TheFunPolice

lol yup! It's actually kind of funny that a coach like Belichick could (if this is comes to pass) start his HC career like that, have a legendary career as a HC, then do that again decades later. The probability is almost zero.

It's going to be Belichick. Florio just posted a story about a guy with ties to Freddie Kitchens (who is on the UNC staff, served as interim HC and is supposed to be Belichick's OC there) being hired on the defensive side of the ball at UNC. That's a clue, according to Florio, that Belichick is planning to leave and Kitchens will be HC at UNC and the college will have $10 million extra. I think it makes sense.

I was listening on and off to the game on the radio Sunday and heard them say Codrington was in on the tackle and was totally confused and thought this was a Bernard/Benford type of deal with the names. I honestly thought there must be some linebacker named Codrington that sounds a lot like the kick returner. since I stopped playing Madden I don't recognize a lot of the guys lower on the depth chart! As to the topic, it's football. What is he supposed to do?

That was their main issue I think. Saleh is a great defensive mind, and he was let go when the Jets were 2-3 with plenty of games to go. The minute that happened their season was over. The defense fell apart without him there and now everyone was thrust into new roles they probably were not equipped for. Personality and attitude aside, Rodgers started slowly, as everyone should have expected from a 40+ year old player coming back from an Achilles tear but had a pretty decent season by the end. He was 8th in the NFL with 3,897 passing yards, just behind Mahomes and ahead of Herbert and Allen. He was also tied with America's QB (Allen) for 7th in the league in passing TDs with 28 Stats like yards per attempt and completion % are tough because of all the backups and trick plays that skew them, but his yards per attempt was about 1 yard lower than most of the top QBs, so there is that. All in all, for a 41 year old QB coming off a major injury like an Achilles and having basically the substitute teachers running the show for most of the season and no GM while the owner's teenage son is calling the shots behind the scenes it was about as good as you could expect. I'm not really a Rodgers fan or anything, but I could absolutely see him leading the Jets to the Wild Card next year. Not threatening for the division, but being good enough to get into the tournament. They basically didn't have an NFL coaching staff or front office after Saleh and Douglass were let go. That matters a lot.

Richardson looks like a bust to me. Any QB who taps out in a crucial moment because he's tired (and also sees no issue with it) is going to have a tough time.

Agreed! Big Mike would likely be a top candidate for a couple of teams. He'll get paid, so that's not an issue. But if he likes Dallas and wants to stay there's a good chance he'll be let go after next season anyway. That relationship feels played out. This is also a cautionary tale for agents not to agree to this type of exclusive window even once the contract expires. McCarthy is unemployed but cannot seek work.

True, but there are rumors that Ben Johnson doesn't interview well and has unusually high demands, so it'll be interesting to see. Part of me thinks he is a bit too full of himself and it comes across poorly. I can absolutely see him being the offensive version of Brandon Staley. I remember when Brian Schottenheimer was too good to interview for certain teams (like the Bills) and was going to pick his spot for a HC gig.

On a Denver note, they need to go back to their classic uniforms full-time. The new ones are awful.

I'm the farthest thing from a Patriots* defender, but there's nothing wrong with knowing who you want to hire and then hiring that candidate. It happens every single day in business and there's nothing untoward about it. Vrabel and NE is an unusual case, in that you have a former Patriots player who was popular during his time there, has successful HC experience and is sought after this hiring cycle, is in the team's HOF, and is the guy the fans and owner seem to want. Also he seems to want that particular job. He IS the best candidate for the NE job. It's clear. There is no controversy or reason for outrage. This situation almost never happens. There's no clear cut favorite for any of the other openings, so anyone interviewing in NE this cycle gets the situation. The Florios of the world want to throw a tantrum about Pierce and Mayo being let go after 1 year, but both seemed in over their heads, especially Mayo. Meanwhile, Glenn is one of the most sought after coaches this cycle. If Tomlin were a free agent he would be on everyone's list. If Deion Sanders wanted to jump to the NFL he would be a highly sought after name too. As far as Leftwich goes, how soon we forget that he was basically going to be the Jaguars HC before Pederson was hired but tried pulling a power play and ended up not getting that job. He was the favorite, and it was almost a done deal but he blew it himself. How is he not "legitimate" to interview?

