Tag: Larry Izzo

Bucs interview two more candidates for special teams opening

One of the new interviews includes an in-house hire that played safety for the Bucs for six years.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are continuing their coaching search, as they have conducted two more interviews for their special teams coordinator opening.

The team announced Monday that it has interviewed both Bucs special teams assistant Keith Tandy and Seattle Seahawks special teams coordinator Larry Izzo for their special teams coordinator opening. With the two interviewed, there have been four total interviews for the spot after previous special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong retired.

Tandy has history with the Bucs, and it isn’t just as a coach. He spent six years with the team as a safety from 2012-17, and he came on to the team as a special teams assistant in 2020 and has a Super Bowl ring with the Tampa Bay from their 2020 season. Tandy is the in-house candidate for the Bucs, having been involved in the organization for a total of 10 years.

Izzo is the Seahawks’ special teams coordinator and has been since 2021. A former player himself in the league from 1996-2009, Izzo was not explicitly fired in Seattle but he was not retained after new head coach Mike Macdonald brought on Jay Harbaugh to serve as special teams coordinator. Izzo has been a coach in the NFL for quite some time, beginning his coaching career in 2011 with the New York Giants.

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Giants interview Larry Izzo for special teams coordinator job

The New York Giants have completed an interview with Larry Izzo for their vacant special teams coordinator job.

In what was expected news, the New York Giants have completed an interview with Larry Izzo for their vacant special teams coordinator position on Saturday.

Izzo was on the Giants’ radar from the start of their search and was among eight potential candidates listed by Giants Wire before the interview gauntlet began.

The 49-year-old Izzo is a former special team standout as a player who has become one of the more respected coaches in the NFL following his 14 seasons on the field.

Izzo was the Giants’ special teams assistant for the Giants under Tom Quinn from 2011 through 2015 and has a Super Bowl ring as a result.

Since 2020, Izzo has served as the Seattle Seahawks special teams coordinator — first in the interim role and then in the full-time role.

Although Izzo is technically still under contract with the Seahawks, he was granted permission to interview with the Giants as Seattle continues their head coaching search.

In addition to Izzo, the Giants have also interviewed Michael Ghobrial, Carlos Polk and Matt Harper.

The special teams coordinator job was made available following the Black Monday firing of Thomas McGaughey.

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Larry Izzo on Giants’ radar as special teams coordinator search continues

The New York Giants are reportedly interested in Larry Izzo as their special teams coordinator search continues.

One name to keep in mind for the New York Giants’ vacant special teams coordinator position is Larry Izzo.

ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports that the Giants are interested in a potential reunion but may have to wait until the situation in Seattle settles itself.

As we noted last week in a list of possible candidates, Izzo was a former special team ace as a player who has become one of the more respected coaches in the NFL.

Izzo was the Giants’ special teams assistant for the Giants under Tom Quinn from 2011-15 and has a Super Bowl ring as a result.

Izzo has been the Seattle Seahawks’ special teams coordinator since 2021 and is still under contract for the time being. He would be a great get if general manager Joe Schoen can work some magic.

As stated, Izzo and Brian Daboll have a history working together and a reunion is not out of the question. The Seahawks recently moved on from long-time head coach Pete Carroll and it is uncertain if they will retain Izzo.

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Seahawks special teams unit ranked 6th for the 2023 season

One small silver lining is that they continued to perorm relatively well on special teams.

Both the Seahawks offense and the Seaahawks defense performed under our expectations this season. Those are the main reasons why the team is now in the middle of their first head coach search in 15 years. One small silver lining is that they continued to perorm relatively well on special teams.

In Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings, Seattle came in at No. 6 for the 2023 season, scoring 300 points. At the top of the list were the Texans, while the Rams were on the bottom. That’s the third straight year that the Seahawks have finished high on Gosselin’s list, a credit to the work of special teams coordinator Larry Izzo.

If we have one gripe with this group it’s the mediocre returns of DeeJay Dallas, whose hands and decision making should make him easy to replace next season with an upgrade at both kickoff and punt returner. Dallas’ continued presece on the roster may have been one example of Pete Carroll allowing his love of certain players and coaches to cloud his better judgment.

We haven’t heard much on Seattle’s head coach search yet, but if there are internal candidates under consideration you’d have to assume Izzo will be on the list. The news cycle should pick up soon as teams are eliminated and potential candidates to replace Carroll as head coach get vetted, one way or another.

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8 special teams coordinator candidates Giants could consider

The New York Giants are on the hunt for a new special teams coordinator and these are 8 potential candidates they could consider.

The New York Giants are in need of a new special teams coordinator after firing long-time assistant Thomas McGaughey on Monday.

Here are eight quick names the team might look at.

Note: Some of these candidates may currently be employed with other teams and would require termination (or resignation) before joining the Giants.

14 former Dolphins left off list of 2024 Hall of Fame class semifinalists

The Pro Football Hall of Fame trimmed down their list of 173 nominees to 25 semifinalists.

Back in September, the Pro Football Hall of Fame released their list of 173 Modern-Era nominees for the 2024 class, which included 14 players who spent time with the Miami Dolphins.

On that list were Ricky Williams, Antonio Freeman, Irving Fryar, Chad Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Wes Welker, Josh Sitton, Richmond Webb, Brendon Ayanbadejo, Karlos Dansby, Larry Izzo, Joey Porter, Troy Vincent and Matt Turk.

