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USA Today
11 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Broncos special teams coach dubs rookie one of the most talented prospects he's had
Broncos special teams coach dubs rookie one of the most talented prospects he's had Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi on punter Jeremy Crawshaw: 'He's as talented of a prospect as I've ever had.' — Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) June 11, 2025 Punter hype? Punter hype! After losing Riley Dixon to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during NFL free agency, the Denver Broncos used a sixth-round draft pick to select Australian punter Jeremy Crawshaw in April. The international punter grew up playing rugby league and Australian rules football before training to kick in American football. After attending Nathan Chapman's ProKick Australia academy, Crawshaw played college football at Florida. The 24-year-old punter impressed Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi this spring. 'Probably Jeremy the person," Rizzi said on June 11 when asked what impressed him about Crawshaw. "His maturity. It's not easy to come from another country and play a sport he had never played before. Think about that. Here's a guy that came from Australia, went to an SEC school, a top-level college program, [and] had a ton of success. His maturity level, he's kind of beyond his years if you will. That was when we were kind of evaluating all the punters in this draft, his name came up. I really feel like his intangibles, his off-the-field stuff was A-plus. "Now, his talent level is tremendous as well. I really believe that at that position, at a specialist position, your demeanor might be just as important as your ability, because it's a one-play-and-done. You have to have the mentality of kind of a batter in baseball if you will, or a golfer. You have to go on to the next swing. I really like his level-headedness. I really like his maturity. I really like his approach. Getting to know him in the process was a big part of us drafting him, so that was pretty cool.' That's extremely high praise from Rizzi, a high-profile coordinator who has coached in the NFL since 2009 and has experience as an associate head coach and interim head coach. Special teams players are often overlooked by fans, but Crawshaw appears to have been a huge addition for the Broncos this offseason. Related: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
Boston Globe
05-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Why the Tush Push is in trouble, and a deeper look at the other big news from the NFL owners meetings
∗ Moving the touchback to the 35, where it should have been last year. The NFL was mostly thrilled with the results of Advertisement But you could practically hear the special teams coaches and NFL competition committee telling the owners, 'We told you fools last year the touchback should be at the 35. Now let's get it right.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The league's data last year recommended the touchback come out to the 35 to deter kickers from blasting the ball out of the end zone, but the owners moved it to the 30 because the 35 was too drastic a change for many. Sure enough, while kickoff returns increased from 22 percent to 33 percent last year, the touchback rate of 64 percent was still too high for the NFL's liking (second highest in history). The average start line after a kickoff was the 27.6 yard line, and that 2.4-yard difference from a touchback wasn't enough of a deterrent for kickers. Advertisement Now that the touchback will come out to the 35, that 7.4-yard difference in starting field position likely will encourage kickers to keep the ball in play, as will the fact that only 16 percent of returns last year went past the 35. Broncos special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi , one of the central figures in developing the Dynamic Kickoff, said he expects returns to jump to 70 percent or higher in 2025. 'When I was growing up, the touchback rate was maybe 15-25 percent, and we feel like that's going to be the case again,' Rizzi said. * No changes to onside kick — for now. The NFL also was considering The onside kick definitely needs to be revived — the recovery rate of 5 percent the last three years is but a fraction of the 15-25 percent recovery rate the NFL used to consistently see in the previous 20 years — and in December NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent called it a 'dead' play. It was surprising not to see more extensive rule proposals for the onside kick, and even more surprising the owners didn't even consider the rules last week. But it will be discussed more at the next meeting. Related : Advertisement 'We'll work with some coaches and add some other tweaks they'd like to talk about on the onside, and we'll bring that up to a vote in May,' said Rich McKay , chairman of the NFL competition committee. * Tush Push is on life support. The big news of the week was that the owners