27 Feb 2024

Vikings hire NFL journeyman Josh McCown as quarterbacks coach

by | posted in: News | 0

INDIANAPOLIS — In a surprising move, the Vikings have hired NFL journeyman Josh McCown as their quarterbacks coach. He takes over for Chris O’Hara, who served as quarterbacks coach the past couple of seasons, and will remain on the coaching staff as a pass game specialist.

The decision to hire McCown, 44, comes at a time when the Vikings are facing some serious questions at that position. Will they opt to bring back franchise quarterback Kirk Cousins coming off his 2023 season-ending injury? Will they move on from him and instead turn their attention to luring a free-agent quarterback? Will they prioritize a rookie quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft?

Whoever the Vikings end up with at that position, McCown will now be in charge of working with that person on a daily basis. It’ll be interesting to see how he connects with head coach Kevin O’Connell as they work to keep the Vikings explosive on offense.

As a player, McCown bounced around 12 teams over 18 seasons in the NFL, suiting up for Arizona Cardinals (2002-05), Detroit Lions (2006), Oakland Raiders (2007), Miami Dolphins (2008), Carolina Panthers (2008-09), San Francisco 49ers (2011), Chicago Bears (2011-13), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2014), Cleveland Browns (2015-16), New York Jets (2017-18), Philadelphia Eagles (2019-20) and Houston Texans (2020). He finished his career with 17,731 passing yards and 98 touchdowns across 102 games, while adding 1,106 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.

As a coach, McCown most recently was the quarterbacks coach for the Panthers, helping develop rookie quarterback Bryce Young. Unfortunately for McCown, the Panthers struggled immensely last season, and he was fired along with head coach Frank Reich after a 1-10 start.

Originally, McCown got his start as a volunteer quarterbacks coach for Marvin Ridge High School in Waxhaw, N.C., while he was still playing  for the Hartford Colonials of the now-defunct UFL. He took a break from coaching for a about a decade while he continued playing in the NFL before getting the opportunity to be the quarterbacks coach for Myers Park High School in Charlotte, N.C.. His sons were on the varsity roster at the time and McCown actually served in that role while still playing for the Eagles at the time.

Maybe the most notable thing about McCown’s rise in coaching is the fact that he interviewed to be the head coach of the Texans while he was technically still a player. He then interviewed to be the head coach of the Texans again after he officially retired.

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27 Feb 2024

Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has no interest in trading Justin Jefferson

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INDIANAPOLIS — Given the chance, Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah gladly took the bait, dumping water on a rumor that has been spreading like wildfire.

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) performs the “Giddy” after scoring 52 yard touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers in the fourth quarter of a NFL game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023. The Chargers beat the Vikings, 28-24. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

He has no interest in trading star receiver Justin Jefferson. None. Any thought of that can seemingly be put to bed after his strong comments Tuesday at the NFL Combine.

“That is not something that’s once crossed my mind,” Adofo-Mensah said. “You’ve got a (blue-chip) player, a (blue-chip) person, and we try to keep as many of those as we can.”

The idea that the Vikings might be open to trading Jefferson surfaced last week without much warning. The aggregators got ahold of a few sentences of conjecture in a news story and suddenly it was fact. Fake trade proposals then popped up all over social media.

That’s why it was important for Adofo-Mensah to clear up his feelings on Jefferson in a public forum. Never mind that the Vikings have remained steadfast in their messaging throughout the negotiation process. There needed to be a statement refuting a claim that had quickly taken on a life of its own.

Now that Adofo-Mensah has done that, he can continue to work on actually signing Jefferson to a contract extension.

That has been the ultimate goal since the Vikings started the negotiation process last offseason. They tried to get something done after Year 3 of Jefferson’s rookie deal rather than wait until after Year 4. That doesn’t happen very often in the NFL, so maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise that talks eventually hit an impasse.

“Those are very hard conversations to have,” Adofo-Mensah said. “We got unbelievably close.”

Truthfully, if the Vikings never opened the door last offseason, nobody would have much to say heading into this offseason. The perception is that the relationship was strained when both sides were unable to come to an agreement. The reality is that the negotiation process is often drawn out until the last moment.

“I think people forget that deals rarely happen after (Year 3). and there’s a reason for that,” Adofo-Mensah said. “We’ve said it, and we’ll continue to say it: We think he’s the best receiver in the league, and he should be compensated as such.”

Though he would love to already have the deal done, Adofo-Mensah noted that it often takes a deadline to spur action.

“That’s something that in my years on the job I’ve seen as the exact case,” Adofo-Mensah said. “They have their reasons for waiting. We have our reasons for wanting to do it sooner. Ultimately we’ve got to come together and figure out a way to meet in the middle.”

It certainly isn’t going to be cheap for the Vikings.

As of right now, Miami Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill is the highest-paid receiver in the NFL, slotting in with an average annual value of $30 million.

It’s no secret that Jefferson wants to reset the market. He said in an appearance at the Super Bowl that he hopes “break the bank” whenever he signs his contract extension. The final numbers likely won’t come out until everything is signed, sealed and delivered.

“I promised them, and I will continue to promise them, that I will not talk about our negotiations,” Adofo-Mensah said. “I think this job should be done with integrity, so a lot of the stuff I hear is completely false, I can’t get up and here and say what’s true and false because that’s not how I promised to do this job.”

