT Danny Shelton, WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette
Philadelphia Eagles
- WR Devon Allen, WR Tyrie Cleveland, CB Mario Goodrich, DE Tarron Jackson, G Fred Johnson, T Roderick Johnson, DE Matt Leo, G Sua Opeta, LB Davion Taylor
The Chiefs will likely enter into extension talks with Creed Humphrey when the Pro Bowler becomes eligible in 2024, but they are also retaining their Super Bowl LIV and Super Bowl LV center starter. Reiter, 31, played for the Dolphins in 2021 but did not see any action for the Chiefs this season. The Chiefs cut Shelton after training camp but kept the veteran defensive tackle around on their practice squad. Shelton, 29, played in one game for the Super Bowl champions this season and will be set to collect a second Super Bowl ring; his first came in 2018 with the Patriots.
Allen, 28, put his track and field career on pause to attempt a football comeback, and the two-time Olympic 110-meter hurdle finalist resided on the Eagles’ practice squad all season. While the Paris Games are not until 2024, Allen ran 2022’s top 110 hurdle time (12.84 seconds) — which doubled as the third-fastest time in history — and will be on the radar to claim his first world championship in the event. This year’s World Track and Field Championships are slated for Aug. 19-27 in Budapest, so it will be interesting to see if Allen puts track aside for the time being or if the Eagles greenlight dual participation. The Bears did so for long jumper/wide receiver Marquise Goodwin in 2021, but that was for an Olympic Trials competition that did not conflict with training camp.
Ravens Re-Sign Brent Urban, Daryl Worley
Two Ravens role players remain in the organization’s plans. The team re-signed both Brent Urban and Daryl Worley on Wednesday. Both were on one-year deals in 2022.
Both journeymen found their way to Baltimore last year, with Urban a 2014 Ravens draftee who had been elsewhere from 2019-21. Each re-signed on one-year deals in 2022, and it should be expected Wednesday’s pacts match that duration.
Urban, 31, played a bigger role for the 2022 Ravens, seeing action on 29% of Baltimore’s defensive snaps. Urban joined Michael Pierce as a defensive lineman who returned to the Ravens after seasons away and will now join Calais Campbell among 30-something D-linemen to return to the team. Campbell recently announced he was coming back.
The Ravens used Urban as a full-time starter during his initial contract year, back in 2018, but let him walk in free agency. Urban moved on to the Titans but caught on with the Bears and Cowboys in between Baltimore stays. Last season, Urban forced three fumbles, registered a sack and two tackles for loss. He will be in line to compete for a depth role again.
Worley, 27, flooded the transaction wire last year, signing with the Ravens in August and bouncing on and off their practice squad on a near-weekly basis. The Ravens used the veteran more as a special-teamer. In the eight games he played, the seventh-year veteran saw action on 41% of the Ravens’ ST plays last season. Worley started the team’s season finale against the Bengals, however.
The Ravens are Worley’s eighth team. The former Panthers third-round pick has also stopped by for stints with the Eagles (non-regular-season stopover), Raiders, Bills, Cowboys, Cardinals and Lions.
Cardinals Hire Jonathan Gannon As HC
The final head coaching vacancy of the 2023 head coaching cycle is set to be filled. The Cardinals are finalizing a deal to make Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon their new HC, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The team has since confirmed the hire.
Signs increasingly pointed to Gannon being the Cardinals’ top choice beginning on Super Bowl Sunday, when it was reported that an interview would be set up. At that point, Arizona was believed to be down to two finalists to lead their staff (Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka). Things quickly shifted, and now Gannon is set for his first head coaching gig. 
Monday, a report surfaced that the Cardinals had essentially narrowed down their list of finalists to Gannon and Anarumo. Today’s news confirms that, and leaves Kafka in place for another season at the helm of the Giants’ offense, a role in which he achieved unexpected success. Anarumo, meanwhile, is now free to prepare for a fifth consecutive season in charge of the Bengals’ defense, a unit which has come on strong in recent years in particular. Brian Flores was among the candidates receiving serious consideration for Arizona’s HC vacancy, but he withdrew to take the Vikings’ defensive coordinator position.
