ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- The Detroit Lions have hired Jeff Fisher's son to assist their defensive coaching staff.
The move to add Brandon Fisher was announced Thursday.
His father coached the Tennessee Titans from 1994 to 2010. Lions coach Jim Schwartz worked for Fisher as Tennessee's defensive coordinator before getting his first shot to lead a team in 2009.
Brandon Fisher assisted the Titans' offensive coaching staff for part of last season.
Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jaguars' defensive collapse happened quickly and with little warning.
There might have been some signs, like New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's near-perfect performance against the Jaguars in January 2008. But no one predicted that coach Jack Del Rio's defense would fall so far so fast.
The Jaguars had one of the NFL's most consistent defenses between 2004 and 2007, stuffing running backs, harassing quarterbacks and holding opponents to 17 points or less in 36 of 64 games.
It was what Del Rio believed in, what he wanted, even what he demanded.
It just didn't last. With the Jaguars (4-4) heading into a bye week off a lopsided victory at Dallas, Del Rio reflected on his once-stout defense -- the unit that currently ranks 30th in the NFL and the one he's trying so desperately to turn around this season. He took blame for overrating personnel and missing badly on free agents and draft picks, and he vowed to return the defense to where it was a few years ago.
"Defensively, when we got here in '03, a lot of work went into establishing a mentality and a mindset of how we're going to do things," Del Rio said. "And our guys embraced it. We played some really stout defense for a number of years."
Del Rio mixed oversized tackles Marcus Stroud and John Henderson, speedy linebacker Mike Peterson and hard-hitting safety Donovin Darius with second-year linebacker Daryl Smith and third-year cornerback Rashean Mathis. It was a recipe for success.
Jacksonville might not have been the 1985 Chicago Bears or the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, but it wasn't too far off. The Jaguars ranked in the top 10 in nearly every defensive category between 2004 and 2007, establishing the benchmark for Del Rio's tenure.
The defense carried the franchise to the playoffs in 2005 and 2007, but that last postseason run was where things started to turn.
Brady completed 26 of 28 passes for 262 yards and three touchdowns in an AFC divisional game, taking advantage of a mostly nonexistent pass rush and picking apart Jacksonville's secondary.
In the aftermath of the 31-20 loss, Del Rio and then-personnel chief James "Shack" Harris decided to trade Stroud for two draft picks. They took those picks, packaged them with some of their own and moved up in the first and second rounds to select Florida defensive end Derrick Harvey and Auburn defensive end Quentin Groves.
It turned out to be Del Rio's worst move since putting a sharp ax and a tree stump in the middle of the locker room.
Harvey has six sacks in 40 career games and was finally benched last week. Groves was even less productive and was traded to Oakland in April.
Del Rio justified trading so many picks for two rookies by saying few draft choices would have made the roster.
"We probably underrated the number of players we had that were getting up in their years, that weren't going to continue playing for a long time," Del Rio said Wednesday. "I would say that's absolutely something we have to admit looking back, that to package that many picks and try and move, thinking you're that close, that's really not the sound way to do things.
"I think we gave into some of those thoughts, some of those feelings. To acknowledge that is just being honest."
Making matters worse, the Jaguars gave cornerback Drayton Florence about $12 million guaranteed in free agency -- to be a backup -- and whiffed on safety Reggie Nelson (first round, 2007) and linebacker Clint Ingram (third round, 2006).
Throw in fourth-rounder Brian Smith (2007) and fifth-rounders Chris Thompson (2004), Brent Hawkins (2006), Josh Gattis (2007), Derek Landri (2007), Thomas Williams (2008) and Trae Williams (2008), and the Jaguars had more late-round defensive flops than finds.
"You never know how it's going to turn out," Mathis said. "You can go get a young guy in the draft or bring a guy here in free agency. We missed on both, in free agency and the draft. When you do that, it's going to take you a while to come back around."
The Jaguars overhauled their defense in 2009, then tweaked it again this offseason after finishing with a franchise-low 14 sacks.
With newcomers at nearly every position, the Jaguars have given up at least 26 points in eight games and are on pace to set franchise records in touchdowns, points and yards allowed. Nonetheless, Del Rio believes the defense is on the verge of playing better, just not quite ready to be like it was before.
"We have a good group of guys," he said. "We have an energetic group of coaches that are teachers, we have a group of guys that are willing to learn and they're unselfish. I like the way that were working at it, and I do feel that we will play much improved defense down the stretch here."
