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Thought maybe we could have them kind of in one place ......

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Cleveland Browns get permission to interview New York Giants defensive coordinator
by Mary Kay Cabot
Tuesday December 30, 2008, 6:18 PM
CLEVELAND -- The Browns will interview New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo for their head coach position this week, either Thursday or Saturday, Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News reported today.

The Browns are one of three teams that have asked for and received permission to interview Spagnuolo, who is on a bye week before the playoffs. The others are the New York Jets and Detroit Lions. Spagnuolo will talk to the Jets on Saturday and may try to do all three interviews the same day. The Giants' players are off on Thursday and Saturday.

Spagnuolo is in his second season as Giants defensive coordinator. The Giants defense ranked fifth overall in the NFL this season and was fifth in point allowed at 18.4 per game.

The St. Louis Post Dispatch also reported that the Rams are probably out of the running because Spagnuolo will be out of their price range. He makes $2 million a year after signing a three-year extension following the Giants' Super Bowl victory last season.

The Giants ranked seventh in defense last season, Spagnuolo's first year as coordinator. The year before they were 25th. Spagnuolo's defense sacked Tom Brady five times in the Super Bowl victory and knocked him to the ground at least a dozen more times. Spagnuolo came to the Giants after working for eight years under Jim Johnson in Philadelphia.

The Browns will also interview fired Jets coach Eric Mangini this week.

lindadindadoo

Atlanta's McKay joins Patriots' Pioli as Browns' top front-office targets
by Tony Grossi/Plain Dealer Reporter
Tuesday December 30, 2008, 7:40 PM


UPDATED: 7:36 p.m.


Mangini, Spagnuolo to get coaching interviews

Browns owner Randy Lerner is intensifying his search for a new chief football executive.
Sources said Lerner has interviews lined up Wednesday and Thursday with his top two choices to reshape his football operation -- New England's Scott Pioli and Atlanta's Rich McKay.

Pioli is the only executive so far identified by Lerner on his wish list. But McKay's name has been recommended to Lerner by some NFL executives and he is coming on strong as a viable candidate.

Lerner has received permission from Falcons owner Arthur Blank to talk with McKay, the team's president.

Lerner is able to interview McKay while the Falcons are still involved in the playoffs because club executives are not subjected to the same league restrictions as coaches.

One league source said that McKay has been longing to return to his passion of supervising a football operation after spending the past year minding all business operations for the Falcons.


He was the architect of the Tampa Bay playoff teams under Tony Dungy and was general manager when the team won the Super Bowl under coach Jon Gruden.

McKay moved to Atlanta as president and general manager in 2004. He was bumped upstairs and removed as general manager after the Michael Vick and Bobby Petrino fiascoes in 2007. Blank believed he had stretched McKay too thin at the time.

McKay's top priority in his new role has been to secure a new domed stadium for the Falcons.

"We think Rich is an important part of the success of the franchise," Blank said to the Associated Press. "He's responsible for all the business side of our operations, helps [GM] Thomas [Dimitroff] tremendously with the salary cap and all of the [contract] negotiations, and he's responsible for helping us as we go on a journey for a new stadium and a whole variety of other things.

"We're hopeful Rich will stay in Atlanta and we certainly believe that, but on the other hand, we have to let the process take its course."

McKay does not need a title of president to leave the Falcons. He could be given the role of executive vice president of football operations. He probably would then hire a director of player personnel. He built a comparable set-up with Tampa Bay and Atlanta.

Browns President Mike Keenan was expected to join Lerner -- not in the interviews itself, but to be on hand in case contract negotiations are necessary. Keenan's presence could indicate Lerner feels a deal could be done quickly.

Little more depth ....

linkorama

CLEVELAND -- The Browns will interview fired Jets coach Eric Mangini and Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo this week, league sources said on Tuesday.
Mangini, 37, will most likely be interviewed Wednesday, a source told The Plain Dealer, and Spagnuolo will most likely be interviewed Thursday or Saturday, the New York Daily News reported. The Browns are one of three teams that have asked for and received permission to interview Spagnuolo, who is on a bye before the playoffs. The other interested teams are the Jets and Lions. Spagnuolo will talk to the Jets on Saturday and may do all three interviews the same day.

