The Denver Broncos fired coach Nathaniel Hackett on Monday after falling to 4-11 in his first season with a loss to the Rams on Sunday. Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press
The Denver Broncos fired first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett on Monday with two games left in the season.
Owner and CEO Greg Penner said he’ll lead the search for a new coach with assistance from GM George Paton, in whom he expressed confidence while announcing Hackett’s dismissal.
Firing Hackett with two games left in a lost season allows Penner to begin his search for a replacement immediately.
The Broncos scheduled a news conference for Tuesday, when they’re expected to name their interim head coach for games at Kansas City next weekend and at home against the Chargers in Week 18.
The Walton-Penner group purchased the Broncos for $4.65 billion last summer, a global record for a professional sports franchise, and Rob Walton said after the league’s approval that he aimed to make the Broncos perennial championship contenders again.
On Sunday, the Broncos (4-11) were blown out by the equally downtrodden Los Angeles Rams 51-14 when Russell Wilson threw three interceptions and was sacked six times. The game featured a sideline spat between backup QB Brett Rypien and guard Dalton Risner, and pass rusher Randy Gregory threw a punch at a Rams player after the game.
In a statement Monday, Penner thanked Hackett for his dedication but said that “following extensive conversations with George and our ownership group, we determined a new direction would ultimately be in the best interest of the Broncos. This change was made now out of respect for everyone involved and allows us to immediately begin the search for a new head coach.”
DOLPHINS: Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has returned to the NFL’s concussion protocol, Coach Mike McDaniel said.
Tagovailoa met with doctors a day after the Dolphins’ 26-20 loss to Green Bay and was experiencing concussion symptoms.
Teddy Bridgewater is expected to get most of the first-team reps in practice this week, but McDaniel said it is too early to name a starter for Miami’s game at New England on Sunday.
JETS: Mike White is back at quarterback for the New York Jets.
And just in time, with their playoff hopes hanging by a thread.
White was cleared by team doctors and will start Sunday in Seattle after he missed the Jets’ past two games while dealing with broken ribs suffered in New York’s 20-12 loss at Buffalo on Dec. 11.
“I thought Mike had been doing a great job moving the offense, sustaining drives and getting first downs,” Coach Robert Saleh said while confirming the decision. “Much more efficient. Our offense was running with some good efficiency.
“It’s a great opportunity for him, a great opportunity for everybody.”
White has practiced on a limited basis since, but hadn’t been cleared for contact so he couldn’t play.
That clearance came Monday. And with the Jets (7-8) still in the playoff hunt with two games remaining, they get their quarterback back. And “barring injury,” Saleh said, for as long as the season lasts.
Saleh said Joe Flacco would serve as White’s backup and Zach Wilson will go from starting the past two games to being the No. 3 quarterback and inactive on Sunday.
SUSPENSIONS: Broncos linebacker Randy Gregory and Rams offensive lineman Oday Aboushi were each suspended one game for exchanging punches following Los Angeles’ 51-14 win over Denver on Sunday.
NFL Vice President of Football Operations Jon Runyan issued the suspensions Monday for violations of unsportsmanlike conduct and unnecessary roughness rules, specifically those which prohibits “striking, swinging at, or clubbing the head, neck, or face of an opponent with the wrist(s), arm(s), elbow(s) or hand(s).”
Gregory will miss the Broncos’ game at Kansas City on Sunday and Aboushi will sit out the Rams’ game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
PANTHERS: Carolina worked out 35-year-old cornerback Josh Norman on Monday because starter Jaycee Horn’s status for Sunday’s crucial game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is up in the air.
Horn broke his left wrist in Carolina’s 37-23 win over the Detroit Lions on Saturday and will have surgery Tuesday, interim coach Steve Wilks said. Wilks also said it will be determined after surgery whether Horn is done for the season or will be able to play with a club on his arm.
Wilks said the expectation is the Panthers will sign Norman if all goes well in his workout.
If Horn is out, Keith Taylor would start at cornerback, Wilks said, and Norman would play in a reserve role.
BROWNS: Pro Bowl defensive end Myles Garrett was benched for the start of Saturday’s loss to New Orleans by Coach Kevin Stefanski for an unspecified team violation, the latest twist in an odd season for the star.
Garrett wasn’t on the field for the Saints’ first series, and Stefanski revealed it was because he was being disciplined.
“Just a team thing,” Stefanski said during a Zoom call, without elaborating. “That was my decision.”
Stefanski benched starting safety Grant Delpit earlier this season for one play for a team violation.
Garrett has played much of the season with a shoulder sprain sustained when he flipped his Porsche while speeding after a practice in September.
He was on the field Saturday for the pregame toss as one of the team’s captains, but he stayed on the sideline when New Orleans got the ball. With end Jadeveon Clowney out with a concussion, rookie Alex Wright and Chase Winovich started.
Garrett wound up playing in 36 of 54 defensive snaps as the Browns (6-9) were beaten 17-10 and knocked out of playoff contention.
EAGLES: Right tackle Lane Johnson sustained an abdominal injury that is expected to sideline him for the remainder of the regular season, a league source confirmed.
Johnson, 32, was injured during the fourth quarter of the team’s 40-34 loss to the Cowboys on Saturday. He was replaced by reserve offensive lineman Jack Driscoll. Following Saturday’s game, Johnson was spotted leaving the visitors’ locker room sporting a medical bandage around his waist/groin area. Further tests revealed Johnson had torn a tendon in his abdominal area.
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