Thursday’s Morning Links

Browns May Be Closing In On A Head Coach: Cleveland seems like they have found their new head coach, and it appears to be Pat Shurmur, the offensive coordinator of the Rams. Shurmur coached under Andy Reid in Philly before becoming the Rams offensive coordinator, making him apart of the Holmgren coaching tree. Shurmur’s uncle Fritz served under Holmgren both at Green Bay and Seattle, so this marriage makes perfect sense. Shurmur in his own right has helped mold Sam Bradford into an impressive rookie quarterback, and kept the Rams offense competitive despite not having the best personnel. With the Browns he will have the chance to mold another young quarterback, as well as implement an offense with a young promising team. Shurmur might not be biggest name on the market, but he fits what with the Browns are doing and will work well with Mike Holmgren. I’m sure some coaches may have balked at having to keep their defensive unit, led by Rob Ryan, but it appears Shurmur is okay with that arrangement.

Dolphins Could Be Close to Landing A New Offensive Coordinator: When the Dolphins decided to keep Tony Sparano it was evident they would need to bring in a big name offensive coordinator to rejuvenate this team. Miami’s offenses have been stagnate of late and there has been little in the way of developed talent. It is beginning to look like the Dolphins found the man for the job and he is a familiar face to football fans, former Vikings Head Coach Brad Childress. Childress left Minnesota amid controversy, and probably shouldn’t be a head coach, but he is a very attractive candidate as a coordinator. Childress was considered instrumental in the development of Donovan McNabb and the Eagles offenses. And early on he looked to have the same success in Minnesota (of course he lost control of the situation). The Dolphins needed a new offensive mind, someone who could maybe salvage something from Chad Henne‘s career. While Miami is interviewing other candidates, Childress would be by far the biggest name, and with the most experience, which is exactly the way I think they should go.