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New York Giants name Brian Daboll as head coach; Pittsburgh Steelers announce GM Kevin Colbert will step down. Here’s the latest in the NFL’s firing and hiring cycle.

By The Citizen on January 28, 2022

Change is in the air. “Black Monday” arrived in the NFL the day after the regular season ended with a flurry of major changes around the league.

By the end of the month, the Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans, Las Vegas Raiders and New Orleans Saints were searching for or had hired new head coaches, and the Bears, Giants, Vikings, Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers were replacing general managers.

As a new cycle of firing and hiring proceeds, we’re tracking all of the latest moves.

Friday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The New York Giants hired Brian Daboll to be their new coach, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>the team announced.</mark>

The scoop: Daboll, the Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator, had also interviewed with the Chicago Bears and the Miami Dolphins. He follows new Giants GM Joe Schoen from Buffalo. Daboll fills the vacancy left when the Giants fired Joe Judge after two seasons.

Daboll has been the Bills offensive coordinator for four seasons and was the AP Assistant Coach of the Year in 2020 as he guided quarterback Josh Allen to a Pro Bowl season. In the last two regular seasons combined, Allen threw for 8,951 yards with 73 touchdowns and 25 interceptions. Daboll also has been an offensive coordinator with the Kansas City Chiefs (2012), Miami Dolphins (2011) and Cleveland Browns (2009-10) and worked with the New England Patriots for 11 seasons.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>Pittsburgh Steelers GM Kevin Colbert will step down after the draft, owner Art Rooney II announced.</mark>

The scoop: Colbert has been with the Steelers for 22 years, during which the Steelers went 226-124-3 with 14 postseason appearances and two Super Bowl victories. He started as the director of football operations before he was elevated to general manager in 2011. Rooney said in-house candidates Omar Khan and Brandon Hunt are in the running to replace Colbert. Khan, the vice president of football operations and business administration, interviewed with the Bears one day before they picked Ryan Poles to be their GM.

Thursday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>Chicago Bears will hire Matt Eberflus as the franchise’s 17th head coach</mark>

The scoop: Matt Eberflus will be the 17th head coach of the Chicago Bears, the team announced Thursday.

In his first move as Bears general manager, Ryan Poles on Thursday hired Eberflus from a group of finalists that included Dan Quinn and Jim Caldwell. Eberflus, 51, was the Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator the last four seasons. He takes on his first head-coaching job after 13 years as an NFL coordinator and assistant coach and 17 years as a college assistant.

He replaces Matt Nagy, who along with GM Ryan Pace was fired Jan. 10 after a 6-11 finish in 2021 and 34-31 record in four seasons in his first stint as an NFL head coach.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Denver Broncos are hiring Green Bay Packers OC Nathaniel Hackett as their new head coach</mark>

The scoop: The Denver Broncos are finalizing a deal to hire Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as their head coach.

Hiring Hackett would raise speculation that the Broncos were trying to lure star Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers to Denver, perhaps along with his star receiver Davante Adams, who is set to hit free agency in March.

Hackett has 13 years of NFL experience, including seven as an offensive coordinator with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Packers.

Wednesday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Minnesota Vikings are hiring Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to be their new GM, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>according to reports.</mark><mark class=”hl_orange”> </mark>

The scoop: The Vikings made the move the morning after the Bears hired new GM Ryan Poles, who also was a finalist for the Vikings job. Adofo-Mensah, the Cleveland Browns vice president of football operations, also interviewed with the Bears.

He has been with the Browns for two seasons and before that was with the San Francisco 49ers for seven seasons. Before joining the NFL, he earned economics degrees from Princeton and Stanford and worked on Wall Street, and he is billed as someone who utilizes analytics. Adofo-Mensah now turns his attention to hiring a new coach to replace Mike Zimmer.

Tuesday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Bears named </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>Ryan Poles their new general manager</mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>.</mark>

Poles, the Kansas City Chiefs executive director of player personnel, was at Halas Hall for his second interview Tuesday, and by noon, NFL Network and ESPN reported the Bears were working on a deal with the man who will replace Ryan Pace.