The Browns are also trying to get permission to talk to some of their other candidates, including Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. It is not yet known if they'll be interested in fired Broncos coach Mike Shanahan.

Mangini, who began his NFL career in Cleveland in 1994 as a ball boy and public relations assistant, would be an intriguing candidate because he has experience as a defensive coordinator and three years' experience as head coach of the Jets, where he went 23-25 and 0-1 in the playoffs, with two winning seasons.

He also has three Super Bowl rings with the Patriots, where he spent six years learning the Patriot way. Basically, he fits the Browns' profile for their next coach.


Question is, can Mangini co-exist with current Patriots executive vice president Scott Pioli, who will be interviewed for the Browns' general manager job as soon as Wednesday?

In a year-long controversy known as Spygate, the Jets accused the Patriots of taping their defensive signals last season and the Patriots were disciplined. Bill Belichick was fined $500,000, the Patriots $250,000, and the team lost its original first-round pick in 2008.

Pioli and Mangini, who worked together for 11 seasons with the Browns, Ravens, Jets and Patriots, were close before the incident but it's unclear where they stand now. Mangini and his mentor Belichick, who gave him his start in Cleveland, aren't on good terms. So if Lerner covets both Mangini and Pioli, he'd have to determine if that can work.


.Under Mangini, the Jets were in first place a month ago and then lost four of their last five with Brett Favre at quarterback to finish 9-7 and out of the playoffs.
If Mangini does get the job, it increases the likelihood of fired Browns coach Romeo Crennel staying on as defensive coordinator. Mangini and Crennel were close in New England when Crennel was coordinator and Mangini was defensive backs coach. Had Mangini kept his job with the Jets, he might have hired Crennel.

"Eric and I have a good relationship," Crennel said in a phone interview. "I like Eric a lot. Still, I'd have to sit down and talk with Eric about what his capacity is, about what his vision is and then he'd make a determination from there."

Spagnuolo, the Giants' defensive coordinator for two seasons, presided over a defense that was fifth overall and in points allowed. He has one Super Bowl to his credit and could be on his way to another.

The Giants ranked seventh in defense last season, Spagnuolo's first as coordinator. The year before they were 25th. Spagnuolo's defense sacked Tom Brady five times in the Super Bowl victory and knocked him down at least a dozen more times. Spagnuolo came to the Giants after working for eight years under Jim Johnson in Philadelphia.

It is not yet known how Pioli feels about Spagnuolo, but his first choice for head coach would be former Browns assistant and current Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, the Boston Herald reported Tuesday.

Pioli and Ferentz worked together for three seasons in Cleveland and one in Baltimore after the Browns moved there in 1996. But Pioli is believed to have several candidates in mind, including Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, whom he hired in 2001 as a personnel and coaching assistant. He also worked with Schwartz in Cleveland for three years.

The ATL guy picked a good QB, which most GMs only get right once.....

If we go with a current coordinator, Spagnuolo has been my choice all along. I love the attacking style the Giants D has. My only red flag was that debacle his defense demonstrated against the Browns this year. Given the way the Giants defense played all season, I'd say that was an aberation.

Another thing, I'd point out is that to a man, the Giants defensive line seems more agile and athletic than most of those currently on the Browns roster. As good as Rogers is, he's nothing like what the Giants have. Problem or not? Time will tell, but I wonder if it would/could be part of the considerations on both the Browns and Spagnuolo's side.

I am really starting to waffle a bit ...... and thinking maybe an experienced GM and coach might be the way to go ..... with a McKay/Mangini pairing looking really attractive.

Glad I don;t have to make this decision. I'd be second guessed all over the place ..... even, probably by myself.

If Pioli = Farentz.... Then Pioli can stay in New England.

Before the Savage firing and then Mangini getting canned, Spagnuolo was my choice.

After Pioli came into the picture and Mangini getting fired, I'd love to see Mangini come in and bring back Crennelephant to run the D.

Still wouldn't mind Spags, though, but I don't know if Pioli would go that route.

I like Rich McKay as well.

He has been around the game a long time with his dad being the coach of USC and the Bucs for about 30 years...then running the Bucs and Falcons.

