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Well, here's one name off the list....

Dolphins hire Sparano away from Cowboys
by Jay Glazer

The worst kept secret in the NFL is coming to fruition ... finally.

FOX Sports has learned that the Dolphins have tabbed Dallas assistant coach Tony Sparano as their new head coach, replacing the fired Cam Cameron.

Dolphins officials this morning phoned the other candidates who interviewed and informed them of the team's decision.

Sparano was thought to be the heavy favorite from the day Bill Parcells was hired and that speculation mounted when Parcells hired Jeff Ireland away from Dallas to be the team's new GM.

Sparano is a true football guy with a no-nonsense approach and a great connection with players. Two years ago, Sean Payton tried to hire him as the Saints offensive coordinator and he asked Parcells to let him go. Parcells, then with Dallas, balked and declined the request.

He's probably pretty happy now that he did. Jim Schwartz of the Titans, Leslie Frazier of the Vikings and Rex Ryan of the Ravens also interviewed for the post.
foxsports

In other news, Bill Parcells plans to trade their #1 overall pick in the draft to the Cowboys in exchange for Tony Romo, Terrell Owens, and Julius Jones. j/k

Jerry Jones is just having a pretty bad week..

OH No kidding... Has anyone heard that Jason Garrett supposedly received an offer from the Ravens but left the facility without accepting it.. wonder,, was it the money or the situation the Ravens are in.

Well, I read on ESPN (I'll have to go back to find the article) that Garrett was to interview with the Falcons either last night or this morning (can't remember). Perhaps why he hasn't yet accepted the offer?

Here's the pertinent info from the article:

Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett has been offered the Baltimore Ravens coaching position, sources told ESPN.



According to a league source, there is a "60-40'' chance Garrett will ultimately accept the opportunity to succeed Brian Billick, who was fired after the regular season. However, sources told ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli that Garrett left Baltimore Tuesday afternoon without making any decision about the job. Sources said he was en route to Atlanta for a second interview with Falcons officials.




Garrett, who arrived at the Ravens' training complex for the second interview Tuesday morning, was the first candidate to have call-back sessions with the Ravens and Falcons.

Read the rest here.

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Well, I read on ESPN (I'll have to go back to find the article) that Garrett was to interview with the Falcons either last night or this morning (can't remember). Perhaps why he hasn't yet accepted the offer?

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Yup,, we saw the same thing,, he's got another interview.. We'll see how it shakes out. Right now, between those two jobs, I don't know which I'd run from faster

ESPN radio said that Jerry Jones is willing to match any offer to keep Garret as the OC in Dallas.

Word is Dungy will step down and be replaced by Caldwell after all. That takes another name out of consideration.

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ESPN radio said that Jerry Jones is willing to match any offer to keep Garret as the OC in Dallas.

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Yes, I heard the same... I'm thinking however, that if Garrett wanted one of those HC jobs, Jones would not really stand in his way.

This is who the Ravens need to instill some "order" to the team......

Sources: Garrett turning down head coaching jobs to stay with Cowboys
ESPN.com news services

Updated: January 17, 2008, 10:56 AM ET

Dallas head coach Wade Phillips has been informed that Jason Garrett will turn down head coaching opportunities with the Atlanta Falcons and Baltimore Ravens and remain as the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys, sources told ESPN's Ed Werder.




Garrett

A source credits owner Jerry Jones with convincing Garrett to remain in Dallas: "This is huge because changing systems right now would have been really tough on Tony [Romo]."

Garrett has informed the Ravens and Falcons of his decision to stay in Dallas. The Ravens are now turning their attention to Eagles secondary coach John Harbaugh, who is expected to get his second interview Thursday.

Sources told ESPN.com that Garrett, who spent several hours meeting with Atlanta officials earlier in the day, huddled with Jones on Wednesday night. Garrett met with the Ravens on Monday night and part of the day Tuesday before flying to Atlanta for a follow-up session.

The Cowboys could offer Garrett a substantial raise and the tacit promise that he will eventually succeed Phillips within the next couple years.

In 2004, Jones convinced both his coordinators at the time, Sean Payton on offense and Mike Zimmer on defense, to bypass head coaching opportunities and stay with the Cowboys. Payton had been offered the Oakland Raiders' head coaching position and Zimmer the job at the University of Nebraska.

