20 JAN PAYTON, KELLEN INTERVIEWS WILL BE HELD Professional soccer player Anton Walkes has died after a boating accident in Florida, authorities said Thursday, a tragedy impacting the sports world in Charlotte.
Walkes, 25, was a player for MLS club Charlotte FC, owned by David Tepper, who also owns the NFL’s Carolina Panthers.
Tepper said everyone involved was “devastated by the tragic death of Anton Walkes. … He was a great son, father, partner and teammate whose bright outlook on life touched everyone he met.”
In light of the tragedy, Tepper and the Panthers contingent, who had been in New York Friday to interview head coaching candidate Sean Payton, instead traveled back to North Carolina while Payton’s interview was on hold.
Also postponed is the Panthers’ planned visit to Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.
17 JAN ANOTHER DQ SUITOR Add the Indianapolis Colts to Dan Quinn’s interview request list.
It’s the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator who will be interviewed Friday for the top job with the Denver Broncos also on the wish list in Indy. Quinn, of course, will be juggling the visit or visits while prioritizing his preparation for Sunday’s Dallas playoff game in San Francisco.
PAYTON UPDATE JANUARY 16 The Houston Texans have interviewed Sean Payton, an NFL source told TexansDaily.com.
Meanwhile, Payton has offered a revelation himself, saying the cost of trading him for an interested team would be “a mid or late first-round pick.”
Payton has since dismissed the idea of the Cowboys as a viable target for him as he moves out of “retirement”. …while Mike McCarthy appears safe in Dallas.
Payton is a top candidate for the Denver job, as is Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who will be interviewing the Broncos on Friday.
Jim Harbaugh has withdrawn from Denver considerations and has opted to remain at the University of Michigan.
14 JAN BYE CLIFF! FOX reports that former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who was fired this week, is telling potential employers (who may want him as an offensive coordinator) that he is currently unavailable.
And why not?
Kliff apparently bought a plane ticket.
A ticket to Thailand.
A one-way ticket to Thailand.
JANUARY 14 SEAN SWEEPSTAKES The Denver Broncos and top head coaching contestant Sean Payton… could be a match?
the Washington Post reports that the Broncos “appear to be the front runner” for Payton, the former coach who won the Saints’ Super Bowl.
Payton, 59, faces the Broncos in Los Angeles on Tuesday morning. Cowboys defense coordinator Dan Quinn is also high on Denver’s wish list.
JANUARY 13 MCVAY REMAINS Sean McVay retiring?
That has to wait another year.
The Super Bowl-winning Rams coach has opted to keep working instead of taking a break and going on TV, according to multiple reports.
McVay has recently told his assistants they can find other employment, and in his own visits to the media has offered cryptic answers about his future…
There were rumors McVay could be leaving last year after the Rams won Super Bowl LVI against the Bengals, with reports he was handed a five-year, $100 million offer to join the Amazon broadcast booth in the losing season and rebuild…at least until a year from now, when we’re sure we’ll be telling the same story again.
13 JAN BILL’S REPLACEMENT? They said they could “make changes.” The New England Patriots seem to be taking this pretty seriously. From our Patriots SI crew in Boston:
In an uncharacteristic show of transparency, the Pats issued a statement Thursday night both confirming their intention to begin interviewing potential offensive coordinators and announcing that they are “in talks to extend contract with inside linebacker coach.” Jerod Mayo” to stay with the team long-term.
The new extension for Mayo – getting feelers from other hiring teams – will likely come with an improved title (possibly defensive coordinator?) and maybe set the stage for Mayo to succeed Bill Belichick at the age of 70 as head coach?
Read more here.
JAN 11 SET SEAN. FIRE THE REST Our man Mike Fisher writes, “Welcome back to the NFL, Houston Texans. You’re almost a real, viable professional franchise again. … All because you made an interview request for Sean Payton.
Payton is the “prom king” of this coaching carousel, by far the most trusted asset among the “new” potential head coaches. We don’t really have to rattle off his resume, but… In 16 seasons with the Saints as head coach, Payton helped lead the team to seven division titles, three NFC championship games (2006, 2009 and 2018) and a Super Bowl XLIV victory.
And Fish’s proposition for the unfortunate Texans, should Payton really be interested?
Complete control. Like Belichick. Like Popovich. And everyone else is fucking avoiding him.
Fish’s Sean Payton column is here.