If that sounded like a reference to the rumor, it’s because it was a reference to the rumor.

“We’re excited to have him and continue those conversations,” Adofo-Mensah said. “He’s somebody we want around for a long time.”

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27 Feb 2024

Loons’ injury situation grows going into home opener on Saturday

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Minnesota United’s injury situation has grown going into the home opener against Columbus Crew at Allianz Field on Saturday.

Robin Lod, who scored the first goal in the 2-1 season-opening win over Austin FC last Saturday, took a kick to the calf in that game and rode a stationary bike during the open training session in St. Paul on Tuesday.

“We are just managing him a little bit,” said interim head coach Cameron Knowles post-practice.

Franco Fragapane developed a “slight calf strain that might keep him out for this weekend,” Knowles said.

The Loons (1-0-0) were without Emanuel Reynoso (knee) and Bongi Hlongwane (U.S. green card) in Texas, and they appear doubtful to play against the MLS Cup Champions this weekend.

Reynoso and Hlongwane participated in parts of Tuesday’s training session, but were also on the side for stretches.

“(Reynoso) continues to build his fitness — unlikely probably for the weekend,” Knowles said. “We’ll see day to day. But we need to continue to integrate him and build his fitness through training.”

“We need to build (Hlongwane’s) fitness. He won’t be available this weekend,” Knowles said. “… Difficult situation he was in (in South Africa). He wasn’t able to train with a team and only on his own, so we need to work and build him up.”

Kervin Arriaga (knee) and Lod appears to be the closest players to come off the injured list for Saturday’s match.

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27 Feb 2024

DC court backs Clark’s bid to block subpoena from bar investigators

by | posted in: Politics | 0

An attempt by D.C. bar authorities to force former Justice Department attorney Jeff Clark to fork over documents — part of an effort to potentially disbar the former President Donald Trump ally — would violate his Fifth Amendment rights, a D.C. appeals court panel ruled Monday.

In a brief order, the three-judge panel of the D.C. Court of Appeals agreed that the investigators’ effort to subpoena documents from Clark “infringes on Mr. Clark’s Fifth Amendment right not to be compelled to be a witness against himself.”

Clark is facing criminal charges in Georgia for his role in Trump’s bid to subvert the 2020 election, and he was identified as one of six key Trump co-conspirators by special counsel Jack Smith in a Washington, D.C., indictment also related to the election gambit.

Officials with the D.C. Bar’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel — which enforces professional ethics for attorneys who practice in the nation’s capital — subpoenaed Clark last year and demanded he produce any documents that might have justified his efforts to put the weight of the Justice Department behind efforts to overturn the election results in Georgia and other states.

Clark’s attorneys argued that complying with such a demand would force Clark to effectively testify against his will — requiring him to divulge his mindset during a time period also at the heart of the two criminal cases in which he’s been labeled a co-conspirator. That demand would violate his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, they argued.

A three-judge panel assigned to Clark’s most recent motion agreed, denying the Office of Disciplinary Counsel’s bid to enforce the subpoena. The panel, consisting of Judges Joshua Deahl, John Howard III and Vijay Shanker, indicated a fuller explanation of its decision would be forthcoming.

It’s the latest setback for bar authorities who have spent nearly two years attempting to discipline Clark for his role in Trump’s schemes. Clark has forced numerous delays in part by seeking to remove the case to federal court and rejecting the D.C. Bar’s authority over his conduct as a federal official.

The sweep of the new ruling is unclear. Bar authorities say they intend to call several key witnesses to testify about their interactions with Clark, including former deputy White House counsel Pat Philbin, former acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen and his deputy Richard Donoghue.

Clark has signaled plans to respond with testimony from other former officials he contends will declare that they thought he was acting in good faith or that public accounts of the showdown over the possible ouster of Rosen in the waning days of the Trump presidency were distorted.

The lead bar investigator, Phil Fox, said during oral arguments Friday that he had no intention of waiting for the criminal cases involving Clark to resolve before holding his disciplinary hearing. He noted that his efforts to charge Clark began before either criminal case was brought and that he has “no faith whatsoever” in the Georgia case.

Asked whether he expected to delay Clark’s hearing further, Fox expressed exasperation at the lengthy process.

“I’m not going to push that hearing back unless somebody cuts off one of my arms,” he said.

Clark had also asked the D.C. court panel to block the subpoena because of its potential infringement of Trump’s executive privilege, but the panel’s order was silent on that request.

Trump came within an eyelash of placing Clark atop the Justice Department in the final days of his administration, as he sought to enlist the department in his effort to prevent Joe Biden from becoming president. But he backed down amid a revolt from top White House and DOJ aides who threatened to resign if Trump put Clark in charge.

The D.C. Bar charged Clark for his role in drafting a letter encouraging legislators in Georgia — where Biden narrowly prevailed in 2020 — to convene and consider appointing a new slate of presidential electors. Investigators say Clark pressured his superiors to issue the letter despite lacking evidence of fraud.

The Jan. 6 committee also subpoenaed Clark in late 2021 for documents and testimony, but Clark asserted his Fifth Amendment rights and ultimately did not testify.

The Center for Renewing America, where Clark is a senior fellow, celebrated the ruling — after complaining about lack of media coverage of the development.

“Jack Smith certainly can’t be happy that the DC Bar is failing to land a punch against his target Jeff Clark,” the organization wrote.