It is believed the Ravens formally offered Garrett their head coach job, at a salary of less than $3 million annually. Sources told ESPN.com's Matt Mosley that the Falcons' job is Garrett's if he wants it. The Falcons have also been seriously considering former Baltimore defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, who met with club executives on Monday for a second time, and who is held in high regard.

Both the Falcons and Ravens lost a candidate on Wednesday when Indianapolis assistant head coach Jim Caldwell withdrew his name from consideration for the vacancies. The move, first reported by ESPN's Chris Mortensen, fueled immediate speculation that Caldwell removed himself because he is about to be named the successor to Tony Dungy.

But Dungy told Mortensen that he has not yet made a decision on his future and likely will not before the weekend. League sources said Caldwell's action was motivated more by the reality that he was probably not viewed as more than the No. 3 candidate by both Atlanta and Baltimore officials.

One reason for a second interview between Garrett and Atlanta executives is that the Falcons did not have a general manager when they huddled with him for the first time on Jan. 4. On Saturday, however, Atlanta hired Patriots college scouting director Thomas Dimitroff as its new general manager, and he will have considerable input into the selection of the head coach. The Falcons' vacancy was created when Bobby Petrino resigned with three games remaining in his first season as an NFL head coach, to fill the vacancy at the University of Arkansas.

Atlanta has interviewed five other candidates for the position. If the team is still without a new coach by the weekend, and New York loses at Green Bay in Sunday's NFC Championship Game, the Falcons probably will seek permission to interview Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. The Falcons made such a request earlier, but the Giants rebuffed it because of the team's status in the playoffs.

Even as he faced the specter of losing Garrett as his coordinator, Jones was attempting on Wednesday to retain several assistant coaches whose contracts are about to expire, and who are rumored to be candidates for staff positions in Miami, where Cowboys assistant head coach Tony Sparano on Wednesday was hired as the Dolphins' new coach.

Jones has offered contract extensions to secondary coach Todd Bowles, linebackers coach Paul Pasqualoni, and defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3200822

WOW WOW WOW,,, Garrett turns down the Ravens and Falcons to stay with the Boys,,,, and maybe a promise to be the next head coach of the boys was brought up,,, imagine that?

This is gonna get very interesting in Baltimore.. I honestly could care less about Washington or Atlanta,, but Baltimore in important to us Browns fans..

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3201603

Ravens reevaluate coaching options
Associated Press

Updated: January 17, 2008, 5:07 PM ET
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OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- The Baltimore Ravens have been forced to call an audible in their search for a new head coach.

Baltimore's top choice, Jason Garrett, spurned the Ravens in favor of keeping his job as offensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys.

"We did negotiate with Jason Garrett to become our head coach. In the end, he decided to stay in Dallas," the Ravens said in a statement Thursday. "We're continuing our second round of interviews. We're excited with the candidates, and we're confident we will select the best head coach for the Ravens."

After being rejected by Garrett, owner Steve Bisciotti called for a huddle at the team's training complex to discuss Baltimore's next move. Philadelphia Eagles defensive backs coach John Harbaugh could be invited back as soon as Friday, and the Ravens have not publicly dismissed the possibility of interviewing former NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer.

Now that Garrett is no longer an option, there is no rush to fill the void created by the dismissal of Brian Billick on Dec. 31.

"The bottom line is we want to make the right choice, and we haven't put a deadline on ourselves," team spokesman Kevin Byrne said.

The 41-year-old Garrett interviewed with Baltimore on Tuesday for more than six hours but left without taking the job. He met with the Atlanta Falcons on Wednesday and then decided to stay in Dallas.

If the Ravens are looking for an up-and-coming coach with boundless enthusiasm, Harbaugh, 45, might be a solid alternative.

Before shifting to defense under Andy Reid this season, Harbaugh coached the Eagles' special teams for seven seasons. He was named NFL special teams coach of the year in 2001 and has prior stints as a college assistant at Indiana, Cincinnati, Morehead State, Pittsburgh and Western Michigan.

The brother of Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh -- who once played quarterback for the Ravens -- John Harbaugh played defensive back at Miami (Ohio) and is the son of former Western Kentucky coach Jack Harbaugh.

He doesn't have the experience of a Marty Schottenheimer but is eager to tackle the challenge.

