MichiganCardinal

When the Steelers hire Tomlin and the Irish offer Cignetti $100MM.... does he accept?

He's only 54. I think he'll take a year to talk at a camera for $10MM. He'll be back when the Bengals, Packers, Eagles, or Chiefs offer him the job.

Coaching Carousel Predictions 2.0: The AFC North Doesn't Need Coaches Pittsburgh Steelers: Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame HC Baltimore Ravens: Jesse Minter, Chargers DC Las Vegas Raiders: Chris Shula, Rams DC Tennessee Titans: Mike LaFleur, Rams OC Miami Dolphins: John Harbaugh, former Ravens HC New York Giants: Davis Webb, Broncos QB Coach Atlanta Falcons: Kevin Stefanski, former Browns HC Cleveland Browns: Kliff Kingsbury, former Commanders OC Arizona Cardinals: Klint Kubiak, Seahawks OC Brian Dabboll: Baltimore Ravens OC Pete Carroll: USC Trojans Special Advisor Brian Callahan: Cincinnati Bengals Offensive Analyst Mike McDaniel: Detroit Lions OC Raheem Morris: Washington Commanders DC Jonathan Gannon: New York Giants DC Mike Tomlin: Amazon Prime Thursday Night Football Talking Head

Some more competition for the top OC candidates. Though I hear Sherrone Moore is unemployed.

Too early to tell really. In 2024, the first defensive player off the board wasn't until 1.15. There are both high quality defensive and offensive linemen in the draft. I would expect one of them to be there at 1.17.

Faulk would be an excellent cultural and schematic fit. He's everything Josh Paschal was supposed to be and then some. Faulk is an absolute monster in stuffing the run and is one of the hardest workers you will find in the college game. On paper a starting defensive front of Hutch-McNeill-Williams-Faulk should realistically develop into the best run defense in the league. I would venture to say that he has more pass rushing chops than his stats would suggest. Auburn lined him up as a 2-gap in a 3-4 base, between the guard and tackle, and allowed him to just feast on the run. Which is great, unless you're an edge rusher looking for millions of dollars in first round money and need sacks to do so. In an NFL nickel base defense, I wouldn't expect him to jump off the page in 2026 with sack numbers, but I think he could develop into a guy that by 2027 or 2028 can also line up on the edge on 3rd and long and win a one-on-one against a tackle, getting after the QB. As it is though, he's more of a IDLman that will collapse the pocket on the interior.

Lions were the first team to be fined for violating the rule when they hired Mariucci. The Lions defense was that they contacted black coaches but they declined an interview because it was obvious the Lions wanted Mariucci. Because Matt Millen was a ****ing joke.

Divisional Round Saturday 4:30pm: Bills -1 @ Broncos Saturday 8:00pm: 49ers +7.5 @ Seahawks Sunday 3:00pm: Texans +2.5 @ Patriots Sunday 6:30pm: Rams -4 @ Bears Bills getting a point on the road in Mile High against the 1-seed tells you everything is up for grabs this year. I like the 49ers to cover too, they aren't going to roll over and die, and Darnold needs to not turn into a January pumpkin. Speaking of pumpkins, I think the clock has struck midnight in Chicago. Bills over Broncos, 27-24 Seahawks over 49ers, 20-14 Texans over Patriots, 17-9 Rams over Bears, 38-20

This was pretty good. 5/6 and the one I missed was an all-time choke job.

Blough was a career backup QB. Three teams had already paid him a total of over $6.5MM to not play football on Sundays. He basically built a career as an NFL scout team QB and then leveraged that knowledge into coaching. He was no stranger to coaching when he ditched the helmet for a baseball cap. Coaches are always free to decline interviews if they don't feel they are going to get a fair shot. Glenn declined an interview with the Patriots. The Patriots last year were a decent example of how it should not be used, they interviewed Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton, before hiring Mike Vrabel. Back in the day Mel Tucker (lol) declined an interview with the Jaguars.