were split, 16-16, on Usually when an item doesn't get 24 votes to pass, the league simply moves on. The fact that they tabled the discussion and will discuss it again is a clear sign Roger Goodell and the league office want the Tush Push and all push plays out of the game. The league doesn't have any injury data, but views push plays as unsafe and a disaster waiting to happen. * New technology for measuring first downs — but humans are still in charge. The NFL is taking a step into the future with the implementation of its Hawk-Eye technology as the primary method for measuring first downs. The NFL still will use the traditional chain crews as a reference point for TV viewers, but expects Hawk-Eye to save about 40 seconds per measurement. Still, it's important for everyone to understand: Hawk-Eye will determine if the spot is a first down, but the officials are the ones who determine when forward progress has stopped, and where the ball will be spotted. It won't fix the main controversy from the AFC Championship game when Josh Allen's Advertisement * Overtime is now a race against the clock. The Eagles proposed guaranteeing both teams a possession in overtime, and increasing the game clock back to 15 minutes. The owners split the difference by approving the possession part, but keeping the clock at 10 minutes. And it's a hard 10 minutes. If the first team takes up the entire period and kicks a field goal with 0:00 left on the clock, the second team doesn't get a possession and loses the game. The average scoring drive lasts about five minutes, so both teams should get a possession. But if the first team chews up a lot of clock, the second team needs to move the ball in a hurry. 'If you go to 15 [minutes], then you go back to whoever wins the coin toss is going to defer,' McKay said. 'If you win the coin toss now, 10 minutes, you're taking the ball, because of how much time will be left. It adds an element of competitiveness. We just felt that was a better way to do it.' * Playoff seeding will be considered, but probably not changed. The Lions proposed seeding every team in the conference by record, instead of the current system, where the four division winners get the top four seeds and are guaranteed a home playoff game. McKay said there was 'some' support for the proposal, and they will discuss it again, but it doesn't sound as if it has enough to get 24 votes. 'The idea is, well, are you diminishing division championships? Which we do not want to do,' McKay said. 'It has served us very well is divisions, and that rivalry and that fact that it means something that we're not just sitting all in a conference being ranked.' Advertisement History of the Tush Push Sirianni explains its evolution With it looking increasingly likely the NFL is going to ban all push plays in May, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni provided an interesting history of the Tush Push this past week at the owners meetings. Like many innovations, the play was created out of necessity when Sirianni was the offensive coordinator in Indianapolis under former coach Frank Reich . 'We had a lot of success with it in Indy, with Jacoby Brissett , particularly,' Sirianni said. 'He would come in for Andrew Luck to do some of those with Andrew coming off an injury. And then [Brissett] did it when he started in 2019, and then in 2020 when we had Philip Rivers , he was the specialist in that as well.' Jacoby Brissett (center) got a push from a Colts teammate to help get a first down in a 2021 game vs. the Jaguars. Michael Conroy/Associated Press Brissett went 10 for 10 on short yardage sneaks in 2019, and rushed 17 times for 19 yards in 2020, with three touchdowns, and nine more first downs. Sirianni became the Eagles' head coach in 2021, and started getting creative with the sneaks. 'In 2021 we didn't run it a lot, I think we were 13 of 14, but one of those in that time we motioned Dallas Goedert into the backfield and gave [the quarterback] a little extra help,' Sirianni said. 'That led us into 2022 where we played Detroit, and we ended the game with a quarterback sneak. Wasn't anybody pushing, but we ended the game on a fourth and 1, we were up, 38-35, with a quarterback sneak to be able to kneel it out. That was a pretty important quarterback sneak to happen — 'Let's make sure we get them.' It kind of evolved from there — different formations, different pushers. Then we turned it into two pushers. It was a cool evolution.' Advertisement Not messing around Bengals VP flexes her muscles Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn , the daughter of owner Mike Brown and granddaughter of Paul Brown , does not mess around. A former Dartmouth ice hockey player and attorney, Blackburn flexed her muscles on a couple of significant issues last week. The first came in regard to star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson , who wants a raise from $16 million in 2025. Hendrickson's 43 sacks the last three years are second-most in the NFL behind Myles Garrett's 44, yet Hendrickson makes less than half of Garrett's $40 million annual salary. Hendrickson also watched the Bengals splurge on receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins recently. Related : Blackburn basically told Hendrickson to zip it and appreciate what he has. 