NFL Nation: Ben McAdoo
Packers give Aaron Rodgers a new coach
February, 8, 2012
Feb 8
6:05
PM ET
By
Kevin Seifert | ESPN.com
We've had two coaching developments Wednesday afternoon in the NFC North. We'll start with the Green Bay Packers' apparent shift of assistant Ben McAdoo from tight ends coach to quarterbacks coach, a move first reported by Jason La Canfora of NFL.com.
It was obvious that Packers coach Mike McCarthy had something in mind for McAdoo when he blocked requests from the Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers to interview him for their offensive coordinator jobs. McAdoo will fill the role once held by the highly regarded Tom Clements, whom McCarthy recently promoted to offensive coordinator to replace the departed Joe Philbin.
While McAdoo is obviously considered an up-and-comer in several corners of the NFL, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers appeared skeptical earlier this week on his ESPN 540 radio show about the possibility of installing a coach with no experience at the position. Here's what Rodgers had to say about reports that McAdoo was a candidate for the job:
McAdoo, 34, has coached with McCarthy when both were with the New Orleans Saints (2004) and the San Francisco 49ers (2005). He was one of McCarthy's first hires when he got the Packers job in 2006 and has been their tight ends coach ever since. No matter how good a coach he is, it's fair to ask if he has the expertise to speak the language of a veteran MVP quarterback. McAdoo will also have the important job of developing the Packers' next backup quarterback, assuming that Matt Flynn signs elsewhere as a free agent.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears rounded out their staff by hiring Tim Holt as their offensive line coach. Holt was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' assistant offensive line coach in 2011, and it's expected that new offensive coordinator Mike Tice will retain a daily presence with the offensive line, much as defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli does with the Bears' defensive line.
It was obvious that Packers coach Mike McCarthy had something in mind for McAdoo when he blocked requests from the Miami Dolphins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers to interview him for their offensive coordinator jobs. McAdoo will fill the role once held by the highly regarded Tom Clements, whom McCarthy recently promoted to offensive coordinator to replace the departed Joe Philbin.
While McAdoo is obviously considered an up-and-comer in several corners of the NFL, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers appeared skeptical earlier this week on his ESPN 540 radio show about the possibility of installing a coach with no experience at the position. Here's what Rodgers had to say about reports that McAdoo was a candidate for the job:
"I think that's an interesting conversation I hope I'm in the loop for, because going into my eighth season it'll be interesting to see what direction [McCarthy] wants to go in -- if he wants to bring in a former quarterback with experience to kind of help me with my transition into the middle part of my career being more of an established player in the league now. I'm not sure what the dynamic would be with a coach who hasn't coached the position before, but Ben is a very talented coach and if they do make that decision I'm sure he'll make a very smooth transition."
McAdoo, 34, has coached with McCarthy when both were with the New Orleans Saints (2004) and the San Francisco 49ers (2005). He was one of McCarthy's first hires when he got the Packers job in 2006 and has been their tight ends coach ever since. No matter how good a coach he is, it's fair to ask if he has the expertise to speak the language of a veteran MVP quarterback. McAdoo will also have the important job of developing the Packers' next backup quarterback, assuming that Matt Flynn signs elsewhere as a free agent.
Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears rounded out their staff by hiring Tim Holt as their offensive line coach. Holt was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' assistant offensive line coach in 2011, and it's expected that new offensive coordinator Mike Tice will retain a daily presence with the offensive line, much as defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli does with the Bears' defensive line.
It certainly appears as though new Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano is having a challenging time putting together a staff of assistants.
The latest example of this comes from this report that says the Green Bay Packers denied permission for the Bucs to speak to tight ends coach Ben McAdoo about becoming offensive coordinator.
McAdoo is at least the second offensive coordinator candidate the Bucs have been blocked from interviewing. The Arizona Cardinals previously denied permission for offensive assistant John McNulty, a former Schiano assistant at Rutgers, to interview for the job.
It also was reported Monday that University of Florida defensive coordinator Dan Quinn turned down a position with the Bucs, presumably as the defensive line coach.
