Tag: Brian Griese

7 possible candidates for Commanders’ offensive coordinator position

Here are seven names who could be Washington’s new offensive coordinator. Some good, some bad here.

The Washington Commanders hired Dan Quinn as their new head coach on Thursday. While the move wasn’t popular with a large segment of Washington’s fan base, it was the first significant move from new general manager Adam Peters.

Quinn is a defensive-minded head coach, so who he hires as his offensive coordinator is critical. Many Washington fans wanted an offensive-minded head coach like Ben Johnson because the Commanders are expected to draft a quarterback at No. 2 overall in the 2024 NFL draft.

The prevailing thought is that an offensive-minded coach paired with a young quarterback is a recipe for success, but that’s not always true. Some believe that if a defensive-minded coach begins succeeding, other teams will poach the offensive coordinator. That is true, but that also indicates success. The key for teams hiring a defensive-minded head coach is to have a pipeline of sorts to replace the offensive coordinator.

In his opening press conference, Peters said leadership was the most important trait he desired. Quinn’s hiring is proof. Quinn is known as a great leader and teacher. When he was Atlanta’s head coach, he built a terrific coaching staff but didn’t have an answer for an offensive coordinator after losing Kyle Shanahan and Steve Sarkisian in back-to-back seasons.

If Quinn is to succeed in Washington, he must get this hire right. Here are seven potential offensive coordinators for Quinn.

Are the Saints waiting on the 49ers’ Super Bowl to hire a new offensive coordinator?

Are the Saints waiting on the 49ers’ Super Bowl to hire a new offensive coordinator? A couple of popular candidates are tied up until Feb. 12:

The San Francisco 49ers are headed to Super Bowl LVIII, and they’re taking some popular offensive coordinator candidates with them. Passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak and quarterbacks coach Brian Griese have both interviewed with the New Orleans Saints at least once. But they cannot be hired as offensive coordinator — with New Orleans or any other team — until after the Super Bowl.

With the Saints’ search for an offensive coordinator dragging out longer than fans may have anticipated, it’s fair to wonder if New Orleans is waiting for Kubiak or Griese to become available.

Earlier this week NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill reported that the search “has narrowed considerably” and that the Saints “are adhering to league rules as they go through the process.”

That report came just before the Saints interviewed Baltimore Ravens wide receivers coach Greg Lewis and met with ex-Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy for the second time, but it’s still noteworthy. It would suggest that the Saints are abiding by the NFL anti-tampering policy for assistants coaching in the Super Bowl, which states the following:

No Coordinator interviews can be requested, granted, or occur after the Saturday of Conference Championship weekend (Saturday, January 27) for any assistant coach whose club is still participating in the postseason.

So we’re in a dead period. If the Saints have identified Kubiak or Griese as their top candidate (or if they simply want to interview them again and go over the job more thoroughly), they must wait until Feb. 12 to take action. The NFL wants its coaches in the Super Bowl focusing on, well, the Super Bowl. Interviewing with other teams is seen as a distraction.

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Jerrod Johnson pulls out of Saints OC search, will return to Houston

Breaking: Jerrod Johnson pulls out of Saints offensive coordinator search, will return to Texans

The New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator search has lost another candidate, but this time it wasn’t someone getting hired by a different team. Top candidate Jerrod Johnson has told teams that he will be returning to the Houston Texans as their quarterbacks coach for another season, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. He’ll have an opportunity to gain experience and improve his standing after another year working with C.J. Stroud and Bobby Slowik.

New Orleans wasn’t the only team in pursuit of Johnson, but they made him a priority. The Saints had interviewed Johnson twice, with him being near the top of their list as well as multiple other teams. They have a second interview planned with former Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy  on Wednesday, who will be the only other candidate to meet with the Saints twice.

As for the rest of their list (that are still available), it is as follows: Greg Lewis, Klint Kubiak, Brian Griese, Ronald Curry, Mike Sullivan and Brian Johnson. Others may have met with the team but not been reported, as was the case for Getsy, so stay tuned.