I think he would be a solid hire......but I also wouldn't mind Pioli if we went that direction.

Personally, I wouls be more than happy to see Marty come back.....problem is he is such a control freak, as well I would be too....If my butt is on the line, then I darn sure want control over the player personal......Now that Shanahan got fired, he would make an interesting hire....I bet our running game would get back on track.....My dream team would be Parcells / Marty.....I know that is not possible, but I think that we need one or the other......

I think the firing of Shanahan slows down Randy a bit, Randy needs to talk to Mike. Cleveland should be attractive to Shanahan, but I wonder if a combination of Pioli & Shanahan could work together or a McKay & Shanahan.

I do feel if Shanahan wants this job it's his.

YTown, this is where I'm leaning now too. You can't argue with what McKay did with the Bucs. I'm just getting more nervous about anything related to the Pats because I get the sense that Belichek does it all, including the credit that Pioli may be getting. Plus, I'd rather have Mangini than McDaniels and I don't know how well Mangini and Pioli would work. I would be very happy with McKay, Mangini and even RAC staying on as DC.

What are the chances the Mangini and/or Shanahan don't land HC positions after being fired with all of the hot coordinator names out there? Could one end up a coordinator somewhere, or even here?

Quote:

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The ATL guy picked a good QB, which most GMs only get right once

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I'm not sure if McKay picked that guy or if the GM did... his name is Tom Dimitroff of something like that.

j/c

Like many have said, if getting Pioli means hiring Ferentz as our HC than I want nothing to do with him.

What Randy needs to do is get both..

Pioli-give him the position that he wants..
McKay-could be given the role of executive vice president of football operations. He probably would then hire a director of player personnel. He built a comparable set-up with Tampa Bay and Atlanta
Then get a combo of the coaches/coordinators we're interviewing..

Please hurry this along. We are wrestling the YorkiePoos in the race for coaches. Cowher would be a huge magnet. See that Favre has started the annual tradition of hand-wringing and public bemoaning of whether he needs to retire again or not. Make it easy: Release him! This is a tired routine. In or out!

According to this from the above article...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It is not yet known how Pioli feels about Spagnuolo, but his first choice for head coach would be former Browns assistant and current Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, the Boston Herald reported Tuesday.

Pioli and Ferentz worked together for three seasons in Cleveland and one in Baltimore after the Browns moved there in 1996. But Pioli is believed to have several candidates in mind, including Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, whom he hired in 2001 as a personnel and coaching assistant. He also worked with Schwartz in Cleveland for three years.
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...the hiring of Pioli does not mean Ferentz as HC would be a "done deal" but may be just one option to consider.

Got to agree with you there Bard, we need to get the GM hired SOON. We would like to have first pick among the coaches that are out there, I don't want the Jets leftovers, let them have ours.

I honestly feel that the Pioli/McKay chioce would decide our coach as well......or at least narrow it down. No way do I see McKay going for a college coach such as Ferentz (and man, I DON'T want that.). If it's Pioli I would guess it would be ManGenius or the O-Coordinator from NE. If it's McKay I could see him going more outside the Belicheck Tree to the Giants D-Coordinator or the D-Coordinator from Tenn.

Either way I would like to see Romeo stay on as D-Coordinator.

Just my humble $.02

If Pioli gets the job. Is there room for Ferentz, Mangini and Crennel? All 3 are 3-4 defensive minded and Crennel and Mangini might have worked with Ferentz at some point. Plus, Im sure Ferentz has some of his own people that he would bring with him.

Im not in favor of hiring a college coach. Too many havnt panned out (Butch Davis, Nick Saban, Petrino, Spurrier), than have in recent memory. Frenetz has pro football in his background but so did Butch and Saban. Maybe it could work if he found room for Crennel and Mangini with their head coaching experiance. I dont see Mangini taking anything less then a DC job. Hes too young and arrogant IMO to take too big of a step backwords. I can see Crennel taking on a LB or d-line coaching role, to keep his home which he could still afford. He bought his house, when houses were being sold thru the roof. It might be wiser to take a paycut rather then to go find a job somewhere else and sell his home for half the cost just to get rid of it. If Crennel was brought back as a LB coach/assistant DC. The players cant complain about a regime change. Which would keep morale and contribution high. Some players might worry too much about losing their jobs, thinking that it wont matter how hard they try, there is a regime change. Why would they want to train the younger guys on the new regime who would in return take their job? With the respected Crennel still around, players know they will get their fare shot, which in return creates players keeping their jobs based on perfomance and professionalism.