The Bucs have not made any official announcements about any hirings of assistants. The only assistant known to have accepted a position is wide receivers coach P.J. Fleck, another former Rutgers assistant.
The Bucs appear to be in line to add several other Rutgers assistants, but nothing definite has happened yet. There also has been speculation from the moment Schiano was hired that he’d be joined by former NFL and college head coach Butch Davis as defensive coordinator, but nothing has been announced on that move.
Although Tampa Bay was extremely thorough in its search for a head coach -- the process took more than three weeks -- it appears the late start has put Schiano at a disadvantage when it comes to filling out a staff. Most assistant jobs have been filled across the league, and teams are trying to hold onto what they have. Quinn turned down a chance to get back into the NFL, and Rutgers reportedly is doing its best to keep as many assistant coaches as possible.
One of the knocks on former Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris was that he lacked a strong stable of assistants, especially after firing experienced coordinators Jim Bates and Jeff Jagodzinski during his first season. It’s starting to look like the late start might make it tough for Schiano to assemble a quality staff.
The latest example of this comes from this report that says the Green Bay Packers denied permission for the Bucs to speak to tight ends coach Ben McAdoo about becoming offensive coordinator.
McAdoo is at least the second offensive coordinator candidate the Bucs have been blocked from interviewing. The Arizona Cardinals previously denied permission for offensive assistant John McNulty, a former Schiano assistant at Rutgers, to interview for the job.
It also was reported Monday that University of Florida defensive coordinator Dan Quinn turned down a position with the Bucs, presumably as the defensive line coach.
The Bucs have not made any official announcements about any hirings of assistants. The only assistant known to have accepted a position is wide receivers coach P.J. Fleck, another former Rutgers assistant.
The Bucs appear to be in line to add several other Rutgers assistants, but nothing definite has happened yet. There also has been speculation from the moment Schiano was hired that he’d be joined by former NFL and college head coach Butch Davis as defensive coordinator, but nothing has been announced on that move.
Although Tampa Bay was extremely thorough in its search for a head coach -- the process took more than three weeks -- it appears the late start has put Schiano at a disadvantage when it comes to filling out a staff. Most assistant jobs have been filled across the league, and teams are trying to hold onto what they have. Quinn turned down a chance to get back into the NFL, and Rutgers reportedly is doing its best to keep as many assistant coaches as possible.
One of the knocks on former Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris was that he lacked a strong stable of assistants, especially after firing experienced coordinators Jim Bates and Jeff Jagodzinski during his first season. It’s starting to look like the late start might make it tough for Schiano to assemble a quality staff.
Questions after Tom Clements promotion
February, 2, 2012
Feb 2
9:58
PM ET
By
Kevin Seifert | ESPN.com
Promoting Tom Clements to offensive coordinator was the logical choice for Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy, who lost incumbent Joe Philbin two weeks ago to the Miami Dolphins. But two key questioned remained unanswered in a news release issued Thursday to announce the change:
There is no reason to think McCarthy will give up his role as the Packers' play-caller, but it's worth noting that he had Clements call plays during last Sunday's Pro Bowl. And in the Week 17 game against the Detroit Lions, McCarthy assigned the job to quarterback Aaron Rodgers because he wasn't playing. We'll let you know when the Packers address either of those issues.
Update: Thanks to @cspurls for pointing out via Twitter that a story on the Packers website reports McCarthy will still call plays. That information was not in the press release sent out by the team.
- Will Clements double up as his own quarterbacks coach, a job he has held since 2006, or will McCarthy add a new one?
- Will Clements call the plays, or will McCarthy continue to do so?
There is no reason to think McCarthy will give up his role as the Packers' play-caller, but it's worth noting that he had Clements call plays during last Sunday's Pro Bowl. And in the Week 17 game against the Detroit Lions, McCarthy assigned the job to quarterback Aaron Rodgers because he wasn't playing. We'll let you know when the Packers address either of those issues.
Update: Thanks to @cspurls for pointing out via Twitter that a story on the Packers website reports McCarthy will still call plays. That information was not in the press release sent out by the team.
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