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49ers’ advance to Super Bowl LVIII could draw out Saints OC search even longer

The 49ers’ advance to Super Bowl LVIII could draw out the Saints OC search even longer. Some top candidates are tied up for the next two weeks:

The San Francisco 49ers are advancing to Super Bowl LVIII, where they will face the Kansas City Chiefs — and possibly extend the New Orleans Saints’ search for an offensive coordinator even further. Impatient fans have already called into question the team’s pursuit of a new play caller with other teams announcing hires, even snapping up three of the nine candidates to interview with the Saints.

But if the Saints are eyeing anyone on the 49ers’ staff (or the Chiefs’) they’ll have to wait until after the Super Bowl to make things official and put pens to paper. They’ve already interviewed two key Kyle Shanahan assistants in passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak and quarterbacks coach Brian Griese. Neither candidate has had a second interview reported with New Orleans, but that could be in the works.

And they won’t be available to move into a new office until after coaching the big game in February. That’s been the case in recent years for coaches hired away from teams competing the Super Bowl like former Philadelphia Eagles coordinators Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon, as well as former Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell. They each took many assistants and support staff from their former teams.

So if that’s a path the Saints intend to follow, fans will have to hurry up and wait for movement. Some teams move quicker than others but New Orleans has stuck by its patient approach. Hopefully it will lead them to the right decision and produce results Saints fans can be proud of.

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Pros and cons of every OC candidate Saints have interviewed

Breaking down the pros and cons of every offensive coordinator candidate the New Orleans Saints have interviewed:

The writing was on the wall for Pete Carmichael following the New Orleans Saints’ 2023 season. He was let go after 14 years as the team’s offensive coordinator and the Saints will need to replace him. They’ve already done a number of interviews, but a few coaches have already been hired away.

Carmichael was a nice coach under Payton, but really lacked the ability to run the offense without him. As Dennis Allen is a defensive head coach, whoever the Saints hire will have to carry the load of the offense.

Here are the pros and cons to every offensive coordinator candidate the Saints have interviewed so far (that is still available):

2 49ers assistants interview for Saints offensive coordinator job

The Saints interviewed two #49ers assistants for their open OC job:

The 49ers coaching staff is a popular one for teams to raid when it comes time to hire new head coaches and assistants. Defensive coordinator Steve Wilks has already had a couple head coach interviews. Klint Kubiak also interviewed for the Bears open offensive coordinator position. Now Kubiak and quarterbacks coach Brian Griese are on the Saints’ radar for their OC opening. They’ve both interviewed with New Orleans according to New Orleans Football’s Nick Underhill.

Kubiak is San Francisco’s passing game specialist on offense. This is his first year with the 49ers after bouncing around the NFL as a QB coach, offensive assistant and offensive coordinator. His one venture into being an OC came with the Vikings in 2021. That year Minnesota finished No. 14 in points and No. 12 in yards.

Griese getting an interview is extremely interesting since the 2022 campaign was his first foray into coaching in the NFL. He helped guide Trey Lance, Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy through a tumultuous 2022 campaign where Lance went down in Week 2, and Garoppolo went down in Week 13, forcing Purdy, the final pick of that year’s draft, into a starting job. Purdy’s success has certainly helped put Griese on the map for OC openings despite his lack of overall coaching experience.

Hires from coaching staffs won’t be made until after the Super Bowl or after the 49ers are eliminated. For now Kubiak and Griese are two integral pieces of San Francisco trying to get over the hump and win an NFC championship.

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Saints interview 49ers assistants Klint Kubiak, Brian Griese for OC vacancy

The Saints interviewed 49ers assistant coaches Klint Kubiak and Brian Griese for their offensive coordinator vacancy:

We can add two more names to the New Orleans Saints’ search for their next offensive coordinator: NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill first reported that the Saints interviewed San Francisco 49ers assistant coaches Klint Kubiak and Brian Griese for the vacant position. Both coaches have drawn attention from other teams in this hiring cycle.

Kubiak, 36, came up through the ranks on the Denver Broncos and Minnesota Vikings before being named Minnesota’s offensive coordinator in 2021. He returned to Denver as their passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2022, and joined the 49ers in 2023 to work as their passing game coordinator under Kyle Shanahan. He’s the son of former Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak.