"I don't think there's any one way to prepare to be a head coach," Harbaugh said on Jan. 8 after his first interview with the Ravens. "I don't think you're a head coach until you become a head coach and you find out what your style is. Everybody applies their experiences, their talents, their efforts and then you see what happens. Andy Reid was never a coordinator before being a head coach and he's one of the best in the league."

Others hopeful of a second interview are Indianapolis Colts assistant head coach Jim Caldwell, former Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan and New York Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, Marty's son.

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

Man.............I hope they don't hire Marty. That would be depressing on a couple of different levels.

I thought I remembered seeing somewhere Marty wasn't interested in the job? I'm shocked Rex Ryan isn't getting pimped a little more, especially after the Garrett fiasco.

I hope that Schottenheimer does not take the Ravens job. I like him and I am afraid I would no longer like him if he went to coach the Ravens. He's too good to go off and coach at a place like that.

I would hate to see it too, but he should be their 2nd choice after Rex Ryan if they want to stay competitive (I chuckled on the inside when writing the end of that sentece ).

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Man.............I hope they don't hire Marty. That would be depressing on a couple of different levels.

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Me too.

I said it in another post, some of my favorite memories were during the Marty era.

He's still a Cleveland Brown to me.

Yo Baltimore - Butch Davis is available. Hire him, PLEASE

I would have to seriously question the moral character of a man who might allow a Modell franchise to take a big dump on him TWICE,....

They are having problems finding their man... Why don't they just go with their defensive coordinator?

This just adds more fuel to the fire that there are a lot of problems in that organization as a whole, and also that teams are realizing that their assistants are so important, so they're willing to give them big bumps in pay to keep them around.

ESPN (tv) just said the Ravens got a new head coach, Philadelphia Eagles assistant coach John Harbaugh. link will prolly be available soon

I'm betting you're going to be told that you need to wait for the link before you post info like that.

Been there done that. It's a rumor until it ain't.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=09000d5d80614e90&template=without-video&confirm=true

There ya go

Well, that's the second of 4 positions filled,,, Miami and baltimore of done,,

now they have to build staffs and move forward..


That leaves Washington and Atlanta,,,

Dungy stays......


Dungy will remain with Colts through at least 2008 season

Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS -- Tony Dungy isn't ready to leave.

The Colts coach said Monday he will remain with Indianapolis through at least the 2008 season before turning the program over to hand-picked successor Jim Caldwell.

Dungy, the first black coach to win a Super Bowl, spent a week meeting with his family, close friends and trusted colleagues while deciding whether to return for a seventh season with the Colts.

"It was a family decision," Dungy said. "We're on board, and we look forward to '08, look forward to putting together a winner."

Team owner Jim Irsay said Dungy would stay at least one year and could stay longer.

"This isn't a victory lap for Tony," Irsay said.

It's the third straight year Dungy seriously considered retiring.

The debate focused on Dungy's desire to balance family and football, especially after his family moved back to Tampa earlier this month. His 16-year-old son Eric now attends high school there.

Irsay has said Dungy could spend Friday nights there watching his son's football games, but insisted the Colts job would be more than a part-time gig for Dungy.

Dungy said he decided he could give coaching and his family life the "passion" both deserved.

Team president Bill Polian said the 53-year-old Caldwell would be named associate head coach.

Dungy is the first coach in Colts history to make the playoffs and win at least 10 games six consecutive years. He has won five straight AFC South titles, taking the Colts to two AFC championship games, and winning last year's Super Bowl, the first with two black coaches, as Indy beat Chicago.

But Dungy has often proclaimed he was not an NFL "lifer" and once intended to leave football by age 50. He turned 52 in October and said he considered retiring after each of the past two seasons, including after the 2005 season when his 18-year-old son, James, died.

Dungy's 80 wins in Indianapolis, including the playoffs, are a franchise record, and he ranks fifth in victories among those who coached in 2007 with 136 career wins, which also include playoffs. He enters next season tied for 19th in career wins with Hank Stram.

Under Dungy, the Colts became the first team in league history to win at least 12 games in five consecutive years. The Colts season ended with a 28-24 loss to San Diego in last week's AFC divisional playoff.

Before joining Indy, Dungy spent six seasons at Tampa Bay, becoming that team's career-victory leader (54) while turning around one of the league's worst franchises. Dungy led the Bucs to four playoff appearances and the 1999 NFC championship game.

