Mr. Scot

Pretty much. Even Matt Rhule isn't stupid enough to just completely ignore the position. He is, however, dumb enough to think that versatility over all else is what makes for a great offensive line.

History has taught us that not being one of Rhule's guys will put you on thin ice quicker than poor performance will.

Guy talking about him on NFL Network indicated part of the problem is he's apparently kinda hard to work with. Made note of the fact that he kept firing his offensive line coaches, among other things. (this seems to be a common issue with guys in the Belichick coaching tree)

Quick FYI for fans of Brian Flores...

Take the Panthers DL Coach job... Get fired one year later

Were they better the year before though? I ask because Rhule fired his first DL coach (Mike Phair, a guy with NFL experience but no connection to Rhule) and promoted Okam to replace him. When asked for comment on why he let go of Phair, Rhule's only comment was something along the lines of "we do things a different way here".

You know it occurs to me that Rod Marinelli might actually make sense for the DL, and not just because he's a great coach. I'd have to look it up to be sure, but I think Marinelli was in Detroit while Phil Snow was coaching there.

Going after "versatility" because that's what Matt Rhule values in offensive linemen. That plus long arms

Before he came aboard, Zane Gonzalez wasn't known for putting his kickoffs in the end zone. He credited his improvement to coaching that he received here.

On the DL side, there's a very good option available off the Broncos staff. Longtime DL Coach Bill Kollar has a very solid reputation in that role. You could also go after best in the business in Rod Marinelli if you think he's still up for it. He coached with the Raiders last year but he's 70 plus years old.

Okam did (Baylor) though they weren't as deep as others.

No mention of Ram's OC Kevin O'Connell, but that one always sounded kind of questionable to me anyway. Hell, O'Connell has a head coach interview coming up (I forget where). Also funny that Wilson mentions Darrell Bevell. Bevell isn't on our list at this point, but he has an old connection to Scott Fitterer from his time in Seattle. And yes, he was the OC that called a pass at the goal line in the Super Bowl (though word was that Pete Carroll actually made that call).

I don't expect he is, but it wouldn't surprise me if Rhule asked.

There's also this guy... Word was that Flaherty was up for the OL job when Rhule was making his initial hires. He never materialized though. Probably a better choice than Tony Sparano Jr but I certainly wouldn't take him over a guy like Munchak, Castillo or even Doug Marrone.

Hard to say. From my understanding, Okam's connection to Rhule didn't go back as far as some others. Sparano and Gilbride are primarily connected to him through their fathers. Possible. Would probably be a good thing. That said, Rhule's already being forced out of his comfort zone for the new OC as is. I wonder how much farther that can go.

We had an option to go after former Packers OL coach James Campen but chose Meyer for...reasons Campen ended up going to Houston and, from what I've read, doing a great job there.

Blackburn's assistant (Ed Foley) was Rhule's ST coach at Baylor. On the DL side, Rhule could promote pass rush specialist Don Johnson or conceivably his old Temple player Terrance Knighton, though Knighton would be kind of a surprise because he's extremely underqualified. OL Coach is arguably the most important choice here. There are very highly regarded options out there in Mike Munchak and Juan Castillo, but Rhule could settle for just promoting Tony's Sparano Jr or calling on former OL assistant Marcus Satterfield if he wanted to come back to the NFL.

Two of those were expected. Okam is a surprise. That's actually the second time Rhule has fired his DL coach. Guess we're gonna have a new one every year.

There's a phrase...

Ouch

We're bringing Matt Rhule back. I don't think the playoffs are in the cards.

Hard to put much on his shoulders when he doesn't have final say. A lot of us were hoping that if Rhule stayed Tepper would at least change the power structure. No such luck.

Every coach in the league has the power to hire their own assistants. Some of them just happen to suck at it.

Ellis said some similar things... Personally, I appreciate the no bullsh-t answer on McCaffrey.