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Redskins "Very Likely" To Promote Cavanaugh

By | at January 14, 2017 4:24 pm

  • The Redskins are “very likely” to promote quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh to their OC position to take Sean McVay‘s place, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets. This arrangement would entail Jay Gruden calling plays, La Canfora notes. Cavanaugh has previously served as OC for two different franchises, doing so for the Bears and Ravens, but hasn’t functioned in that capacity since 2004. The 60-year-old longtime assistant has been with Washington since 2015.
  • Tom Coughlin has thus far either shown faith in the existing Jaguars assistants or brought in former Giants coaches in his first week in Jacksonville. The newly hired executive went in the latter direction on Saturday, hiring former Giants DC Perry Fewell to coach the Jags’ defensive backs, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union reports (on Twitter). This will mark Fewell’s second stay in this role. His first NFL coaching gig came as the Jags’ secondary coach under Coughlin from 1998-2002. The 54-year-old coach served as the Redskins’ DBs boss during the past two seasons. Fewell was Coughlin’s DC from 2010-14, serving as the coach whose Super Bowl champion 2011 team unveiled its famous NASCAR package. But Fewell will serve under retained DC Todd Wash and work a sixth stint as a secondary coach.
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Redskins Coaching Notes: Tomsula, Callahan

By | at January 13, 2017 5:06 pm

Jim Tomsula was out of football this season after a 5-11 campaign as San Francisco’s head coach in 2015, but it appears he’s about to resurface. The Redskins are targeting Tomsula, tweets Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee, though he doesn’t specify which position the 48-year-old would take in Washington. It seems likely Tomsula would coach the Redskins’ D-line, though, considering he held that role with the Niners from 2007-14. The Redskins have an opening there thanks to the firing of Robb Akey earlier this month.

  • Newly minted Rams head coach Sean McVay has already reeled in one experienced coordinator in defensive chief Wade Phillips, and he could next add one on offense in Bill Callahan, reports Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson (Twitter link). Callahan is currently the Redskins’ offensive line coach – McVay, of course, was their offensive coordinator – and has been a coordinator in both Oakland and Dallas.
0 comments Baltimore Ravens Buffalo Bills Cleveland Browns Denver Broncos Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins Washington Commanders

Redskins To Retain Offensive Coaching Staff

By | at January 13, 2017 12:43 pm

  • The Redskins may have lost offensive coordinator Sean McVay, but they’re not planning on losing anyone else on their offensive staff. The Redskins are expected to retain all of their offensive assistant coaches, reports ESPN.com’s John Keim. Following the Rams‘ hiring of Wade Phillips as their defensive coordinator, there were rumors that tight ends coach Wes Phillips may leave to join McVay and his dad in Los Angeles. However, Keim notes that the Rams would have to request an interview with anyone on the Redskins coaching staff.

    [SOURCE LINK]
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Redskins To Interview Wade Phillips?

By | at January 12, 2017 7:37 pm

7:37pm: Renck now reports the longtime DC is going to Washington to visit family instead of officially interviewing with the Redskins. While he adds Phillips is a sought-after candidate, an interview with the Redskins has not been scheduled.

6:46pm: The competition for Wade Phillips‘ 2017 services has heated up, and his previous employer has fallen behind — perhaps by choice. Phillips will interview for the Redskins’ defensive coordinator job on Friday, Troy Renck of Denver7 reports (on Twitter). The 69-year-old DC has an obvious connection there; his son Wes Phillips is Washington’s tight ends coach.

The Rams still have interest, Renck reports, especially now that the team hired Sean McVay as HC. McVay wants Phillips as his DC, we heard earlier today. The Browns also expressed interest in Phillips before hiring Gregg Williams.

This comes as the Broncos hired defensive-based Vance Joseph as their next head coach. Joseph may be shifting in a different direction, despite calling Phillips a mentor from their time together with the Texans. The new Denver coach said today (via Nick Groke of the Denver Post) Phillips “is a free agent; he’s free to go where he wants to go” but did not mention any other names for the Broncos’ DC job. Defensive backs coach Joe Woods is considered a key candidate to become the Broncos’ next DC, Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post reports. Phillips’ two-year Broncos contract expired after the season.