If anyone is curious, the yearly letter to season ticket holders from Sheila Hamp: Dear LLM’s, I want to start by thanking you for your commitment to our team and the support you show throughout the season. I am always blown away by the energy you create inside Ford Field and the advantage you give our team every time we run out of the tunnel. I also want to acknowledge that our results on the field this season were not what any of us envisioned and frankly, were not good enough. While we do not believe it is a time for drastic change, this is an opportunity for us to refocus, evolve, and move forward. I am proud of the roster we have built and the 36 wins we have accumulated over the last three seasons. That success doesn’t happen by accident, but it also does not guarantee future success. It is incumbent upon us to continue growing toward our ultimate goal of bringing a championship to all of you and the city of Detroit. I can assure you that we are committed to looking at everything we do to ensure we are performing at the highest level. Through conversations with Rod, Brad and Dan, we are all aligned with this thinking and have already started meetings to address how we move forward. We are excited for what 2026 will bring and some of the new elements we will introduce for all of you, our most loyal fans. Thank you again for your commitment. Go Lions! Sheila Hamp

Aaron Glenn was getting interviews with the Broncos after the terrible 2021 season. He probably wasn't a serious candidate then, but by 2024 he had developed into one, both on the field and in the interview, and the Jets hired him. Now look at Kelvin Sheppard getting an interview this cycle. By 2027 or 2028, maybe he's the next Jets head coach (lol). Your objective standard can't be Peter Griffin's border crossing skin color chart. You're going to have some rare weird results, like McDaniel. But if their goal is getting minorities more opportunities it's hard not to see the rule as a success.

I wanted Will Anderson so bad in 2023. We were picking #6 and that was my pipe dream. Then the Texans moved up for him. Worked out pretty well with Gibbs and Campbell though. Hard to regret either pick.

He’s so good in like 70% of games and so terrible in the rest. The 70% tends to include games against the Lions. And the rest tends to include the playoffs.

That would go poorly, but it would be fun to watch. Please, proceed.

There is a surprising amount of reporters covering this. Maybe I'm just optimistic, but I think McDaniel may really want the job.

Now this feels Rooney Rule. Probably not a ringing sign of endorsement when your own team won't publicly guarantee your job is safe.

Though if memory serves, McDaniel satisfies the rule. The 49ers got a draft pick when he went to Miami.

You're right, starting in 2021 it had to be external. It was only 2022 that it grew to include coordinators.

Maybe. They could probably just interview Scottie Montgomery and David Shaw though if they didn't at all care for Martin... Looking at Martin's resume, I'm guessing they are interested in hiring him for Passing Game Coordinator, but can't interview him for that, even though the Ravens don't have a coach.

I think my take is more long-term versus short-term. The Packers bet the future on the now and finished 9-8-1 with a wildcard exit. The Lions refused to stray from the course and finished 9-8, a record sometimes good enough and sometimes not for a chance. The Packers finish is better in theory, because they had the chance. But now the Lions can add and improve, while the Packers are handicapped. I'd rather a 9-8 season where we miss the playoffs or squeak in every three or four years, if it means being a true contender the other two or three years. As opposed to mortgaging the future for one big shot, only to fall short at that one big shot and have to struggle to make it to 9-8 for the next 3-4+ years.

Browns and Raiders are probably worse jobs on some larger scale levels. I sincerely doubt that either will seriously improve as an organization until a Martha Hamp falls into their laps. I'd put it Ravens >>> Giants >> Cardinals > Titans > Falcons > Dolphins > Browns > Raiders

There's probably some truth to this and it's not all that dissimilar from what Ben Johnson did. Benjamin could have gone to the Panthers in 2024 but bet on himself, waited a year to bolster the resume, and landed a better opportunity. Hypothetically, if McDaniel gets an offer from both the Lions (for OC) and Browns (for HC), which would put him in a better position in 2029?

On paper, his Green Bay teams are not very talented. Particularly at the talent/speed positions (RB, WR, CB) and the interior trenches (particularly IDL). I also don't think Jordan Love would still be a starting quarterback in the NFL on many other teams. So to the extent he gets the most out of the least, he deserves some credit for routinely making the playoffs. That being said, I also don't think they're winning a Super Bowl with him. It's not all that dissimilar from the Ravens problem. He seems to have hit a ceiling, but it's not clear if that's a talent issue or a coaching issue, and if you fire him he instantly gets a job and probably makes you look stupid when he pulls a Mike Vrabel.