Poles, 36, has been with the Chiefs for 13 years, working his way up from player personnel assistant to college scouting administrator and coordinator, director of college scouting, assistant director of player personnel and executive director of player personnel this season. He was part of the Chiefs team that won Super Bowl LIV.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton announced he was stepping away from coaching.</mark>

The scoop: Payton, who went 152-89 over 15 seasons with the Saints, announced he is taking a break from coaching. He said he may pursue a job as a TV analyst and left open the possibility of returning to coach at some point, though that won’t be this year.

Payton’s teams made nine postseason appearances, going 9-8 in playoff games, including winning the Super Bowl in the 2009 season. The 2021 season was Payton’s first without quarterback Drew Brees, who retired last offseason, and the Saints didn’t make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Payton, a Naperville Central and Eastern Illinois alum, worked with the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys for nine years before going to New Orleans in 2006. The Saints now begin their search for a new coach, with defensive coordinator Dennis Allen and offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. two of the candidates.

Monday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Bears are interested in speaking again with the Tennessee Titans’ Monti Ossenfort and the New England Patriots’ Eliot Wolf, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>NFL Network reported.</mark>

The scoop: Ossenfort and Wolf would join the Chiefs’ Ryan Poles as GM candidates to receive second interviews.

Ossenfort, the Titans director of player personnel, has been in Tennessee for two seasons after spending 14 years in the Patriots scouting department.

Wolf has been a Patriots senior consultant for two years and was previously the Cleveland Browns assistant general manager for two years. Before that, he spent 14 years with the Green Bay Packers, including as director of football operations. He is the son of former Packers GM Ron Wolf.

The Bears will request second interviews with Jim Caldwell and Dan Quinn, NFL Network reported.

The scoop: Caldwell and Quinn — two of the more experienced possibilities for the Bears — join Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus as the only candidates reported to be asked for second interviews. The Bears have interviewed 10 coaching candidates with another, New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, set to have his first interview Tuesday.

Caldwell was head coach of the Colts for three seasons and the Detroit Lions for four seasons, going 62-50 with four playoff appearances in that time. He was set to be the Miami Dolphins assistant head coach/quarterbacks coach in 2019 but stepped away for health reasons.

Quinn, the Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator, was the Atlanta Falcons head coach for more than five seasons, going 43-42 with two playoff appearances, including a Super Bowl LI loss to the New England Patriots. The Falcons fired him in October 2020 after a 0-5 start.

Saturday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Chicago Bears have scheduled a second interview with GM candidate Ryan Poles, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>according to ESPN.</mark>

The scoop: Poles, the Kansas City Chiefs executive director of player personnel, is the first GM candidate known to be scheduled for a second Bears interview. He has been in high demand this month, making it to the second round of interviews with the New York Giants and the Minnesota Vikings. The Giants hired Joe Schoen. The Vikings are set to interview Poles on Wednesday, one day after the Bears’ scheduled meeting, according to NFL Network. He had his first interview with the Bears on Friday.

Poles has been with the Chiefs for 13 years, working his way up through multiple GMs and coaches. He was part of the college scouting staff when the Chiefs drafted quarterback Patrick Mahomes in 2017. Poles was an offensive lineman at Boston College and signed as an undrafted free agent with the Bears in 2008 but never played in the NFL.

Friday

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The New York Giants have hired Joe Schoen to be their general manager, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>the team announced</mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>.</mark>

The scoop: The Bears interviewed Schoen, the Buffalo Bills assistant general manager, for their vacancy Sunday. Now he’s off the market after the Giants chose him over finalists Adam Peters and Ryan Poles. Schoen has been in his current role for five seasons and also worked with the Miami Dolphins and Carolina Panthers. He will now dive into hiring a new head coach, with Bills coordinators — and Bears candidates — Brian Daboll and Leslie Frazier potential connections. Three teams remain in the hunt for a new GM: the Bears, Vikings and Raiders.

