Matt Rhule being advised by Tom Coughlin through HC transition with Panthers

Former Jacksonville Jaguars executive Tom Coughlin may not currently be employed by a team in the NFL but that hasn’t stopped him from contributing to the game in some manner. According to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo, Coughlin has been staying busy by …

Former Jacksonville Jaguars executive Tom Coughlin may not currently be employed by a team in the NFL but that hasn’t stopped him from contributing to the game in some manner.

According to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo, Coughlin has been staying busy by advising new Carolina Panthers coach Matt Rhule, who was named the organization’s successor to Ron Rivera earlier in the week.

Rhule’s only experience as an NFL assistant came under Coughlin when he spent the 2012 season on the New York Giants’ staff as the assistant offensive line coach. In the process, he learned a lot and utilized it throughout his other endeavors in the college ranks, specifically Coughlin’s way of interacting with his top players.

“Yeah, I think I took a lot,” Rhule said on the “Rapsheet and Friends” Podcast. “I think what was really key is that year was right before I was head coach. And so as I went to be head coach at Temple, I tried to apply all the things that I had learned from Tom. I thought coach Coughlin was amazing at his ability to get his message across to the entire team by visiting with one guy at a time. We had some personalities, some great players on that team — [Jason Pierre-Paul], Justin Tuck, Eli Manning, Ahmad Bradshaw. I thought Tom did a great job of going to those guys and understanding that they were probably influencers on the team and making sure the message was getting out there.”

Rhule is one of the brightest coaches out there, and regardless of where he’s coached, he’s always been able to get players to rally around him. He’s also influenced the coaches around him in a positive way. Still, with just one year of NFL coaching experience, it’s a given that he’d need a little help learning the ropes and assembling a staff and that is something Coughlin could offer him assistance with.

As fans of the Jags are aware, Coughlin was fired by the Jags in December after the NFLPA called them out for the treatment of their players under Coughlin. However, it appears Rhule still has a great deal of respect for Coughlin who was a very successful coach when he was on the sidelines.

2 duds and 2 studs as Seahawks fall to Packers in divisional round

The Seattle Seahawks fell to the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round to end their season – here are two duds and studs from Sunday.

For a ninth straight time, the Seahawks have come up short at Lambeau Field. On Sunday, Seattle suffered a 28-23 loss at the hands of the Green Bay Packers.

The Seahawks have not won in Green Bay since 1999 and their string of bad luck continued once more as they lost out on a trip back to the NFC Championship game. Seattle also continued its losing streak in divisional-round matchups on the road, as the franchise has not won such a game since 1983.

Although Sunday night featured plenty of questionable officiating, the fact of the matter is the Seahawks squandered plenty of opportunities presented to them. As such, they will now be entering the offseason.

Here are two duds and two studs in Seattle’s frustrating playoff defeat.

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Cameron Smith wins the Sony Open in a sudden-death playoff

Cameron Smith closed with a 2-under 68 and won the Sony Open in Hawaii with a par in a sudden-death playoff over Brendan Steele.

Cameron Smith waited until the 72nd hole to catch Brendan Steele and then made par to win a sudden-death playoff for his first individual title on the PGA Tour.

“That’s one I’ve wanted to tick off for some time,” Smith told Golf Channel.

Smith rallied from three strokes behind entering the final round and canned a 9-foot birdie putt at 18 to shoot 2-under 68 and force extra holes.

On a rainy, soggy day, Steele closed with a 1-over 71 and squandered a two-stroke lead with three holes to go, missing a 6-foot-par putt at 17 and then a 28-foot birdie putt for the win.

On the first playoff hole, Smith blocked his tee shot right, but he drew a decent lie and punched an approach under a tree that chased to within 10 feet of the hole. With the pressure applied, Steele’s wedge from 87 yards away in the fairway flew the green and he pitched past the hole and missed his par putt to the right.

Smith, a native of Brisbane, Australia, was among the Aussie players in the field who pledged to donate $500 per birdie and $1,000 per eagle to aid the Australian wildlife effort.

Smith previously had won the 2018 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a team event with Jonas Blixt.

Smith and Steele finished regulation with a 72-hole total of 11-under 269.

 

Instant analysis of Packers’ 28-23 win over Seahawks in NFC Divisional Round

Instant analysis of the Packers’ 28-23 win over the Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Round of the playoffs.

The Green Bay Packers opened up a 21-3 lead in the first half and then survived a furious Russell Wilson comeback to hold on for a 28-23 win over the Seattle Seahawks during Sunday’s NFC Divisional Round playoff game at Lambeau Field.

Game balls

  • WR Davante Adams: He caught eight passes for 160 yards, two touchdowns and one of the big third-down conversions on the final drive.
  • OLB Preston Smith: His late third-down sack helped the Packers survive. He finished with two sacks and four quarterback hits.
  • LB Oren Burks: He finished with a game-high three tackles on special teams.