On Tuesday, the Hall of Fame trimmed the nominees down to 25 semifinalists, and unfortunately, none were former Dolphins.

The list of nominees includes Eric Allen, Jared Allen, Willie Anderson, Tiki Barber, Anquan Boldin, Jahri Evans, London Fletcher, Dwight Freeney, Antonio Gates, Eddie Geroge, James Harrison, Rodney Harrison, Devin Hester, Torry Holt, Andre Johnson, Robert Mathis, Julius Peppers, Smith Sr., Fred Taylor, Hines Ward, Ricky Watters, Reggie Wayne, Vince Wilfork, Patrick Willis and Darren Woodson.

15 finalists will be announced at a later date.

53 days till Patriots season opener: Every player to wear No. 53 for New England

Here’s a list of every Patriots player to wear the No. 53 jersey number

The New England Patriots are officially 53 days away from their 2023 regular season opener. That means we’re continuing our ongoing countdown series by listing every Patriots player that has ever worn a No. 53 jersey.

The last player to wear the numbers was Josh Uche in his 2020 rookie season. He obviously came into the league with big shoes to fill as a linebacker wearing the same number as former Patriot and two-time Super Bowl champion Kyle Van Noy.

Former three-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro linebacker Larry Izzo also wore the No. 53. when helping kick-start the Patriots’ dynasty by appearing on the franchise’s first three Super Bowl teams.

Here’s every Patriots player that has worn the number throughout franchise history (via Pro Football Reference):

Seahawks near the top of Rick Gosselin’s 2021 NFL special teams rankings

One of the hardest things to swallow about the Seahawks’ disappointing 2021 season was a strong performance by the special teams unit that went to waste.

One of the hardest things to swallow about the Seahawks’ disappointing 2021 season was a strong performance by the special teams unit that went to waste. The offense and defense both had their ups and downs and almost never thrived at the same time, but this group was playing at a quality level for the entire season. Aside from an off-year by kicker Jason Meyers, this special teams unit was about as good as any in the NFL.

As expected, they came in near the top of Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams rankings. In the end, the Seahawks finished No. 3 in the league, trailing only the Colts and the incomparable Ravens.

Seattle scored particularly well in Gosselin’s punting, takeaways and points scored categories.

Strange and inexplicable things happen every offseason, but from where we’re sitting special teams coordinator Larry Izzo’s job should be as safe as anybody’s on Pete Carroll’s staff.

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Giants place Nick Gates on IR, lose Jackson Barton to Raiders

The New York Giants have placed OL Nick Gates on IR, lost OL Jackson Barton to the Las Vegas Raiders and made some other transactions.

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The New York Giants have officially placed offensive lineman Nick Gates on injured reserve, effectively ending his season after suffering a broken tibia and fibula in Week 2.

“Nick’s a key figure for us, he really is. He’s a guy that the entire time we’ve been here he’s been a team-first guy, he’s been an all-in guy, he’s a guy that comes to work every day with a great amount of energy and enthusiasm. We’re still going to rely on him to do that,” head coach Joe Judge told reporters on Monday.

“As he gets better and comes through his healing process, we want to keep him as involved with the team as possible. This guy was voted captain by his teammates for a reason and that’s for leadership. This guy has done a lot of unselfish things and I believe he’ll continue to have an impact on the team.”

Meanwhile, the Giants also did some further shuffling to their practice squad.

The contract of tight end Larry Izzo, who was signed earlier this year, has been terminated. Filling his spot is defensive back Steven Parker, who was officially signed on Tuesday.

An undrafted rookie in 2018, Parker has spent time with the Los Angeles Rams (2018), Miami Dolphins (2019), Minnesota Vikings (2020) and Dallas Cowboys (2020). During his time in Miami, Parker played under current Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.

In 22 career games (four starts), Parker has recorded 28 tackles (20 solo), three passes defensed and two interceptions.

Finally, the Giants also lost offensive lineman Jackson Barton, who was signed off of the Giants’ practice squad to the Las Vegas Raiders’ active roster.

Former Giants notes:

  • The Green Bay Packers have signed R.J. McIntosh to their practice squad.
  • The Cleveland Browns have signed Ifeadi Odenigbo from their practice squad to the active roster.

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Seahawks expected to promote Larry Izzo to special teams coordinator

The Seattle Seahawks are expected to promote Larry Izzo to special teams coordinator following Brian Schneider’s departure for Jacksonville.

Following the conclusion of the regular season, hirings and firings are happening all over the National Football League, including in Seattle with the Seahawks’ staff.

Still in the hunt for an offensive coordinator to replace Brian Schottenheimer after parting ways with him last week, the Seahawks are now having to determine a new special teams coordinator as well.

Citing a league source, NFL Network analyst Tom Pelissero is reporting that the Jaguars are expected to hire Seattle’s Brian Schneider as their special teams coordinator.

With Schneider leaving Seattle, Pelissero is also reporting the Seahawks are exected to promote from within.

“With Brian Schneider departing for Jacksonville, the #Seahawks are expected to promote Larry Izzo to replace Schneider as special teams coordinator, per source,” Pelissero tweeted on Friday.

Izzo had filled in during the 2020 season when Schnieder had taken a leave of absence for personal reasons.

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