Gannon, 39, joined Nick Sirianni in making the jump from Indianapolis to Philadelphia in 2021. The Eagles’ defense performed well in their first season together, putting up the league’s No. 10 total defense. The unit took a considerable step forward with another year of Gannon at the helm and an infusion of several high-end players during the offseason. In 2022, Philadelphia ranked top-10 in both both points and yards allowed, figures which helped guide the team to the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
Strong performances in the postseason (including an NFC title game against the 49ers, who were without a healthy quarterback for much of the game, in fairness) took the Eagles to the Super Bowl. Much has been made about the team’s breakdown in the second half in particular against the Chiefs, but Gannon still boasts a strong resume given his success in his first coordinator gig. That has translated to a first-time HC posting, where he will build off of a strong relationship with new Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets that the personal connection between the pair helped give Gannon an edge over Anarumo, who interviewed well. Now, attention will turn to his choice for offensive coordinator, and his ability to steer the team back towards contention after a disastrous 2022 season. Arizona’s regression left it as little surprise that both Kliff Kingsbury and Steve Keim are no longer in place, despite each having multiple years remaining on their contracts before their departures.
Gannon will face a tall order in terms of helping the Cardinals take a step forward on both sides of the ball, as his now-former Eagles counterpart Shane Steichen does in Indianapolis. The reporting of Gannon’s hire comes mere hours after Steichen’s was announced by the Colts, leaving the Eagles as the first team in a decade to lose both their offensive and defensive coordinators in the same offseason. Attention will now turn to how Philadelphia compensates, as well as how Gannon fills out his staff as the coaching cycle winds down.
Minor NFL Transactions: 2/14/23
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Released: LB Jordan Kunaszyk
New York Giants
- Signed: G Jack Anderson
A UDFA who caught on with the Panthers in 2019, Kunaszyk played 15 Browns games last season. The team, which ran into multiple season-ending injuries at linebacker, used Kunaszyk as a two-game starter. The 26-year-old defender was a core special-teamer in Cleveland, seeing action on 79% of the Browns’ special teams plays in 2022. He finished the season on IR due to a hand injury.
Raiders To Release Derek Carr
FEBRUARY 14: The Raiders officially released Carr, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Carr will hit the market a month before free agency, allowing him to determine his 2023 plans weeks ahead of his free agent QB peers. The Raiders save $29.3MM in cap space by making this move.
FEBRUARY 13: With the Super Bowl in the rearview mirror, Derek Carr‘s guarantee vesting date is fast approaching. The Raiders do not plan to wait until the deadline. They will release their longtime starting quarterback Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (video link).
The Raiders would have until 3pm CT Wednesday to find a Carr trade partner, but the veteran passer has already indicated he will not waive his no-trade clause. That leaves the Raiders with little choice here, given their actions to this point. They will cut Carr to avoid paying the $40.4MM guarantee.
This unique free agency derby will feature a few teams. The Saints, whom Albert Breer of SI.com notes are the only team to send the Raiders a Carr trade offer, will be one. The Jets are believed to view Carr as an Aaron Rodgers backup plan, while Rapoport notes the Panthers, Titans and perhaps others will be in the mix.
Tuesday’s transaction will not only end this unusual divorce and spur a fascinating pursuit — one that will put teams to decisions on going after Carr now or waiting for other options later — but it will also wrap the Raiders’ longest-running partnership with a starting quarterback. Although Ken Stabler was a Raider longer than Carr, the Hall of Famer did not begin his run as a full-time starter until his sixth season (1973). The Raiders needed Carr from the jump, plugging him into the lineup in Week 1 of his rookie season. Carr ended up starting 142 games as a Raider, but the team stopped that streak abruptly with a benching ahead of its Week 17 game last season.
The Raiders, who will only be hit with $5.6MM in dead money by this release, gauged Carr’s fit in Josh McDaniels‘ offense via their three-year extension agreement. But that deal’s escape hatch — the Feb. 15 guarantee vesting date — will trigger Las Vegas’ quarterback search. Carr constantly landed in trade rumors under previous regimes, but the Raiders held onto him through the Jack Del Rio and Jon Gruden‘s stays. The Raiders did not have much luck at quarterback in the years immediately before taking Carr in the 2014 second round, with the Carson Palmer and JaMarcus Russell moves in particular costing the team dearly. But McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler will replace Carr this year.
Carr, 32 in March, could have been a potential chip at last year’s trade deadline, but The Athletic’s Vic Tafur notes (subscription required) the Raiders were not ready to pull the plug at that point. Even after a 24-0 loss to the Saints, the Raiders hoped Carr and McDaniels would mesh down the stretch. The 2-5 team stayed the course, but late in a season that saw Darren Waller and Hunter Renfrow sidelined for extended stretches, the Silver and Black showed their cards with the benching. Davante Adams has said he remains committed to the Raiders, despite Carr driving him to seek out Vegas as a destination last year.
