Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
Packers working to nail down deal with Bisaccia
Green Bay — The Green Bay Packers remain the front-runners for former Las Vegas Raiders interim coach Rich Bisaccia, but as of Monday evening, the club had not announced a deal for him to become special teams coordinator and several sources with connections to Bisaccia said they had not heard a decision was final.
Coach Matt LaFleur and his staff were returning Monday from Las Vegas, where they had coached the NFC in the Pro Bowl on Sunday and LaFleur had likely met with Bisaccia.
Sources told the Journal Sentinel late last week that LaFleur had targeted Bisaccia as his replacement for fired Maurice Drayton and was talking to him about joining his staff.
Since then, the other team widely reported to be interested in hiring Bisaccia, the Chicago Bears, hired Richard Hightower to coach special teams, leaving the Packers as the apparent leaders in the clubhouse.
Several agents and coaches around the league have said they have been told the Packers were prepared to make Bisaccia the highest-paid special teams coach in the league at around $2 million per year, which would be much more than most teams would pay.
A source said the San Francisco 49ers, who fired Hightower after their playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams, had reached out to Bisaccia about becoming their special teams coach. It’s not known if he has shown interest in joining them. The 49ers have another critical position they must fill after offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel left to become Miami Dolphins head coach, so they may not be in a rush to hire a special teams coach.
Bisaccia has a strong connection to the Packers. He coached with defensive coordinator Joe Barry at Tampa Bay, and Barry is the son-in-law of Bisaccia’s best friend, Rod Marinelli, who is the Raiders’ defensive line coach.
If the Packers can’t reel in Bisaccia, a good alternative has arisen: former Baltimore Ravens special teams coach Jerry Rosburg. Rosburg, along with head coach John Harbaugh, helped make the Ravens one of the league’s best on special teams from 2008-19.
Rosburg, a source said, is trying to get back into the league after retiring in ’19 to spend more time with his family. The Ravens ranked in the top five in special teams in each of his final seven years.