The NFL was off this weekend, as the Super Bowl awaits next Sunday. The pre-Super Bowl bye week was even extra quiet this year thanks to the Pro Bowl Games being moved out to Tuesday.
But what stayed busy was the league’s hiring cycle. The final two head coaching vacancies now appear to be filled, one with the brother of a certain Green Bay Packers coach and the other evidently going to an individual who is set to coach the Seahawks in the Super Bowl before signing on as a head coach for next season.
But in both cases, there could be knock-on effects that include the Packers. Specifically, Adam Stenavich’s name could be in consideration for playcalling offensive coordinator jobs, both under his current boss’s brother in Arizona or in Seattle.
Is Matt LaFleur actively hoping that Stenavich goes elsewhere? That’s probably a bit of a stretch, but it does feel like there is an impetus within 1265 Lombardi for him to move on.
Meanwhile, some Packers fans may continue to wonder “what if” about the team’s defensive coordinator position, particularly if the unit does not see improvement under Jonathan Gannon. Jim Leonhard, the former Wisconsin Badger safety and defensive coordinator, was reportedly under consideration before the Packers hired Gannon — doing so a day before they would have been able to interview Leonhard.
Now Leonhard has his DC job, going back to a different type of home in Buffalo. It will be natural to compare the performances of the Packers’ and Bills’ defenses over the next few years, but hopefully Gannon will prove to be a good choice.
Jim Leonhard getting first NFL defensive coordinator job | Packersnews.com
It was only a matter of time before Leonhard got to lead an NFL defense, and instead of coming back to his home state, he’ll be back where his NFL playing career started instead.
Raiders zeroing in on Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak as their next head coach | NFL.com
Kubiak is expected to get the Raiders job (though they can’t hire him before the Super Bowl), while Mike LaFleur lands in Arizona with the Cardinals.
Packers coaching news: Duggan to Miami, Stenavich’s second chance in Seattle? | Packers Wire
Adam Stenavich interviewed for the Seattle job last year, which Kubiak got instead. It wouldn’t be a shock to see him considered for that job again now that Kubiak is headed out, and he might get some interest from the other LaFleur in Arizona as well. It remains to be seen whether the younger LaFleur will call offensive plays, however, since he did not do that during his three years as the Rams’ OC.
Predicting Packers’ Decisions on $29 Million Worth of Roster Bonuses | SI.com
Bill Huber predicts that the Packers will in fact release Nate Hobbs and that they will either release or restructure the contract of Aaron Banks, both of which are fairly bold predictions.
Punxsutawney Phil prepares to issue his Groundhog Day weather verdict from Gobbler’s Knob | AP
Come on, Phil. Give us some good news for once.