'I think he should be happy at certain rates that maybe he doesn't think he'd be happy at,' Blackburn said, per the Cincinnati Enquirer. 'I think some of it is on him to be happy at some point, and if he's not, you know, that's what holds it up sometimes. So, you know, it takes him to say yes to something.' Hendrickson has been running hot and cold with the Bengals all offseason — first he wants a trade, then he doesn't, now he's unhappy again. Following Blackburn's comments, Hendrickson told the 'Pat McAfee Show' that 'communication has been poor over the last couple of months. … It's been something that's been a little bit frustrating.' It sounds as if Hendrickson doesn't really want to leave Cincinnati, and the Bengals know it, so they're not budging on a new contract. If Hendrickson wants to get paid close to market rate, he needs to make a bigger nuisance of himself to get traded, because it's probably not going to happen in Cincinnati. But that wasn't the only bomb dropped by Blackburn. She casually threatened to move the team from Cincinnati if the team and Hamilton County, Ohio can't agree to a deal to renovate Paycor Stadium. The Bengals' lease expires June 30, 2026, and they have until this June 30 to extend the lease two years. 'We could, I guess, go wherever we wanted after this year if we didn't pick the option up,' Blackburn said. 'Our stadium obviously needs to continue to be maintained appropriately, and you want to keep it at a certain level that's important, just so that we're competitive with others.' It's possible Blackburn was just referring to moving the Bengals from downtown to the suburbs. But her phrasing came across as a threat to the county to pony up for stadium renovations — or else. Brady and Carroll An unlikely pairing given history It's not surprising Tom Brady hired a 70-something head coach in Las Vegas. The shocker was that the coach wasn't Bill Belichick , but instead it was Pete Carroll , the coach whom Brady famously defeated in Super Bowl 49. Brady and Carroll didn't have much of a relationship before the interview process. I asked Carroll at the owners meetings if he ever in his wildest dreams thought he would one day team up with Brady. 'I never did think that could happen. I couldn't even see the path to that,' said Carroll, 73. 'And then when he jumps into the Raiders, the entire image of this opportunity shifted.' 'The expertise that he brings, the uniqueness, I didn't know how he would be to work with. Just competed against him, listened to him over the years, have great admiration and respect and all that,' Carroll said. 'But he is really grounded in his mentality. That's what makes him so valuable to us, because we can draw from that.' 'There have been a number of opportunities already to position him to speak on behalf of a unique perspective that like nobody else has. About a ton of things, but particularly about the quarterback position, and offense, and I translate his thoughts from the offensive side to what's going on on the other side of the ball.' 'And it's been tremendous. It's going to continue to be. I never would ever have imagined something like that happening.' Related : Does their history on the field ever come up? 'It isn't just about the Super Bowl — we've played them a number of times, and beat him,' Carroll said with a smile. Carroll went 2-1 against Brady in the regular season, defeating the Patriots in 2012 and 2016 and losing to the Bucs in 2022. Extra points The NFL made an interesting decision last week to formally acknowledge the stats from the All-America Football Conference, which lasted from 1946-49 and introduced the 49ers, Colts, and Browns franchises. This decision cost the Ravens a spot in the record book, as the 1948 Niners are now the official record-holders for most rushing yards in a season (3,663) and rushing average (6.1 yards per attempt). Those records were held by the 2019 Ravens (3,296 yards) and 2024 Ravens (5.76 yards per carry). Paul Brown is also officially recognized as a seven-time championship winner, putting him one ahead of Bill Belichick and George Halas … Steelers owner Art Rooney lamented that he 'didn't envision it taking this long' for the team to sign Aaron Rodgers . Hello, this is what Rodgers does, drawing things out for maximum attention … The NFL expects a decision soon on whether active players will be able to participate in flag football at the 2028 Olympics. The injury risk is a major concern, but considering how serious the NFL takes its flag football initiatives, here's betting that star players will be allowed to participate … The Falcons are still open to trading quarterback Kirk Cousins . 