Carr and his wife trekked to New Orleans for a Raiders-approved visit — the only meeting the team permitted — and the summit lasted two days. Carr wanted to meet with every interested team, per Tafur, but the Raiders worried the 10th-year veteran would use those summits to work out a free agency agreement. Now, instead of Carr following the Matthew Stafford or Alex Smith winter trade paths, he will be a free agent. Connections to a host of teams are sure to follow.
The Raiders wanted a third-round pick. It is unclear if the Saints offered that, but they will have a chance to woo Carr on the market. New Orleans would need to backload a Carr contract, being nearly $60MM over the cap. While February cap gymnastics are old hat for GM Mickey Loomis, the Saints appear set to enter a competitive chase for a free agent quarterback for the first time since they signed Drew Brees in 2006. New Orleans, which waded deep into the Deshaun Watson trade sweepstakes last year, is unlikely to retain Jameis Winston and has not been aggressive in attempting to re-sign Andy Dalton. Carr appears the target, though he will be for other teams as well.
The Jets’ recent inquiry about Rodgers’ availability makes sense, with Carr about to hit the market. New York’s might be the most intriguing decision: go after Carr now or risk striking out on Rodgers. Jimmy Garoppolo also looms as a later potential Rodgers consolation prize — for both the Jets and Raiders — and the Titans’ involvement here points to Ryan Tannehill being available as well.
The Titans have used Tannehill as their primary starter for the past four seasons, and while the team promoted OC Tim Kelly, a Carr chase makes Tannehill’s Tennessee status tenuous. The Titans can save $27MM by designating Tannehill as a post-June 1 cut. A past restructure would make a standard Tannehill release more costly for the AFC South franchise. Even though the Titans kept Tannehill in the loop regarding Kelly’s hire, per Titans.com’s Jim Wyatt, one season remains on his contract.
Carolina has sought a long-term QB answer since cutting Cam Newton in 2020. But the Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield efforts fell short of expectations. Frank Reich went through a few veterans in Indianapolis as well, which would make the Panthers diving back into the veteran market interesting. The Panthers hold the No. 9 overall pick, putting them in play for a quarterback pick or a trade-up maneuver. A Carr acquisition would presumably prevent either. Carolina looks to be a second-tier suitor here, per David Newton of ESPN.com, who notes the Panthers could be interested if the price drops below its expected point (Twitter link).
Titans Hire Packers’ Chad Brinker As Assistant GM
FEBRUARY 14: The move is now official, per a team announcement. Brinker’s diverse background in terms of his inter-departmental work in Green Bay was noted as a key reason for his hire.
“Chad brings a unique skill set to our franchise,” Carthon said in a statement. “He has touched every facet of the personnel department – working in pro personnel, college scouting, cap management and analytics. We are excited to add his knowledge and experience to our evolving personnel group.”
FEBRUARY 8: The Titans are arranging their pieces this week. A day after promoting Tim Kelly to offensive coordinator, the team will soon have its top front office lieutenant in place.
Tennessee will hire Green Bay executive Chad Brinker as its assistant general manager, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets. The veteran staffer has been with the Packers for the past 13 years, serving in scouting and executive roles with the NFC North franchise.
Brinker will join new GM Ran Carthon with the Titans, who continue to make changes in the wake of Jon Robinson‘s late-season firing. Although Brinker has not been a GM candidate, the Patriots attempted to interview him for a position during the 2021 offseason. The Packers blocked the move at that point, but the Titans job comes with a significant responsibility bump.
A Ted Thompson hire, Brinker joined the Packers as a scouting assistant in 2010. He served as a pro scout from 2012-17 and moved up the ladder by becoming the team’s assistant director of pro scouting. Brinker also served as a salary cap analyst at points for the Packers, who promoted him again in 2021. Brinker’s scouting background aside, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) he has made major contributions to Packers’ financial side in recent years. Brinker worked with Packers director of football ops Russ Ball on this front.
Brinker and Carthon have not previously worked together, with Carthon coming over after six years with the 49ers. Brinker has only worked with the Packers, beginning his career as an intern with the team in 2009. However, both were college running backs in the early 2000s — Carthon at Florida, Brinker at Ohio. Both then became UDFAs, though Carthon’s NFL playing career lasted a tough longer than Brinker’s.
After two years as one of Brian Gutekunst‘s right-hand men and nearly 15 with the Packers, Brinker will attempt to help Carthon build a foundation with the Titans.