Caldwell has spent the last seven seasons as Dungy's assistant, one year in Tampa Bay and the last six with the Colts. Caldwell's only previous head coaching experience at the pro or college level came during an eight-season tenure at Wake Forest, where he went 26-63 and led the Demon Deacons to a bowl game in 1999.

Caldwell also replaced Dungy for one game late in the 2005 season so Dungy could attend his son's funeral. The Colts lost that game 28-13 at Seattle playing primarily backups.

Over the past year, Caldwell has become a regular on the interview circuit over the past year, meeting with the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens this month and the Arizona Cardinals last year about their vacancies.

To Dungy, life was always about more than football. He became a fan favorite in Indy and Tampa, where he was arguably more popular after he left than when he was there.

But it isn't just the fans who like him.

"We love coach Dungy," NFL defensive player of the year Bob Sanders said last week. "We'll let him make the decision, then we'll know and then we'll go from there. But we love him around here."

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Yeah, just saw that..

There is a guy that coaches for Indy, Caldwell.. He was suppossed to take over if Dungy left.. in the article, it says he's staying with a title bump to Associate Coach or something like that..

Anyway, does he now become a HC candidate for either Washington or Atlanta?

From the article...

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Over the past year, Caldwell has become a regular on the interview circuit over the past year, meeting with the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens this month and the Arizona Cardinals last year about their vacancies.

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Yeah, I know DD,, but will the change in title make him want to stay in Indy? That's what I was wondering.

I saw the presser yesterday and the Colts have said that Caldwell will be Dungy's successor when Tony finally decides to hang it up. Pretty smart of the Colts to have a succession plan in place for their HC. Caldwell is a pretty young guy and, obviously, the coaching jobs that are out there aren't as appealing as the job (and future) he has already secured with an excellent organization. I would be shocked if he left now.

You are probably right..

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Why would Dungy leave a VERY competative team with Peyton at QB and Pioli in charge?

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You meant Polian didn't you.. Pioli (sp) is in NE!

For the same reason Cowher left Pittsburgh a year removed from a Super Bowl win. He went out on top, and to be with his family.

That's why some people felt Dungy would do the same. He tried to repeat with the Super Bowl and failed. He has probably reached his coaching goals and would like to see his kids finish high school before heading to college.

I don't know why people in football are viewed for just their football life and not their real lives. It happens with players and coaches alike. Guess what? Just because you are still competitive or successful doesn't mean you shouldn't walk away. Ask Tiki Barber.

Pit... Of course I can't say that I "know" how any of this will ultimately play out. However, I do think that the Colts FO and Tony Dungy have built an organization that is much like the Pats organization: they have successful systems in place and they know what kind of players they need to find and develop to feed those systems. They've also done an outstanding job training subordinate staff members and bringing them along as part of a broader succession plan. The Colts are all about continuity and stability and their record shows it. I have no reason to believe it won't continue after Dungy decides to move on to other things because Dungy isn't soley responsible for the success the Colts have had.

As far a Dungy himself, I don't think he's your typical NFL coach. He has said all along that coaching is not what he is going to do forever. He has always said there are things beyond football that he is going to do while he's young enough to do them. I honestly don't think the "state" of the Colts team will have much of an impact on Dungy's decision-making where his eventual retirement is concerned. His faith and family situation will have a far greater influence on when that will occur. I think he's 52 or so now. The fact that he's contemplated retirement after the last four seasons leads me to believe that he probably will retire within the next season or two. It is just a hunch on my part.

As far as Caldwell is concerned, perhaps he is taking a risk. On the otherhand, he and Dungy are pretty close and we don't know what Tony has divulged to his protege in private. Also, the Colts have given him the promotion to assistant HC (with, presumably, more money to go with it). If you watched the presser yesterday, Caldwell is clearly being groomed to be the next HC of the Colts. If I'm in his shoes and I really like the situation I'm in, why would I pursue a HC job with a crappy team and/or an organization that is in chaos? I wouldn't.

Of course, as you pointed out, there are no guarantees out there. However, I wouldn't say it is a huge leap of faith on Calwell's part to believe that he'll be inheriting a playoff-caliber team with a first-class organization behind it when his time comes. I also don't believe that the Colts would make this kind of commitment to Caldwell now if they didn't have some sense that Tony Dungy was within a year or two of retiring from the game.