NEWSLETTER
TikTok gets a bad rap from time to time, but it confirmed something I already knew to be true in my heart — Taylor Swift’s music is a certified mood-lifter. Don’t give me that look. Send all your ire to British researchers, who found out this wonderful development.
• Twelve days after firing Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy, the Chicago Bears have yet to name a replacement for either. Since the search process began 10 days ago, the Bears have officially had interviews with eight head coach candidates and 11 aspiring general managers. Is this good? Bad? The new norm? Admittedly, I’m angsty. And I imagine part of it is due to the inevitability of the thing. Let’s face it. The end of the Pace-Nagy era has felt inevitable going on a year now. We’ve been thinking about new leadership in the front office going on 13 months. And pushing the coach aside has been on our radar since September. Since we’ve been expecting it for so long, maybe it shouldn’t be surprising that a search for new leadership going into a third week is something that us (as a collective).
• I think there is value in a thorough process. Sure, this one is equal parts exhaustive and exhausting — but it feels necessary. The Bears have long been needing a more expansive understanding of modern football. So, in that vein, I think it is important that they have cast a wide net. Get some depth and perspective from candidates in better-run organizations. Pick some brains. Unearth some relevant information you can apply to your own franchise. Maybe even get to know some names of people you should check in with to better yourself. Perhaps it shouldn’t take *THIS* long. But I’m curious to see what kind of result this process spits out.
• One thing feels certain — if the Bears have eyes on particular candidates, they should pick up the pace. Which is ironic, in a way, because they had to drop Pace to get to this point. Only the Bears
• But seriously, the Giants and Vikings could push the envelope here. ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reports Brian Daboll, Leslie Frazier, Brian Flores, and Dan Quinn are on New York’s head coach watch list. Meanwhile, the Vikings have already met with GM candidates Eliot Wolf and Glenn Cook, reportedly have Ryan Poles as a finalist, and had interviews with coaching candidates such as Quinn and Todd Bowles. Crossover was inevitable between the three searches. However, business figures to only pick up from here.
• Things could be worse for the Bears. They could be doing this:
The #Panthers are expected to hire former #Giants HC and ex-#Packers OC Ben McAdoo as their offensive coordinator, sources say. They need to work out the contract, but there aren’t expected to be issues. McAdoo is back as an OC, where he initially rose to prominence.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 21, 2022
• Is it too early to predict Ben McAdoo will be serving as the Panthers interim head coach? Because that’s usually the path this takes. The Matt Rhule experience hasn’t been a pleasant one. He has already fired one offensive coordinator, is stuck with Sam Darnold for another year, and his team’s best player is a running back who hasn’t played a full 16-game seasons since 2019. This looks like it has the makings of a recipe for disaster.
• Speaking of potential disaster, the Cowboys! Jerry Jones’ annual call out of his players and coaches after another disappointing season didn’t disappoint:
Jerry Jones is frustrated with Amari Cooper's contract and relative production.
— Clarence Hill Jr (@clarencehilljr) January 21, 2022
Jerry Jones: “Amari Cooper should take half the field w/ him when he runs a route…a whole bunch of that defense ought to have to honor Cooper. He ought to be able to catch it in the middle when they’re going w/ him. Others do. You throw to people that are covered all the time.”
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 21, 2022
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones certainly did not give a ringing endorsement of Mike McCarthy and his coaching staff during his @1053thefan appearance this morning pic.twitter.com/lE1ZYYyOG4
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 21, 2022
• From the I’m Not Sayin’, I’m Just Sayin’… folder: If Jerry Jones feels that strongly about Amari Cooper’s lack of production, Dallas can cut Cooper and create $16 million in cap space in the process. And at the cost of just a $6 million dead money hit, maybe it is worth it to Jones to shake things up in Dallas. Should that be the case, I know a place that could use a bonafide WR1 who has five 1,000-yard receiving campaigns in seven seasons as a pro.
• I hope the NFL is doing this for the right reasons and not in an attempt to skirt the possibility of COVID negatively impacting its playoffs:
The NFL and NFLPA have agreed to eliminate daily COVID-19 testing for the remaining unvaccinated players still in the playoffs. https://t.co/CEhVUejUuS
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) January 22, 2022
• If you want promo offers for the divisional games this weekend, make sure you check out the ones we’ve got from FanDuel here and here, and from BetMGM here.
• The Packers being good is bad enough. But adding the Bucks and Brewers being on a competitive up-swing becomes increasingly annoying with each day that passes.
• Chicago’s basketball team could have eyes for adding size before the trade deadline:
Let’s take a look at some other frontcourt players who could prove useful additions to the Bulls: https://t.co/5XiMotVpJQ pic.twitter.com/ytcyCrHYbD
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) January 21, 2022
• Oh, come on…
Wut: Alex DeBrincat Reportedly NOT One of Blackhawks “Untouchables” This Trade Seasonhttps://t.co/RtBcdqS2cl pic.twitter.com/6DfAkGUo1E
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) January 21, 2022