The Redskins have already interviewed Gus Bradley, Mike Pettine and Steve Wilks for their DC job, with Wilks instead receiving a promotion to become the Panthers’ head coach following Sean McDermott’s Bills defection. Washington attempted to interview Bengals DC Paul Guenther but was denied.

Phillips’ Broncos defenses finished as the No. 1 DVOA units in each of the past two years, with his 2015 Super Bowl group being one of the best defenses in memory.

2 comments Denver Broncos Los Angeles Rams Washington Commanders

Rams Hire Sean McVay

By | at January 12, 2017 4:07 pm

It’s a done deal. The Rams are hiring Sean McVay as their new head coach, as Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com tweets. The Rams have since confirmed the news. It’s a five-year deal for McVay, Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com reports (on Twitter).Sean McVay (vertical)

[RELATED: PFR’S 2017 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]

McVay, still only 30, is now the youngest head coach in the modern era. On a day where the Chargers announced that they will also be moving to Los Angeles, the Rams have managed to steal the Chargers’ thunder.

“This is an exciting day for the Los Angeles Rams as we welcome Sean McVay as our new head coach,” owner Stan Kroenke said in a statement. “The accomplishments and success that he has rendered in less than a decade in our league are remarkable. I am confident in his vision to make a team a consistent winner and to ultimately bring a Super Bowl title home to Los Angeles.”

McVay, who has three years’ experience as a coordinator, teamed with head coach Jay Gruden to guide the Redskins to the NFL’s third-best total offense and a fifth-place DVOA ranking in 2016. He’s widely credited for turning Kirk Cousins into a top quarterback and the Rams are hopeful that he can do the same for No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff. McVay will also get to work with Todd Gurley, a player who has the ability to be an elite running back in the right system.

Now that McVay is in Los Angeles, he will reportedly try to bring Wade Phillips in as his defensive coordinator.

5 comments Los Angeles Rams Newsstand Washington Commanders

Redskins Interview Gus Bradley; Mike McCoy For OC?

By | at January 11, 2017 4:47 pm

The Redskins announced that they interviewed Gus Bradley for the defensive coordinator position on Wednesday. The former Jaguars head coach is reportedly Washington’s prime target to take over for the fired Joe Barry. Bradley was a successful D-coordinator in Seattle from 2009-12, during which time he became familiar with then-Seahawks executive and now-Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan.

As is the case with their defensive staff, changes might be on the horizon for the Redskins’ offensive coaches. With coordinator Sean McVay emerging as a serious candidate to grab the reins as Los Angeles’ head coach, the Redskins could turn to ex-Chargers HC Mike McCoy as his replacement, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. McCoy is also a candidate in Denver (where he served as an O-coordinator from 2010-12) and Buffalo, both of which named head coaches Wednesday.

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2017 Offensive/Defensive Coordinator Tracker

By | at January 9, 2017 6:42 pm

While at least six NFL teams are making head coaching changes this offseason, the number of clubs replacing offensive and/or defensive coordinators figures to be much higher than that. In addition to all those teams hiring new head coaches, who may want to bring in their own assistants, several clubs also figure to make changes on one side of the ball or the other after getting disappointing results in 2016. And, of course, the teams whose coordinators landed head coaching jobs will need to replace them.

With reports circulating on potential candidates, interview requests, and actual meetings, we’ll use the space below to keep tabs on all the latest updates on teams hiring new offensive and/or defensive coordinators. This post, which will be updated daily, can be found under the “PFR Features” menu on the right-hand side of the site.