Key Stat

9: The number of third-down conversions from the Packers’ offense, including two crucial conversions on the final drive.

Quick takes

– The Packers led 21-3 at halftime but flashbacks of an agonizing afternoon in Seattle in January of 2015 crept into minds during the second half. This team, however, showed real resolve, getting one big stop and one big drive to finish off a win. The 2019 Green Bay Packers just find ways to make big plays late and win games, no matter the aesthetics.

– The dramatic win sends the Packers back to San Francisco, where they lost 37-8 in November.

– Adams had the game of his life. He caught a 20-yard touchdown to cap off the first drive, answered Seattle’s first second-half with a 40-yard touchdown and then helped seal the game with a 32-yard catch on 3rd-and-8 with just over two minutes left. All night long, he delivered in clutch moments with ridiculously good routes.

– Rodgers was terrific on third down. All nine conversions came via his right arm.

– Big props to Jimmy Graham. He converted three huge third downs. The first two eventually ended in touchdowns. The third clinched the win against this former team. His stat line finished at three catches for 49 yards, but Sunday night was his biggest and most important performance as a Packer.

– The Packers defense kept Russell Wilson under pressure for most of the night, but the former Badger quarterback was slippery as ever. He took five sacks but probably avoided 10 others. He was hit 10 times. By the fourth quarter, his disappearing acts had drained the Packers defense. One third-down sack by Preston Smith eliminated Wilson’s final shot.

– Neither team had a turnover, and neither team delivered a stop in the red zone. Overall, only 10 penalties were accepted. It was a clean football game.

– Credit Jared Veldheer. Once again, he played in place of Bryan Bulaga and held his own. Bulaga, the warrior right tackle, missed the game due to an illness that has plagued the Packers for the better part of a month.

– Coach Matt LaFleur became the first Packers coach in franchise history to win a playoff game in his first season.

– Up next: The Packers are headed to San Francisco for a rematch with the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The winner will go to Super Bowl LIV.

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Indiana head coach Archie Miller calls Ohio State a Final Four caliber team

Indiana was able to beat Ohio State in the second half Saturday, but that didn’t change the high opinion Archie Miller has of the Buckeyes.

Indiana used a big start to the second half to separate from Ohio State this weekend and finished it with a twelve-point win. The Buckeyes struggled to slow down Indiana in the first twenty minutes as well, but played resilient and aggressive to reel things back in and took the lead into halftime.

It didn’t last though. The turnovers and poor shooting were just too much to overcome. OSU head coach Chris Holtmann and fans had to feel pretty dejected and frustrated after the game, but that’s not how Hoosier head coach Archie Miller saw things. In fact, he thinks Ohio State is a team that can go pretty deep in March.

While speaking to the media after, Miller heaped praise on this Buckeye squad.

A Final Four team? That would have been much easier to believe a couple of weeks ago, but with Ohio State losing four in a row now and looking absolutely lost on how to take care of the ball, many are wondering if this team was punching above its weight early in the season.

Is Miller just elevating the opponent with his comments like some coaches do, or does he really believe this Buckeye team can make a deep reach in March?

Skip Bayless hits Cowboys for not picking Marvin Lewis over Mike McCarthy

Skip wasn’t a fan of the Cowboys not choosing Marvin Lewis.

Mike McCarthy ended up as the new head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, though former Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis had his name come up during the process.

Jerry Jones and Co. went with McCarthy, whose year away and potential reinvention of himself sold the Cowboys.

Interestingly, someone like Skip Bayless proclaimed Lewis would have been a much better fit for the Cowboys. And that’s notable because for the most part, analysts such as Bayless were never kind to Lewis during his time with the Bengals.

Here’s a brief clip from the show on FS1, where Bayless makes sure to throw in some jabs about the Bengals organization as a whole:

This isn’t the first time during this head-coach carousel that somebody has brought up the idea Lewis did well in Cincinnati despite what he had to work with. And others have noted Zac Taylor’s struggled-filled first year is more proof Lewis was much better than given credit for by most.

Either way, it sounds like Lewis has missed the boat on a chance at another head coach gig — for now.

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Redskins connections bowed out of the playoffs over the weekend

Kirk Cousins exited the playoffs this weekend.

The Washington Redskins have made plenty of their own excitement over the last few weeks while hiring a head coach and shuffling around the front office.

But some interesting Redskins connections have been in the postseason to varying results.

Former franchise quarterback Kirk Cousins, for example, led his Minnesota Vikings to a win over the New Orleans Saints before bowing out of the playoffs during a 27-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

There, Cousins went 21 of 29 but for just 172 yards with one score and a pick during the blowout on the road.