It's actually not that crazy. They played a lot of close games, and if they hadn't fired Saleh IMO they would have been in the mix for the 7 seed. I know people around here hate the guy but I think Saleh is a pretty good coach. His defenses were always great. the idiot Jets owner fired him a handful of games into the season when they were like .500 and had plenty of games left. That ended any chance they had because now you've got first timers everywhere being elevated and way in over their heads. Coaching was a mess, not that you can really hold it against the guys left over who really should not have been in those positions. Rodgers also got better as the year went on, which isn't surprising given that Achilles injury. It's not as crazy as it sounds to say with the right coaching staff and a few moves (and Rodgers coming back) they could be a Wild Card team next year.

remember when he was getting HC hype? Cautionary tale and the reason why so many coordinators jump at any chance they get to be a HC

Who wins the Bills/Rams Super Bowl that year? And how weird would it have been for Thurman, Andre, Bruce and all those guys to finally win one with Kelly retired?

I've seen this reported elsewhere too. In a way, a college coach is coach/GM/everything and runs the entire football program. There's nobody above you weighing in on anything football related. the AD and Board of Trustees will fire you if you don't win enough, but they aren't telling you who to recruit or who to sign or who to play. I can see Bill wanting to do it his way with his people and be left alone to coach and run the program, which will never happen in any NFL position. If you're a legendary football coach in college everyone works for you in the athletic program in all practicality.

I have been skeptical of McDermott's ability to take the team where it needs to go, mostly because he's a defensive HC and the defense has been disappointing in the playoffs. As far as game management, every coach has issues, and McDermott seems to learn from his mistakes for the most part. I think McDermott can absolutely get to and win a Super Bowl. If you're good enough to get there you're good enough to win, and they often could go either way. For example, if Aaron Donald is half a second later on 4th down in the SB Burrow hits a wide open WR for the game winning TD. The question will be the defense. This time around we're finally healthy. Will McDermott's defense get the job done? Will they make the plays when needed? Can he scheme up a way to stop the best offenses? This is why I agree with Madden's take on the "can't win the big one" arguments. First, tell me which ones are the small ones. Second, you can't win the big one unless you're good enough to get there. And if you're good enough to get there you're good enough to win it. To this point, McDermott has not gotten the Bills to the biggest game, but he certainly can (I think).

so much for Brady and Bill not getting along... Of course the dynamic would be reversed now with Tommy hiring him. At the end of the day, Bill doesn't want to coach against the GOAT HC in his own division.

Raiders also requested interview with Spags. That actually makes a lot of sense, as Tom Brady is supposedly involved heavily in the HC search. He knows how good Spags is better than most.

Agreed! Plus, the NFL LOVES snow games in Buffalo and Green Bay. It's made for TV. Lest we forget, this is a TV product, and there's few backdrops in all of pro sports quite like Bills fans on a snowy gameday in WNY Snow and cold don't really slow down offenses. Wind can. Remember the Wild Card game vs NE when it was like -10? We never punted the entire game and pretty much scored at will. I think it was that same season that we played the wind game vs NE during the regular season where nobody threw the ball.

I want at least one of the 3rd rounders spent on a DT who has to turn sideways to get through the doorway I want a guy willing to put the work in in the dining room as well as the weight room

Callahan was terrible this season and definitely deserves to be let go, same with Steichen in Indy. Keeping a failing coach dooms your next season as well. Might as well make the move now instead of week 7 next season.

IMO Rex Ryan is exactly what the Jets need right now. A bombastic cheerleader type coach who will get fans and players excited about being NY Jets again. Whether it will actually mean wins or not is another story. They have a lot of great defensive pieces on that roster, so I would predict Rex could get them into the 7 seed, especially because Miami is about to implode (IMO) and NE is a year or two away.

I think about that playoff possibility a lot... Very well could have been Bills/Rams in the SB that year, which just goes to show... if Kelly's body could have held up a few more years they finally could have faced a regular old NFC team instead of super team dynasties Imagine those Kelly, Andre, Bruce, Thurman Bills vs teams like the Carolina Panthers and STL Rams instead of the Pro Bowl rosters of Washington and Dallas IMO Kelly's career would end like Elway's did, with finally getting over the hump and winning it all.

I see that and just imagine all the HR paperwork...

What's incredible is that Mike Mularkey was hired by 3 different teams as HC, so I wouldn't rule out an "out of left field" type hire somewhere, likely with the Raiders. My prediction for the Raiders is Pete Carroll.

it already feels like the last few weeks of the season are meaningless I'm excited to see a slate of NFL games that actually matter, everyone plays their best players and the coaches make a game plan and everything

Every time I see or hear McDaniel I'm amazed that he is an NFL HC. He always sounds confused or like he has no idea what is going on. I wrote a whole long post but it just came across as meaner than I wanted it to, so I'll just say that I feel sorry for McDaniel. He's obviously in over his head running an entire program.