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Purdy only managed one real drive of any consequence. Leading off the fourth quarter, Purdy had the 49ers in goal-to-go only to watch a double-tipped (by the defensive lineman and Christian McCaffrey) pass land in Drake Thomas’ arms. The 49ers missed Trent Williams, but this was also a case of Kyle Shanahan getting schematically pantsed by Mike MacDonald. Purdy had just 77 yards before that fourth-quarter drive, and was left with a bloodied throwing thumb while taking some huge hits on San Francisco’s final drive. The 49ers will be either the No. 5 seed in the NFC if the Rams lose to Arizona on Sunday or, more likely, the No. 6 seed if the Rams win. Purdy took a huge hit on the final play and looked shaken up, but Shanahan said he could have gone back in, meaning he will be good to go for the Wild Card Round.

Smiley coached in the college ranks from 2005-2012 before making the leap to the NFL in 2013 as the Jaguars’ assistant special teams coordinator. He made a lateral move in 2017, joining former Bills head coach Sean McDermott’s staff in the same role. Smiley was then promoted to special teams coordinator in 2022 and served in that role for three seasons.

No move could become official until after the Super Bowl, but after meeting with both the Cardinals and Raiders in-person before departing for San Francisco, it sounds as if Kubiak will be off to Vegas early next week. Assuming the two sides agree to a deal, Kubiak would take over as the lead man for the Raiders, who hold the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft and are expected to take Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza with that pick. Kubiak took over a Sam Darnold led Seahawks offense this season and helped lead them to a third place finish in total points while also ranking eighth in yards. He would take over a Raiders team that was among the worst in league offensively last season, and that has multiple issues on the offensive side of the ball outside of quarterback. Kubiak joining the Raiders means the Cardinals would be the only team in the league still left with a head-coaching vacancy.

Engstrand was one-and-done as the Jets’ offensive coordinator after the team decided to move on once they realized they would strip him of play-calling duties. The 43-year-old coach will now oversee the Falcons’ passing game under head coach Kevin Stefanski, a role that he also had from 2022 to 2024 with the Lions. Engstrand won’t have Ben Johnson as offensive coordinator to make his passing game look good in Atlanta, but hopefully a familiar role will give him a chance to rebound following a rough year with Gang Green.

Both teams conducted their second interview with Kubiak, who now heads to San Francisco to prepare for the Super Bowl. Kubiak seems like a lock to leave Seattle after his first season with the team, with the Raiders and Cardinals the only teams still with a head-coaching vacancy. Any decision on where he coaches will likely be made after the Super Bowl, but both teams make for interesting landing spots, especially the Raiders, who currently hold the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Bevell becomes the second known coach on the Jets’ list of in-person interview candidates for their OC opening. It was recently announced that former Chargers OC Greg Roman would also get an in-person interview. Bevell has spent the last four seasons with the Dolphins, and last served as an offensive coordinator in 2021 with the Jaguars. Bevell has years of offensive play-calling experience and had his longest tenure with the Seahawks from 2011-2017. The last time he worked with a top-10 offense was in 2015, when the Seahawks finished fourth in both scoring and total yards.

The Buccaneers and Chargers both spoke with Callahan about their offensive coordinator jobs earlier this offseason, but both opted to go in another direction. Bengals beat writer Paul Dehner also believes Callahan could be in the mix to return as the Bengals’ OC if Dan Pitcher were to leave — although, that seems unlikely at this time. Callahan’s market has been relatively quiet, which is no surprise given how his time with the Titans went, but he could be a fit with John Harbaugh and the Giants, who are left without an OC after Todd Monken took the Browns’ job. Callahan served as the Bengals’ offensive coordinator from 2019 to 2023 before landing with the Titans in 2024, but the team left play-calling duties to Zac Taylor. Callahan struggled to get the Titans’ offense off the ground in his brief 23-game tenure with the team, and would likely be tasked with calling plays in New York should he get the job. In addition to Callahan, Fowler also reports that former Commanders’ OC Kliff Kingsbury could be in the running for the Giant’s job, which was reported earlier by Giants’ writer Jordan Raanan.

According to Fowler, the Jets will host three coaches for in-person interviews as they move into the second stage of their interview process. Roman, who was dismissed by the Chargers after a year in which his offense ranked 20th in scoring despite finishing 12th in yards, will take on his biggest challenge yet if he lands with the Jets. With no clearcut plan at quarterback, and Breece Hall potentially leaving via free agency this offseason, Roman will have his work cut out for him if he hopes to turn around a Jets offense that was among the league’s worst last season.

Fangio, 67, could consider retirement, but Garafolo does add that the discussions between Fangio and the Eagles have “been leaning to the positive recently but anything good change.” The Eagles reportedly considered Browns DC Jim Schwartz and new Packers DC Jonathan Gannon to replace Fangio should he opt not to return, but Schwartz would be the only option available of the two, and that’s assuming the Browns let him after his contract after the decision to pass on him for their head-coaching vacancy. This will be a situation to monitor until there’s a permanent solution, but Fangio’s defense was fifth in points allowed last season and ranked 13th in total yards allowed.

Alexander spent five years in the NFL as a safety before quickly transitioning to coaching. The 41-year-old spent seven seasons in the college ranks before joining the Dolphins as a defensive backs coach in 2021. Brian Flores, the Vikings defensive coordinator, was Miami’s head coach at the time, so the Vikings know who they’re getting in Alexander. He also coached defensive backs with the Steelers and Raiders.