I like the idea of Mckay coming in as GM based on what he did with the Bucs and the fact he's not part of the New England tree.

I also like Schwartz as HC. I truly hope the Browns do not bring in a college coach. Hope something happens soon.

Love it....i want Spags....do not want Mangini, Shanahan, McDaniel....I hope Pioli feels the same way. I love the Jim Johnson attacking style of defense. I love the enthusiasm and passion that Spags displays....reminds me of a young Bill Cowher...hmmm

Please do not bring McKay in here. PLEASE!!!

The guy did not bring anybody great to either teams... The Falcons nor the Bucs.

Pioli MUST be the top choice. MUST!!!

He did a good job in Tampa...and the Atlanta turnaround is due in large part to him. Ryan isn't the only reason Atl turned around.

Vick hurt that team bad...and that wasn't something anybody could predict.

What the heck are you melting down about?
McKay is a good solid guy to bring in..

I would have to disagree..Mckay is not a bum.

He won a Super Bowl, drafted some solid players in Dunn, Brooks and Lynch.

He has also worked with some respectable coaches, Dungy and Gruden.
I think he has proved himself in the league and you can't argue that Belichick did it for him.

I wouldnt be disappointed in McKay if he can bring in Spagnoulo or Chasserly.

I also wouldnt be disappointed in Pioli and what ever scenerio he would bring, McDaniels/Mangini/Ferentz/ with Crennel as a possible assistant.

I guess in this case we cant blame the coach the players or the GM. We have to have total trust in the guy who inherited this team to make the right decision and look at it positively. If he messes this one up, hes going to start making people call for his head and were going to know what its like to be Detroit fans (having the Ford family for an owner).

touche

He looks a lot younger, I would have thought him to be in his early 40's....either way, I like him

IMHO....I like most Browns Fans , only hope that we Finally get it right....Shanahan and McKay would fit my wish that the Browns finally hire individuals with experience and proven success in the NFL ....

http://www.cleveland.com/brownsbeat/index.ssf/2008/12/cleveland_browns_want_to_conta.html


Cleveland Browns want to contact Mike Shanahan
by Tony Grossi Wednesday December 31, 2008, 2:26 PM
The Browns will seek to interview fired Denver coach Mike Shanahan, said a source with knowledge of the situation.

"How can you not?" said the source.

Browns owner Randy Lerner and President Mike Keenan are in the New York area today to interview Scott Pioli for the position of chief football executive and Eric Mangini for head coach.

The interviews are separate. Lerner had the Pioli interview scheduled and decided to hook up with Mangini, recently fired as Jets coach, to get a feel for him before proceeding with other planned interviews.

Broncos owner Pat Bowlen rocked the NFL world by firing Shanahan in a five-minute exit interview on Tuesday.

In his first comments in Denver on Wednesday, Shanahan said, "I'll be coaching again. I can't give you a timeframe. I love the NFL, so I don't see getting out of it, but you just don't know."

Shanahan, who has a mansion under construction in Cherry Hills, Colo., also told reporters he hoped to live in Denver "the rest of my life."

Shanahan was the most successful coach in Denver Broncos history, winning back-to-back Super Bowl championships following the 1997 and '98 seasons. He was also the club's executive vice president of football operations during his 14-year reign, and his record in that realm was not as good as his coaching. The Broncos won only one playoff game in the past 10 years.

I would have no problem with Shanahan as our HC if it was what our new GM wanted.

As of now, it doesn't look like the Browns are leaving any stones unturned in their search for a new HC and GM.

I like Shanahan also.

But, do you think that after 14 seasons in Denver he could come in here, get comfortable, and lead our team to the playoffs in 2009? Or, if Shanahan comes here, are we looking at a couple rough years and then prosperity?

Pioli and Shanahan..SUPER BOWL!!!!