'If it's something that's good for both of us … we certainly would like to see that happen,' coach Raheem Morris said. But they owe Cousins $27 million this year and $10 million next year, and don't seem to want to do what the Broncos did last year with Russell Wilson , cutting him a check for $38 million and sending him on his way. The Browns make the most sense for Cousins, but probably want the Falcons to pick up most, if not all, of the tab … It has been surprising to learn this offseason that Myles Garrett has bad practice habits, and Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said the team has 'challenged' Garrett 'to become a real leader of the team. And he said he'd do that, and we're hopeful that he will be.' Of course, the Browns just paid Garrett a record-setting contract for $40 million per year, so good luck convincing Garrett that his way doesn't work. Ben Volin can be reached at
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Kellen Moore hired as Saints' new head coach
Kellen Moore has been hired as the new head coach of the New Orleans Saints, the team announced on Tuesday. Moore, 36, takes over a Saints team that finished 5-12 last season and ended up in last place of the NFC South. Head coach Dennis Allen was fired after nine games and his replacement, Darren Rizzi, went 3-5 on an interim basis. "At the start of the interview process, it was important to find a head coach who was the right fit for the New Orleans Saints organization," said Owner Gayle Benson. "Through the search process, it became clear that Kellen is the right person to help us re-establish a winning program and culture that our fans are accustomed to and have come to expect. I would also like to thank Darren Rizzi for his service as interim coach and leading our team this past season. I am truly grateful to him." As his last act as offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, Moore helped them to victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday. Following a six-season NFL playing career with the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, Moore entered the coaching ranks beginning as quarterbacks coach and then taking over as offensive coordinator with the Cowboys from 2019-2022. After parting ways with Dallas, he took over running the Los Angeles Chargers' offense as part of Brandon Staley's staff, but was there only one season before being hired by the Philadelphia Eagles in the same position. The Saints were the last NFL team remaining with a head coaching vacancy. General manager Mickey Loomis cast a wide net in a search for a new head coach. He spoke with Rizzi, Moore, Aaron Glenn, Joe Brady and Anthony Weaver, among others. Mike McCarthy was also a candidate, but he reportedly pulled himself out of the running and will reenter the coaching market for 2026. The Saints have not made the playoffs since 2020, the end of their four-year run as NFC South champions. Moore will have to wrestle with uncertainty at quarterback with veteran Derek Carr and a league-worst salary cap projection that, according to is at over $51 million. In an analysis of Moore's candidacy for the Cowboys' head coaching job, which eventually went to Brian Schottenheimer, Yahoo Sports' Jori Epstein wrote last month: At least nine teams spanning six of the league's eight divisions have sought interviews with Moore since he ascended to the coordinator level, per those team's social media posts at the time and more recent reports. The perception he left in interviews? 'Super impressive,' one executive who interviewed Moore for a previous opening told Yahoo Sports. 'We all left saying he's going to be a head coach some day. Unbelievably smart and was just very organized with his thoughts.' Moore's résumé has continued to trend toward promotion, his experience growing as he approaches his 36th birthday. Schematically, the son of a longtime high school coach, who was creating playbooks as a child, strikes people as ready to navigate the head coach role's balance of game management and play-calling responsibilities. Interpersonally, the executive who interviewed Moore praised how easy he was to talk to and how he made a point to stay in touch with team brass after their initial meetings. Moore is approachable and has received praise from players for his receptiveness to their ideas and creative wrinkles. Brandon Staley, who was an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers last season, is a candidate to be the Saints' offensive coordinator, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Staley ran the Los Angeles Rams' defense during the 2020 season before he took over as Los Angeles Chargers head coach through 2023.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Kellen Moore hired as Saints' new head coach