Updated 2-13-17 (2:30pm CT)

Offensive Coordinators

Atlanta Falcons (Out: Kyle Shanahan)

Buffalo Bills (Out: Anthony Lynn)

Denver Broncos (Out: Rick Dennison)

Houston Texans (HC Bill O’Brien will call plays, replacing George Godsey)

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Nathaniel Hackett, interim offensive coordinator (Jaguars): Hired
  • Chip Kelly, former head coach (49ers): Interviewed

Los Angeles Rams (Out: Rob Boras)

New York Jets (Out: Chan Gailey)

Oakland Raiders (Hired/Promoted: Todd Downing, replacing Bill Musgrave)

Washington Redskins (Hired/Promoted: Matt Cavanaugh, replacing Sean McVay)

Defensive Coordinators

Atlanta Falcons (Out: Richard Smith)

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers (Hired/Promoted Steve Wilks, replacing Sean McDermott)

Cleveland Browns (Hired: Gregg Williams, replacing Ray Horton)

Denver Broncos (Out: Wade Phillips)

  • Joe Woods, defensive backs coach (Broncos): Hired
  • Reggie Herring, linebackers coach (Broncos): To be interviewed

Houston Texans (Hired/Promoted Mike Vrabel, replacing Romeo Crennel, who was named assistant head coach)

Los Angeles Chargers (Out: John Pagano)

Los Angeles Rams (Out: Gregg Williams)

  • Wade Phillips, defensive coordinator (Broncos): Hired

Miami Dolphins (Hired/Promoted: Matt Burke, replacing Vance Joseph)

San Francisco 49ers (Hired: Robert Saleh, Out: Jim O’Neil)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Signed Mike Smith to extension; Smith withdrew name from Chargers’ HC search)

Washington Redskins (Out: Joe Barry)

6 comments Atlanta Falcons Buffalo Bills Carolina Panthers Cleveland Browns Denver Broncos Houston Texans Jacksonville Jaguars Las Vegas Raiders Los Angeles Chargers Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins New York Jets Newsstand PFR Originals San Francisco 49ers Tampa Bay Buccaneers Washington Commanders

Redskins Interviewed Mike Pettine For DC

By | at January 9, 2017 6:41 pm

Time to add another name to the list of Redskins defensive coordinator candidates. The team announced that they interviewed former NFL head coach Mike Pettine for the open position on Monday.

Pettine was the head coach of the Browns from 2014 through 2015, compiling a 10-22 record. Prior to his tenure in Cleveland, Pettine served as the defensive coordinator for the Bills and Jets. The 50-year-old had plenty of success during his stints in New York and Buffalo. As Stephen Czarda of Redskins.com notes, Pettine’s Jets defenses were responsible for an “NFL-low 71.0 quarterback rating, completion percentage (52.6 percent) and passing yards (186.3 per game)” during his four seasons with the organization. During his one season in Buffalo, Pettine helped the defense move from 22nd in yards allowed to 10th.

Former Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley is reportedly the Redskins’ main target for the gig. This isn’t very surprising considering the coach’s connection to many members of the Redskins organization. Bradley previously worked with general manager Scot McCloughan in Seattle, and he worked alongside head coach Jay Gruden and president Bruce Allen in Tampa Bay.

As our coordinator tracker shows, the Redskins are also set to interview Panthers associate head coach/defensive backs coach Steve Wilks. The team was denied permission to interview Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther. ESPN.com’s John Keim reports that there hasn’t been any contact between the Redskins and Broncos defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.

The Redskins fired former defensive coordinator Joe Barry last week. The team finished towards the bottom of the league in yards allowed during Barry’s two seasons in Washington.

1 comment Washington Commanders

Gus Bradley "By Far" Redskins' Top DC Choice

By | at January 8, 2017 7:07 pm

  • Gus Bradley continues to have options despite his historically unsuccessful HC tenure in Jacksonville. The former Seahawks DC is “by far” the favorite to become the Redskins‘ DC, but La Canfora notes Bradley still has a standing offer to become Anthony Lynn‘s top defensive coach should he get a head coaching job.
1 comment Denver Broncos Jacksonville Jaguars New York Jets Philadelphia Eagles San Francisco 49ers Washington Commanders

NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/6/17

By | at January 6, 2017 5:56 pm

Here are the latest reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2017 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters.

Chicago Bears

Indianapolis Colts

  • K Devon Bell

New Orleans Saints

Washington Redskins

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