Jan. 19

<mark class=”hl_orange”>Bears GM candidate Ed Dodds withdrew his name from consideration, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>NFL Network reported.</mark>

The scoop: Dodds, the Indianapolis Colts assistant general manager, interviewed with the Bears on Monday. He has been with the Colts since 2017, starting as the vice president of player personnel, and was with the Seattle Seahawks for 10 years before that. Dodds has been a GM candidate for several offseasons, but he reportedly turned down an interview request from the Cleveland Browns in 2020 and withdrew from the Carolina Panthers search in 2021. Dodds is also a candidate this year for the Raiders GM job.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Bears are scheduling Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus for a second interview, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>according to multiple reports.</mark>

The scoop: Eberflus, who had his first interview with the Bears on Monday, is the first coach reported to make it to the second round of interviews. Eberflus has been the Colts defensive coordinator for four seasons and before that was the Dallas Cowboys linebackers coach for seven seasons. He also has worked for the Cleveland Browns and spent 17 years coaching in college.

Eberflus also made it to the second round of interviews with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Bears still are interviewing both GMs and coaches, with Tampa Bay Buccaneers coordinators Byron Leftwich and Todd Bowles and Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn reportedly scheduled for coaching interviews later this week.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>Other teams reportedly have requested interviews with Bears defensive coordinator Sean Desai and assistant director of player personnel Champ Kelly.</mark>

The scoop: The Seattle Seahawks, who fired defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. on Tuesday, have put in a request to talk to Desai, The Athletic reported. Desai has been with the Bears for nine seasons and was promoted to coordinator in 2021 after Chuck Pagano retired.

Kelly interviewed for the Bears GM position last week, and now he will interview with the Raiders, NFL Network reported. He has been with the Bears for seven seasons, starting as the director of pro scouting before he was promoted to his current role. The Raiders fired GM Mike Mayock on Monday.

Jan. 17

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Las Vegas Raiders fired general manager Mike Mayock, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>the team announced.</mark>

The scoop: Mayock was the Raiders GM for three seasons, and his teams went 25-24, including 10-7 in 2021. The decision comes a day after a 26-19 playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Raiders’ only postseason appearance in Mayock’s tenure. Mayock previously was a draft analyst with NFL Network and a TV announcer. Raiders coach Jon Gruden resigned in October after some of Gruden’s old emails containing racist, homophobic and misogynistic language surfaced. Interim coach Rich Bisaccia led the team to a 7-5 record the rest of the way. The Raiders are interviewing candidates for GM and coach, though they haven’t announced what Bisaccia’s future is with the team.

Jan. 13

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Houston Texans fired coach David Culley after one season.</mark>

The scoop: The Texans finished 4-13 in the only season under Culley, 66, a longtime NFL assistant in his first job as a head coach. The Texans were playing without Deshaun Watson amid allegations of sexual assault against the quarterback. Week 1 starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor played in only six games because of injury, and the Texans turned to rookie Davis Mills to start 11 games.

Since 1994, Culley has been a wide receivers coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, with which he was also the assistant head coach, a quarterbacks coach with the Buffalo Bills and the assistant head coach/wide receivers coach/pass game coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Carolina Panthers are interviewing Bears special teams coordinator Chris Tabor, </mark><mark class=”hl_orange”>according to ESPN.</mark>

The scoop: Tabor was the Bears special teams coordinator for all four seasons under Matt Nagy, and he served as interim head coach for one game in 2021 when Nagy had COVID-19. He previously was the Cleveland Brown special teams coordinator for seven seasons, spanning multiple head coaches.

Jan. 12

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Chicago Bears added two more names to their general manager interview pool.</mark>

The scoop: The Bears have requested an interview with Pittsburgh Steelers vice president of football and business administration Omar Khan and New England Patriots senior consultant Eliot Wolf, ESPN reported. Khan had GM interviews last year with the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans. Wolf, the son of former Green Bay Packers GM Ron Wolf, has worked with the Packers, the Seattle Seahawks and Cleveland Browns.

Here are the updated candidate lists:

General managers

Coaches

Jan. 11

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Chicago Bears list of requested interviews has reached at least 8 general manager candidates and 9 coaching candidates.</mark>

The scoop: Recently fired Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores was a big name to pop up in a lengthy list of candidates the Bears have contacted about interviews.

NFL Network reported the Bears set up the interview with Flores, who went 24-25 in three seasons with the Dolphins. His last two seasons were winning ones, but the Dolphins didn’t make the playoffs.