Kellen Moore has been hired as the new head coach of the New Orleans Saints, the team announced on Tuesday. Moore, 36, takes over a Saints team that finished 5-12 last season and ended up in last place of the NFC South. Head coach Dennis Allen was fired after nine games and his replacement, Darren Rizzi, went 3-5 on an interim basis. "At the start of the interview process, it was important to find a head coach who was the right fit for the New Orleans Saints organization," said Owner Gayle Benson. "Through the search process, it became clear that Kellen is the right person to help us re-establish a winning program and culture that our fans are accustomed to and have come to expect. I would also like to thank Darren Rizzi for his service as interim coach and leading our team this past season. I am truly grateful to him." As his last act as offensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, Moore helped them to victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday. Following a six-season NFL playing career with the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, Moore entered the coaching ranks beginning as quarterbacks coach and then taking over as offensive coordinator with the Cowboys from 2019-2022. After parting ways with Dallas, he took over running the Los Angeles Chargers' offense as part of Brandon Staley's staff, but was there only one season before being hired by the Philadelphia Eagles in the same position. The Saints were the last NFL team remaining with a head coaching vacancy. General manager Mickey Loomis cast a wide net in a search for a new head coach. He spoke with Rizzi, Moore, Aaron Glenn, Joe Brady and Anthony Weaver, among others. Mike McCarthy was also a candidate, but he reportedly pulled himself out of the running and will reenter the coaching market for 2026. The Saints have not made the playoffs since 2020, the end of their four-year run as NFC South champions. Moore will have to wrestle with uncertainty at quarterback with veteran Derek Carr and a league-worst salary cap projection that, according to is at over $51 million. In an analysis of Moore's candidacy for the Cowboys' head coaching job, which eventually went to Brian Schottenheimer, Yahoo Sports' Jori Epstein wrote last month: At least nine teams spanning six of the league's eight divisions have sought interviews with Moore since he ascended to the coordinator level, per those team's social media posts at the time and more recent reports. The perception he left in interviews? 'Super impressive,' one executive who interviewed Moore for a previous opening told Yahoo Sports. 'We all left saying he's going to be a head coach some day. Unbelievably smart and was just very organized with his thoughts.' Moore's résumé has continued to trend toward promotion, his experience growing as he approaches his 36th birthday. Schematically, the son of a longtime high school coach, who was creating playbooks as a child, strikes people as ready to navigate the head coach role's balance of game management and play-calling responsibilities. Interpersonally, the executive who interviewed Moore praised how easy he was to talk to and how he made a point to stay in touch with team brass after their initial meetings. Moore is approachable and has received praise from players for his receptiveness to their ideas and creative wrinkles. Brandon Staley, who was an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers last season, is a candidate to be the Saints' offensive coordinator, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Staley ran the Los Angeles Rams' defense during the 2020 season before he took over as Los Angeles Chargers head coach through 2023.
Boston Globe
29-01-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Mike McCarthy withdraws from Saints' coaching search and won't coach in 2025, AP source says
The Saints' remaining candidates include Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi, Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, and Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, all of whom have conducted in-person interviews. If the Saints plan to hire Moore, they would have to wait until after the Eagles play the Chiefs in the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Feb. 9. Advertisement Rizzi, a career special teams coordinator with the Dolphins and Saints, took over in New Orleans after Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi started 3-1 before quarterback Derek Carr was lost for the year with a left hand injury. Gerald Herbert/Associated Press The 61-year-old McCarthy, who spent the past five seasons with the Cowboys and won a Super Bowl during his 12 seasons with the Packers, was the most established candidate under consideration by the Saints. McCarthy had thrived as an offensive coordinator with the Saints from 2000-04 before spending one season in the same post with the 49ers. Green Bay hired him in 2006, and he oversaw the club's quarterback transition from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers, winning a championship with the latter under center in the 2010 season. He left Dallas after going 7-10 in 2024, just his second losing season with the Cowboys, where he won 12 regular-season games in each of the previous three campaigns. Patrick Mahomes takes aim at the Patriots dynasty Share Can the Chiefs quarterback make history with a three-peat? writer Conor Ryan insists that Tom Brady is still the unquestioned GOAT.
