Eagles’ coordinators land coaching jobs
The coordinators for the Super Bowl runner-up Eagles landed first-time head-coaching gigs 48 hours after their loss to the Chiefs.
Defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon replaced Kliff Kingsbury in Arizona on Tuesday, and offensive coordinator Shane Steichen was hired in Indianapolis, succeeding interim head coach Jeff Saturday.
Saturday was a stunning midseason hire because he had no coaching experience at any level. He was considered for the permanent position, but the Colts decided to make Steichen the league’s third 37-year-old head coach instead.
Steichen’s résumé includes working with Philip Rivers and helping to mentor Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts.
Gannon, 40, takes over an Arizona team that went 4-13. His smothering defenses piled up sacks the last two seasons, but his résumé took a bit of a hit in the Super Bowl when the Eagles coughed up a double-digit halftime lead against the Chiefs.
That didn’t faze Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill, who is trying to find a leader who can help the franchise win its first NFL championship since 1947. Helping in that cause is the
No. 3 overall pick in the upcoming draft.
Unlike Steichen, Gannon doesn’t need a quarterback, even though Kyler Murray is expected to miss the start of next season as he recovers from a torn right anterior cruciate ligament.
That completes this year’s protracted hiring cycle, which featured just five openings.
In other coaching news, the Ravens hired Georgia’s Todd Monken to be their offensive coordinator. Monken, 57, helped guide Georgia to back-to-back national championships. His offense averaged 501.1 yards and 40.7 points per game last season.
The Panthers added even more experience to new coach Frank Reich’s staff, hiring Jim Caldwell as a senior assistant. The 68-yearold Caldwell brings a wealth of NFL experience, having coached the Lions and Colts.
Raiders release Carr
Quarterback Derek Carr was released by the Raiders as the club evaluates its future at the position.
The move was expected after Carr was benched with two games remaining this season because the Raiders would have owed him $40.4 million in guaranteed money over the next two years if he remained on the roster beyond Tuesday. By releasing Carr, the Raiders’ dead-cap hit will be $5.6 million next season.
The Raiders tried to work out a trade with the Saints, and Carr visited the team last week. He exercised his no-trade clause and turned down the deal Sunday because he didn’t want to take a pay cut.
Rodgers to start ‘retreat’ this week
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers hasn’t started his “darkness retreat” yet. Rodgers initially revealed his unorthodox offseason plan last week on “The Pat McAfee Show,” saying he would spend four days and four nights in dark isolation at some point after the Super Bowl.
“This thing has been planned for about four months, and it was always the same date — it was always the end of this week,” Rodgers told McAfee on Tuesday.
“I’m probably going to have a better sense of where I’m at in my life,” Rodgers said. “I didn’t say, ‘I’m going to my darkness retreat just to figure out if I’m going to play next year or retire.’ ”
Vikings RB Cook has shoulder surgery
Vikings running back Dalvin Cook had surgery to repair a shoulder injury that the team said was “sustained over the past few seasons.” Cook is expected to make a full recovery before the start of the regular season.”