NFL Truth & Rumors: Jan. 11, 2005

Now that the regular season is over, the NFL rumor mill is heating up. To keep you up to date, we've created a special edition of NFL Truth & Rumors. To check out the other sports, click here.

Troy Brown's run with the Patriots could be nearing an end. Nick Laham/Getty Images • Pete McEntegart: The 10 Spot -- Tues., Jan. 11 • Truth & Rumors: Holmgren to stay in Seattle? • Albert Chen: Mets improve, Astros fade • Bill Scheft: The latest on Mickey Rooney's butt • More Blogs: Whitaker | Ballard | Wertheim Click here for Today's Sign of the Apocalypse, Game to Watch, Leading Off gallery and much more!

The Patriots are changing. Drastically. Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis is leaving at the end of the year. Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel may go, as well. The best cornerback they ever had, Ty Law, may not be back next season, and Troy Brown -- the player who has embodied what this franchise has been about since Bill Belichick came to town -- is near the end, too.
-- Providence Journal

Patriots assistants such as linebackers coach Dean Pees could be wooed away to bigger jobs. We hear from Miami that Belichick disciple Nick Saban is trying to find his Scott Pioli, so wouldn't it make sense that it would be someone from Pioli's staff? Nick Caserio, Keith Kidd, Tom Dimitroff, and Lionel Vital, the unsung members of the Patriots staff who go out and find players, would be excellent choices. Will the Patriots be able to withstand the defections?
-- Boston Globe

Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre will have a lot on his mind this week and possibly in the weeks to come as he considers his playing future and what is best for him and his family. Most of his teammates -- including his closest friend on the Packers, Doug Pederson -- and his brother Scott Favre guessed that he would come back for one more year. Others, such as offensive linemen Mike Wahle and Marco Rivera, will base their decisions on whether to return to the Packers as free agents on Favre's choice.
-- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

The Packers have won only one of their last five playoff games, and in each loss, Favre has been dreadful. No, the fault is not Favre's alone. If the Packers had surrounded him with a good enough team, perhaps he could have won two or three Super Bowls. For much of this season, Favre tried. He pulled and dragged the Packers to a decent season. Once again, the playoffs were too much to ask. Is this how we are to remember Favre? As a series of bad final chapters? Is this enough for Favre? Or is it time for him to hang up his helmet?
-- St. Petersburg Times

The primary issue facing the Packers is whether Mike Sherman should keep both his head coach and general manager duties. President Bob Harlan prefers splitting the two roles and maintained all season long that he was looking closely at whether the organization would be better served if Sherman held just one job.
-- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Jim Bates and Marc Trestman are out as Dolphins assistants, and Jim O'Brien is in as the club's coordinator of football operations. Bates will interview for the Browns coaching vacancy today. He is scheduled to fly to New York to meet with owner Randy Lerner and GM Phil Savage. Savage, who recently was hired in Cleveland, has an acquaintance with Bates spanning more than a decade.
-- Miami Herald

With Bates out of the picture, Saban must weigh other options. He has requested and received permission to interview Houston assistant Todd Grantham, and an NFL source said New England assistant Dean Pees also might become a candidate for the defensive coordinator position. Both coaches worked for Saban at Michigan State.
-- Miami Herald

Several Miami players -- including quarterback A.J. Feeley -- lobbied for Trestman's promotion to offensive coordinator. Trestman has been a proven commodity in that position, having been the offensive coordinator in Oakland, Cleveland, San Francisco and Arizona. But Saban has several candidates for that job, including Minnesota offensive coordinator Scott Linehan and Philadelphia senior assistant Marty Mornhinweg. Saints offensive coordinator Mike McCarthy could be a candidate.
-- Miami Herald

While Feeley showed a lot of progress as the season went on, Saban won't have long to make up his mind whether the former Eagle is his man for the future. The free agency period begins in March and the Dolphins have the No. 2 pick in April's NFL Draft.
-- Florida Today

Ravens coach Brian Billick has received permission from the Dolphins to interview offensive coordinator Chris Foerster.
-- South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Steelers line coach Russ Grimm returned to work yesterday after speaking with Browns officials, who interviewed him for four hours Saturday.
-- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Giants defensive coordinator Tim Lewis is turning into a very hot offseason commodity. He's already interviewed for two college jobs, and now he's on the San Francisco 49ers' short list, too. Lewis will interview for the 49ers' head coaching job tomorrow, just four days after he interviewed for the Syracuse University job. He also interviewed at the University of Pittsburgh, though Pitt eventually hired Dave Wannstedt. Lewis, who has never been a head coach before, joins a list of candidates in San Francisco that appears to include former Giants coach Jim Fassel. The biggest name on the list appears to be Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren, if he can be pried from Seattle.
-- New York Daily News

Holmgren, who has two years left on the eight-year, $32 million contract he signed in 1999, is expected to stay despite speculation that he would either be let go or resign.
-- Seattle Times

The 49ers' search for a head coach has them in St. Louis today, where they will interview Titans offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger. Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and Bills defensive coordinator Jerry Gray might also be interviewed.
-- San Francisco Chronicle

With speculation continuing to swirl about the possible pursuit of Coach Pete Carroll by NFL teams, USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett said that he was not concerned. Carroll is thought to be the main target of the 49ers.
-- Los Angeles Times

There are rumblings that coach Herm Edwards is frustrated with Paul Hackett's play-calling and deployment of personnel. The offensive coordinator is thought to be in danger of losing his job, although Edwards tossed Hackett a compliment Sunday when asked about Hackett's performance in the wild-card win over the Chargers. Are Edwards and Hackett on the same philosophical page? No doubt, it will be part be of Edwards' thought process when he decides Hackett's fate after the season. It would be hard to fire a coordinator if the Jets beat the Steelers to reach the AFC title game, unless Edwards uses the time-tested, but hollow, "philosophical differences" explanation.
-- New York Daily News

The Jets might put the franchise tag on backup RB LaMont Jordan, who will be an unrestricted free agent.
-- New York Daily News

Common sense often precludes the Lions from making the right decision, so Southern Cal offensive coordinator Norman Chow shouldn't expect a call from Steve Mariucci anytime soon. "It's probably time for me to move on and provide other people with opportunities to work with such a fine program as USC," Chow said. "It doesn't get much better at this level than this. But leaving would require me having another job first." So what are the Lions waiting for? The Fords should offer this man a blank check.
-- Detroit Free Press

The Ravens' priority remains finding a new offensive coordinator. Team officials have planned a second interview with former University of Washington coach Rick Neuheisel. Saints quarterbacks coach Mike Sheppard is not a lock to take any Ravens offer because he could be in line for the same position with New Orleans. Another coach heavily linked to the Ravens has Linehan. But if Billick wants to have someone in place by the weekend, it would push Linehan out of the picture. The NFL's anti-tampering rules state that the Ravens are barred from contacting Linehan until the Vikings are out of the playoffs.
-- Baltimore Sun

Since top choice Linehan can't interview for the offensive coordinators job, the Jaguars are likely to consider former Baltimore offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh, New Orleans offensive coordinator Mike McCarthy, San Diego offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, Cincinnati quarterbacks coach Ken Zampese and St. Louis quarterbacks coach John Ramsdell.
-- Jacksonville Times-Union

Owner Red McCombs said the Vikings will do their best to keep Linehan, who is without a contract for next season.
-- St. Paul Pioneer Press

The situation could change at any second, but so far the only team that has expressed interest in signing Bucs secondary coach Mike Tomlin to a new contract is the Bucs.
-- Tampa Tribune

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