Elsewhere, for those Redskins fans who happened to take a rooting interest in the Baltimore Ravens for whatever reason — sorry. The Lamar Jackson-led Ravens choked at home against the Tennessee Titans in a 28-12 loss despite Jackson’s 365 passing yards and 143 rushing yards.

Redskins fans are free to cheer for whoever at this point, whether it’s Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers or somebody else, but two of the notable connections are now out.

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Russell Wilson ‘did everything he could have done’ in losing effort

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson threw for 271 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 64 yards in Seattle’s loss to Green Bay.

The Seattle Seahawks saw their season end in heartbreaking fashion, falling to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Divisional round, 28-23, after a furious comeback attempt fell just short.

Seattle’s defense struggled for most of the first half, and the offense at times looked stagnant, but while there are many reasons the team was not able to pull off a victory, quarterback Russell Wilson was certainly not one of them.

“I thought Russell was phenomenal tonight,” coach Pete Carroll commented after the game. “He did everything he could have done. His courage and his toughness showed up. His resolve to find ways was all over the field, running and passing. The throws that he made the runs that he made, the escapes that he pulled off. Always going to win is what he was doing. It was awesome, it was awesome to watch him be a part of it. Really proud of him and the rest of the guys that fought for this.”

Wilson finished with 21 completions for 277 yards and a touchdown, good for a 106.5 passer rating. He also carried the ball seven times for a team-leading 64 yards, using his legs to propel the team on an 84-yard drive that resulted in his one touchdown pass to Tyler Lockett late in the third quarter.

Wilson was a Pro Bowl selection and an All-Pro nominee this year after perhaps the finest season of his career. Despite his numbers tailing off, the 30-year-old still finished with 341 completions, 4,110 yards and an outstanding 31-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio – numbers that had him in the MVP conversation all season long.

The Seahawks will have some overhaul this offseason, on both sides of the ball, but one thing is for sure: Wilson will be elite behind center once again in 2020.

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Report: George Edwards not returning as Vikings defensive coordinator

Edwards has been with the Vikings since 2014.

It appears as if the Vikings will be looking for both an offensive and a defensive coordinator for 2020.

Earlier on Sunday, it was reported that the team’s offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski would be the next coach of the Cleveland Browns. And late Sunday night, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards is not expected to return in 2020.

Edwards’ contract is up and it will not be extended.

Edwards has been the team’s defensive coordinator since 2014. With that being said, coach Mike Zimmer is the brains behind the defense and makes most of the calls.

It feels like there has to be a candidate that the Vikings have in mind if they are making such a move. We’ll keep you updated.

Texans J.J. Watt struggles in disappointing 51-31 AFC divisional loss to Chiefs

Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt did not play like his usual self in the 51-31 AFC divisional loss to the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday.

The 51-31 loss in the AFC divisional at the Kansas City Chiefs did not go as expected for the Houston Texans, and was the complete opposite of the wild-card game against the Buffalo Bills for both the team and defensive end J.J. Watt.

The game between Kansas City and Houston was a tale of two quarters after the Texans jumped out to an early 24-0 lead that left everyone at Arrowhead Stadium and around the nation stunned.

The Chiefs came into the game as 10-point favorites and instead they were on the verge of suffering an enormous rout, but then the tides of momentum changed when they marched down the field, scored, then scored again, then scored again and the Texans were never able to recover. 

For Watt, his performance was nowhere near the level it was against the Bills.

Against Buffalo, the 6-5 defensive end recorded a sack on quarterback Josh Allen that forced the Bills to settle for a field goal, which kept the game within two possessions and helped turned the tides towards Houston’s favor as the team eventually came back to win in overtime.

Watt also pressured Allen multiple times and forced hurried throws in the win.

Against Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes, however, Watt’s impact was almost non-existent as he finished with zero sacks, zero tackles and did not really threaten to bring down Mahomes at any point in the game.

There were multiple possessions where Watt looked gassed on the field, and he seemed to be slower than the Chiefs players on many plays although in Watt’s defense, so did many of the Texans’ defenders after the first quarter.

Watt did have one deflection in the second half that popped into the air and had an outside shot of being intercepted, but the ball fell harmlessly to the ground and the Chiefs scored on the drive regardless, even if it was just a field goal.

Despite the struggles, Watt should be commended for even playing in the game at all. As everyone knows, the former Wisconsin Badger’s season was expected to end after he tore his pectoral muscle back in Week 8 against the Oakland Raiders.

Now Watt has an entire offseason to completely let the muscle heal up and prepare for the 2020 regular season.

Watt ends the 2019 regular season and playoffs, in which he played 10 games, with five sacks, one forced fumble and 26 total sacks.