11 JAN 2 OC MOVES? the Jets are parting ways with offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur, league sources tell CowboysSI.com. … a mess that’s happening just as Dallas’ Kellen Moore – “the smartest guy in every room!” – enters the coaching carousel as a candidate for the top job in Carolina.
JANUARY 10 WASHINGTON FIRE The Washington Commanders are looking for a new offensive coordinator following Tuesday’s firing of Scott Turner.
The 40-year-old Turner coordinated offense for the Commanders on Ron Rivera’s staff for three seasons, but Washington ranked 20th in total offense this season, averaging 330.3 yards per game.
There are a number of candidates who could be linked with the job, but perhaps the biggest name might be former Denver Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett, who was fired on Dec. 26 after playing just 4 in 15 games -11 had won.
The primary reason he was hired by the Broncos was his success leading Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers to an MVP award during his 37-year 2021 season.
Rodgers is expected to be a free agent this offseason and could be looking for a change of scenery, especially after the Packers missed the playoffs with an 8-9 record.
It’s a long road for Rodgers to move to Washington DC in 2023, but there was interest in him coming to the nation’s capital when he was pondering his future a year ago. But if he were to go, taking his former offensive coordinator with him could elevate the commanders from a good team to one of the league’s elite.
Turner, of course, is the son of former Cowboys Super Bowl winners coordinator and Washington head coach Norv Turner.
JANUARY 10: DQ RESPONDS, HARBAUGH VISITS The Dallas Cowboys ended the regular season with a disappointing 26-6 loss en route to the Washington Commanders, but that hasn’t dampened interest in league circles in Dan Quinn as head coach.
But on Monday, Quinn himself “slowed things down” just a little.
“Everyone asks you, you’re flattered…” Quinn said of the Broncos’ interview request on The Star Monday. “So right where my feet are and enjoying, and then we’re going to have a kick-ass week.”
That’s the Cowboys’ pretty standard response to questions like this, but it’s also the truth about how he runs his business. Yes, Quinn is once again a candidate for the Denver job, a position he interviewed for a year ago before Denver finally settled on Nathaniel Hackett.
In the meantime, The Broncos conducted a visit with Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh on Monday. And Sean Payton remains at the top of her wish list.
JAN 9: CLIFF FIRES Last March, Texas native Kliff Kingsbury signed a six-year extension as Cardinals head coach.
And now it’s over.
Kingsbury led the Cardinals to a 4-13 record, their worst record since Kingsbury arrived in Arizona, and now he’s been fired.
JANUARY 9 QUINN DENVER INQUIRY Dan Quinn and the Cowboys have received a request from Denver to interview the defensive coordinator, NFL Network first reported.
Quinn was a finalist for the same job a year ago. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has vowed to let Quinn work at The Star again.
8 JAN LOVIE OUT, EAGLES COACH IN? Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith has been fired, and sources tell us Texans and Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon will have a mutual interest.
Smith finished his only season in charge 3-13-1.
Multiple league sources have named Gannon as a top contender for the Texans’ potential opener, having made a strong impression in two interviews last season before the Texans promoted Smith from defensive coordinator.
Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero are other highly regarded candidates.
JANUARY 8: QUINN VS. THE DENVER FIELD Sean Payton’s people have whispered that he has no interest in the Denver Broncos. And Jim Harbaugh came straight out this week and said he plans to stay at the University of Michigan.
Both of them… um… fibbed. And what they actually do impacts the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff, particularly defensive coordinator Dan Quinn and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.
Read all about it here.
JANUARY 8: LOVIE OUT? Sources tell us coach Lovie Smith’s job security is at serious risk ahead of the final game of another dismal season for the Texans. Additionally, we were told that Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon and Houston would have a mutual interest if the job became vacant. Stay tuned …
JAN 8: PISSING RETIRED? Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees is no stranger to hanging the game sheet.
Pees, 73, is the NFL’s oldest coach and has retired twice, once following the 2017 season with the Baltimore Ravens before reversing course a month later and joining the Tennessee Titans, and again two years later, to finally returning to coaching after a season off Arthur Smith once took over as head coach at Atlanta.
And when he retires? Here is the internal list for the Falcons jump.
JAN 2: “DUMB” TRAIN – RON IN DANGER? Cowboys at Commanders comes hot on the heels of this story: Stupid coach Ron Rivera gets fired by Dan Snyder?
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