Griese, 48, spent a decade working in broadcasting for ESPN before joining the 49ers as their quarterbacks coach in 2022. He’s played a key role in developing Brock Purdy for the starting job as a former seventh-round draft pick. Before all that, Griese enjoyed a successful career as a Pro Bowl quarterback himself in the NFL and as a national champion at Michigan.

So Kubiak is younger and has called plays before in the NFL, while Griese’s coaching career is just beginning to take off after he found success both as a player and in the media. Shanahan’s system has been successfully installed in other teams around the league (like the Miami Dolphins) so it makes sense for the Saints to consider it as an option.

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The best player to ever wear No. 14 for the Broncos was …

Brian Griese made the Pro Bowl in 2000 after passing for 2,688 yards and 19 touchdowns and going 7-3 as a starter.

The best player to ever wear No. 14 for the Denver Broncos was quarterback Brian Griese, who played for the club from 1998-2002.

After playing college football at Michigan, Griese was picked by the Broncos in the third round of the 1998 NFL draft. He spent his first season as a backup behind John Elway. After winning his second Super Bowl, Elway retired during the 1999 offseason and Griese took over the starting job.

Griese’s first season was underwhelming — he went 4-9 as a starter while throwing for 3,032 yards and 14 touchdowns against 14 interceptions. The quarterback improved the following year with 2,688 yards, 19 touchdowns and four interceptions in 10 games. He went 7-3 as a starter in 2000, earning a Pro Bowl nod.

Griese went on to play two more years with the Broncos, finishing his time in Denver with a 27-24 win-loss record, 11,763 passing yards, 71 touchdowns and 53 interceptions. Griese had an impossible task of following in the footsteps of Elway and he became a backup journeyman after his time with the Broncos.

Griese spent time with the Miami Dolphins, Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the final years of his career. Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton currently wears No. 14, but we did not include active players for this series. Other players who wore No. 14 in Denver include receivers Brandon Stokley and Cody Latimer.

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Broncos vs. Rams series history: Denver looks to snap 4-game losing streak vs. L.A.

The Broncos have lost four-straight games against the Rams, with their last victory against them in 2002.

The Denver Broncos are hoping to give fans a Christmas gift with a win against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

Denver is coming off a win against the banged-up Arizona Cardinals, while the Rams are fresh off a Monday night loss versus the Green Bay Packers.

Both teams have underwhelmed this season. The Broncos’ offense that everyone thought would be a top threat in the AFC has never quite materialized. Los Angeles is the defending Super Bowl champion, but the team will not repeat this year. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is going to finish the 2022 season on injured reserve with a neck injury.

Denver has a four-game losing streak against Los Angeles, dating back to the Rams’ days in St. Louis. The last time the Broncos won a game against them was in 2002, when Brian Griese was slinging touchdowns to Ed McCaffrey, and Jason Elam was kicking field goals. Marshall Faulk starred for the Rams, and Kurt Warner was two years removed from “The Greatest Show on Turf.”

Overall, L.A. leads the all-time series against Denver 9-5.

Russell Wilson looks to defeat his former NFC West foe, although he has a losing record (8-12 all-time) against them.

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Broncos Super Bowl 50 champion Ryan Harris to call team’s preseason games

Ryan Harris will join Steve Levy and Chad Brown in the broadcast booth to call Broncos preseason games on 9News this month.

Brian Griese left the broadcast booth this year to join the San Francisco 49ers as a quarterbacks coach, leaving 9News to look for a replacement to call Denver Broncos preseason games alongside Steve Levy.

9News announced earlier this week that Levy (play-by-play) will return to call Broncos games this summer, as will Chad Brown (color analyst) and Rod Mackey (sideline reporter).

The television network also announced a new addition to the commentary crew: Ryan Harris will join Levy and Brown in the both as a color analyst for the team’s three preseason games, replacing Griese.

Harris had a 10-year career as an offensive lineman in the NFL, including three stints in Denver (2007-2010, 2012 and 2015). Harris started at right tackle for the Broncos when they won Super Bowl 50, defeating the Carolina Panthers 24-10.

In addition to airing locally on 9News, all three of Denver’s preseason games will also be nationally televised on NFL Network this month.

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