Here are the other coaching candidates who reportedly have been requested:

Former Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith is among the biggest names to be expected to interview with the Bears. Here’s a list of others:

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The New York Giants fired coach Joe Judge after two seasons.</mark>

The scoop: In his first NFL head coaching stint, Judge, 40, went 10-23, including 4-13 in 2021. Playing without quarterback Daniel Jones down the stretch, the Giants lost their final six games by a combined score of 163-56. After the 29-3 loss to the Bears in Week 17, Judge went on an 11-minute rant defending his team while talking to the media.

It is the second big Giants move in two days after general manager Dave Gettleman announced his retirement Monday. With Judge out, there are now seven NFL head coaching jobs open.

Jan. 10

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Chicago Bears fired general manager Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy.</mark>

The scoop: Pace is out in Chicago after seven seasons during which his teams went 48-65, qualified for the postseason twice and failed to record a playoff victory. In his first NFL head coaching stint, Nagy finished 34-31 with two playoff losses over four seasons.

The Bears never found the right fit between Nagy and a quarterback during his tenure , running through Mitch Trubisky, Nick Foles, Andy Dalton and Justin Fields. Nagy’s offense remained stuck in the bottom third of the league in many categories . The Bears finished 6-11 this season.

The Bears have reached out to former Eagles coach Doug Pederson to schedule an interview for their head coaching role, according to a league source. An ESPN report also indicated the Bears have requested permission to interview Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier for the job. The team, according to NFL Network, has also requested to speak with Colts director of college scouting Morocco Brown for the GM opening.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Minnesota Vikings fired general manager Rick Spielman and coach Mike Zimmer</mark>

The scoop: Spielman was with the Vikings since 2006, first as the vice president of player personnel and then as the general manager since 2012. In that time, the Vikings went 132-123-2 with six playoff appearances.

Zimmer, a longtime NFL defensive coordinator, became the Vikings head coach in 2014. He led three seasons of 10 or more wins, three playoff appearances and two playoff victories. The Vikings finished 8-9 after a victory over the Bears on Sunday.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>New York Giants general manager Dave Gettleman announced his retirement after four seasons in that role.</mark>

The scoop: In 2018, Gettleman became the general manager in an organization where he had spent 13 years previously in front office roles. But his efforts to resuscitate the franchise failed with the Giants experiencing their worst four-year stretch of losing in team history.

The Giants went 19-46 under Gettleman’s watch, including a 4-13 faceplant this season during which the offense finished last in the NFC in both total yardage and scoring. Gettleman announced his retirement Monday but may have been fired if he hadn’t. The future of coach Joe Judge remains uncertain and may hinge on what happens with their intensifying GM search.

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Miami Dolphins fired coach Brian Flores after three seasons.</mark>

The scoop: Flores was fired in his third season despite posting back-to-back winning seasons. The Dolphins were 5-11 in his first year, 10-6 in 2020 and 9-8 this season, but they didn’t make the playoffs in his tenure.

Dolphins owner Stephen Ross released a statement saying he “determined that key dynamics of our football organization weren’t functioning at a level I want it to be and felt that this decision was in the best interest of the Miami Dolphins.” General manager Chris Grier will remain with the team in his current role, ESPN reported.

Jan. 9

<mark class=”hl_orange”>The Denver Broncos have fired head coach Vic Fangio after three seasons.</mark>

The scoop: Fangio didn’t record a winning season in his three in Denver. He finished 19-30 in his first stint as an NFL head coach, including 7-10 this season. Fangio, 63, was a defensive coordinator in the NFL for 19 seasons, including four in Chicago, before he joined the Broncos in 2019.

Fangio’s defense this season ranked in the top 10 in yards and points allowed. But the Broncos offense didn’t produce well enough under Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock, the latest in a revolving door of quarterbacks in Denver recent years.

Dec. 30-Jan. 7

<mark class=”hl_tblue”>The Jaguars have conducted at least five interviews to replace Urban Meyer.</mark>

The scoop: The Jaguars fired Urban Meyer on Dec. 16 after just 13 games with the team.

The team already has gotten deep into their search to replace him, reportedly interviewing former Philadelphia Eagles coach Doug Pederson, former Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions coach Jim Caldwell, Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

Read more of our coverage from Black Monday and beyond.


Source: Berkshire mont

Published in NFL and NFL wire

The Citizen
The Citizen

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