THE BEGINING IS NOT THE PROBLEM BUT THE END POINT MATTERS A LOT TO WISE PEOPLE, LETS GET READY TO ROLL.
Since losing to Michigan in the Rose Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal, the Alabama football program has gone through a lot. Nick Saban has retired, there were some key departures via the transfer portal, and a few 2024 commits decided to sign elsewhere. Because of all that and more, ESPN has become weary of the Crimson Tide.
Though there have been plenty of negatives, it is important to remember that there has also been plenty of positive news. New head coach Kalen DeBoer is a proven winner, he’s hired a strong staff, and there have been some impressive pickups via the transfer portal and the recruiting trail.
ESPN’s original way-too-early Top 25 for the 2024 college football season had Alabama ranked No. 4, but that is no longer the case. In the latest updated rankings, the Crimson Tide has fallen to No. 9, which makes DeBoer’s team the fifth-highest-ranked SEC team.
No sense in complaining about a top-10 ranking, but being fifth in the conference the Tide just won last season is interesting.
Marco Schlabach of ESPN writes,
“Alabama’s transition under former Washington coach Kalen DeBoer has already been rocky, with Downs and highly regarded quarterback Julian Sayin transferring to Ohio State, Bond and tight end Amari Niblack jumping to Texas, offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor returning home to Iowa and several players leaving for the NFL. Then, making matters worse, offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and offensive line coach Scott Huff took jobs with the Seattle Seahawks last week. Saban’s dynasty wasn’t built with Tinkertoys, so the Crimson Tide will be fine in the long run.”
The Crimson Tide’s 2024 season, and the kale DeBoer era, begins on Aug. 31 in Tuscaloosa against Western Kentucky. We don’t know where Alabama will be ranked to start the season, nor do we know what to expect from this team. The standard, however, is still to compete for the conference title and a national championship.
Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football as the 2024 offseason progresses.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on X @SpurrFM.
Story originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire
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ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Some think Brandon Staley will land in San Francisco as next defensive coordinator
ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Thu, Feb 15, 2024, 10:47 PM GMT+1·1 min read
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Few believe that 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks without having an idea as to the identity of his successor. Some around the league think Shanahan will eventually hire former Rams defensive coordinator and Chargers head coach Brandon Staley.
Staley was fired by the Chargers during the 2023 season, after a Thursday night blowout loss to the Raiders. When the Rams lost defensive coordinator Raheem Morris to the Falcons as head coach, Staley was considered but not hired to return to the Rams.
Staley and Shanahan have not previously worked together. They squared off twice in 2020, when Staley ran the Rams’ defense. They had one game against each other during Staley’s time as coach of the Chargers. The 49ers won all three of the games with Staley as defensive coordinator or head coach.
Staley is known for using multiple alignments aimed at getting the most out of players. He’s got the flexibility to use the Seatle/Cover 3 defense, if that’s what Shanahan wants and if that’s what fits the personnel. Or Shanahan could trust Staley to teach the players different looks and fronts and approaches, dictated by the opponent and not the system.
There’s no indication yet that Shanahan will even interview Staley. He’s arguably the best available option at this stage of the offseason — unless Shanahan can get the godfather of the Seattle defense, Pete Carroll, is willing to take the job and if Shanahan wants him. Or unless Bill Belichick or Mike Vrabel would want the job.
We’ll see how it plays out. For now, however, we’re keeping an eye on Staley, because some people in league circles believe it eventually will be him.
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NBC Sports BayArea
Examining 49ers’ potential DC candidates after Wilks firing
Tristi Rodriguez
Thu, Feb 15, 2024, 7:19 PM GMT+1·4 min read
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Examining 49ers’ potential DC candidates after Wilks firing originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
The 49ers-Steve Wilks pairing didn’t work, resulting in the team parting ways with the defensive coordinator after just one season.
Now, after falling just short in Super Bowl LVIII, San Francisco’s focus is on returning to the big stage in 2024 with a new coordinator calling plays for the unit that for so long carried the team to success.
Coach Kyle Shanahan told Bay Area reporters via conference call Wednesday that he will look within the building at his own staff for potential suitors, as well as outside the organization for coaches who could fit well in San Francisco’s complex system.
NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco and Jennifer Lee Chan discussed Wilks’ firing on the latest “49ers Talk” and examined a list of potential candidates for the role.
Here is a list of potential candidates:
Internal
Nick Sorensen
Sorensen is fresh off his first season as the 49ers defensive passing game/nickel backs coach. He spent the 2022 season, his first with San Francisco, as a defensive assistant.
In 2022, the 49ers’ defense ranked first overall in the NFL, allowing 300.6 total yards per game and first with 16.3 points allowed per game.
Before coming to the Bay, Sorensen spent the 2021 season with the Jacksonville Jaguars as the special teams coordinator.
Daniel Bullocks
Bullocks completed his seventh season with the 49ers and first as the team’s defensive backs coach.
He spent the previous four seasons (2019-22) as San Francisco’s safeties coach and the previous two seasons (2017-18) as an assistant defensive backs coach.
Kris Kocurek
Kocurek has spent the last five seasons as the 49ers defensive line coach.
He joined San Francisco in 2019 after spending the previous season with the Miami Dolphins as the defensive line coach.
Johnny Holland
Holland will enter his eighth season with the 49ers and potentially the fifth as the team’s linebackers coach.
He previously served as the team’s linebackers coach in 2017 and also worked as the 49ers run game specialist/outside linebackers coach from 2018-20.
External
Bill Belichick
Several big names have been tossed into the mix as potential suitors for San Francisco, and Belichick is one of them.
Belichick is regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time with numerous coaching records, including the record for most Super Bowl wins.
The football historian spent the past 23 seasons with the New England Patriots, making nine Super Bowl appearances and winning six with Tom Brady under center.
But when Brady departed to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England failed to make a deep playoff run. And after the Patriots finished the 2023 season with a 4-13 record — the worst in Belichick’s 24 seasons as coach — the team and coach mutually agreed to part ways.
Pete Carroll
Carroll has been the longtime nemesis of the 49ers, but could he switch sides and join a team that for so long was his rival?
The one-time Super Bowl champ spent the last decade-plus as the Seattle Seahawks head coach.
As division rivals, the 49ers-Seahawks matchups intensified with Carroll calling the shots for Seattle.
But after the Seahawks were eliminated from playoff contention this season with the Green Bay Packers holding the playoff tiebreaker over them, Carroll and Seattle mutually agreed the coach would step down from his role but remain with the team as an advisor.
However, Maiocco believes neither Belichick nor Carroll are real options for San Francisco, stating he “can’t imagine” either of the two wanting to be a coordinator at this stage of their careers.
Mike Vrabel
Vrabel spent the last six seasons as the head coach of the Tennessee Titans, but he was dismissed from the job last month.
Tennessee finished the 2023 season with a 6-11 record, bringing Vrabel’s all-time head-coaching record to 54-45.
He has the experience, both as a head coach and as a coordinator.
Before the Titans, Vrabel spent four seasons with the Houston Texans: The first three as linebackers coach and the final as their defensive coordinator. In 2016, the 49ers reportedly offered Vrabel their defensive coordinator job, but he declined the offer to remain in Houston.
While the 49ers weigh their options, the clock is ticking as several teams around the league already have their coaching staffs in place.
The 49ers want to make the right call after going through four defensive coordinators in five seasons, but their isn’t much time.
