Rams reaching out to other coaches

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By Chris Mortensen
ESPN
Archive

While former Denver Broncos coach Josh McDaniels was the leading candidate as the next offensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams, a significant snag in negotiations has led the team to broaden its search to include coaches with West Coast-system roots in which quarterback Sam Bradford excelled during his rookie season, according to sources.


The Rams went through league channels Tuesday morning to request interviews with coaches including Bill Musgrave of the Falcons and Darrell Bevell of the Vikings. Musgrave is the assistant head coach/quarterbacks coach in Atlanta and Bevell has been in limbo as the offensive coordinator in Minnesota.

The Rams were denied permission to speak with Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, who is under contract through 2011.

Bevell, whose status in Minnesota is in limbo while coach Leslie Frazier looks at offensive coordinator candidates, is interviewing Tuesday for the Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach job, a source told ESPN.com's John Clayton.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll is looking to replace quarterbacks coach Jedd Fisch, who is leaving the team to become offensive coordinator at the University of Miami.

Musgrave is scheduled to interview with the Cleveland Browns on Tuesday and Vikings on Wednesday for the offensive coordinator position. Bevell is still a candidate to retain the job in Minnesota.

McDaniels appeared poised to replace Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, who was hired as the Browns' new head coach. However, more than two days of talks did not produce a deal between the Rams and McDaniels, a surprising development that may have been derailed by the team's conservative fiscal approach, one source said. The talks could be revived but neither side appears optimistic.

McDaniels also is in conversation with other unidentified teams, according to another source.

The Falcons value Musgrave and view him as the potential successor to offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey, who is considered a future head-coaching candidate. However, a team source said Falcons coach Mike Smith reluctantly granted permission for Musgrave to interview with the Browns and Vikings, although there was no guarantee Musgrave would accept those jobs even if offered a promotion.
The Rams, however, hold an attraction to quality coordinator candidates because of Bradford, who is expected to be named the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year.

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Nevermind, mods, can you remove this post, i was beat to it.