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Shawne Merriman is hoping for a fresh start in Buffalo. The Bills want to plug their porous defense. The two hope it's a perfect match.
Three days after the Bills claimed the 2005 first-round draft pick off waivers from the San Diego Chargers, the once-feared pass rusher expressed his readiness to turn the page and resurrect a promising career that had turned sour.
"They have high expectations for me to come in and make some things happen, and I'm going to do that," Merriman said Saturday before he and the rest of his new team departed for Toronto for their game Sunday against the Chicago Bears (4-3). "I've been working out, and I'm just ready to get on the field as soon as possible. Whatever they need me to do, I'm here to work and kind of be a piece of the puzzle."
Merriman was waived three weeks after he was placed on injured reserve because of a calf injury. The injury was designated as minor, meaning he was to be released once the Chargers deemed him healthy.
"I had a great six years out in San Diego and have a bunch of teammates that will be lifelong friends," Merriman said. "They made a decision, and it happens. Whether someone thinks that you can play or not, if the team decides to move in a different direction, they do that. For me, I'm more excited to get here and be in a position that I am right now, and contribute to a team that really needs me to go out and play. I plan on doing that."
Merriman passed his physicals, declared himself healthy and will begin practicing Monday. Whether or not he makes his Buffalo debut next Sunday when the Bills (0-7) host the Detroit Lions remains to be seen.
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"The faster I learn, the faster I get on the field," he said.
The Bills added Merriman in a bid to improve a defense that had struggled mightily this season. The three-time Pro Bowl linebacker joins a unit that ranks last in the NFL against the run, allowing nearly 189 yards per game. Buffalo's pass rush isn't much better, registering just 11 sacks, fifth-fewest in the league.
"You see the guys and the talent on the field, and you wonder how is this team 0-7? This doesn't look like an 0-7 team," Merriman said. "A lot of the things they have going on defensively are things that I'm accustomed to doing."
Nicknamed "Lights Out" for his aggressive and hard-hitting style, Merriman has 43.5 sacks in his 60-game career. His recent drop-off has been largely due to nagging injuries, including reconstructive knee surgery that forced him to miss most of the 2008 season.
This year, Merriman was slowed by an Achilles' tendon injury, then the calf injury. He sat out most of the Chargers' offseason workouts and part of training camp to protest his contract status.
Merriman was suspended four games in 2006 after testing positive for steroids. He blamed the positive test on a tainted supplement, which he never identified.
Merriman also brought unwanted attention off the field after being arrested just before the 2009 season when reality television star Tila Tequila accused him of battery and false imprisonment at his suburban San Diego home. No charges were filed, and Merriman and Tequila settled dueling lawsuits.
All that, though, is in the past, according to the 26-year-old.
"I'm more than happy to be in the position that I am to be going forward with these guys, and as being a Buffalo Bill," he said. "Bottom line, I love playing football."
The Bills hope they'll love Merriman just as much.
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
ASHBURN, Va. -- It's unusual to hear a professional athlete say he's not good enough. That's how far Albert Haynesworth has sunk to keep from playing nose tackle in the Washington Redskins' 3-4 defense.
"I'm not good enough to play the 3-4," Haynesworth said Thursday.
The player whose stated goal is to become the greatest defensive lineman in NFL history held his first midweek question-and-answer session this season, and it was hardly a coincidence that it took place after his best game since he signed with the Redskins last year. He had his first sack since 2009 and made a key goal-line stop in Sunday's 17-14 victory over the Chicago Bears.
"Now that we've changed some of the things that I do, it's helped a lot," Haynesworth said. "I don't have to think as much on the field -- I can just go out and play."
Nearing the halfway point of the season, Haynesworth has settled into a role as a part-time player, happy not to be a regular part of the team's "Okie" run packages. He's not the starting nose tackle -- as was envisioned when the Redskins switched to the 3-4 scheme this season -- and instead is playing mostly in nickel packages as a "three-technique" tackle, the role he had during much of his seven seasons with the Tennessee Titans.
"We just kept working at the Okie, and I wasn't coming along to be able to be the starter in that stuff," Haynesworth said. "And I was like, 'Hey, let's focus on the stuff that I know, and you'll see a lot more production out of me."'
It was Haynesworth's aversion to the 3-4 that led to months of offseason drama. The Redskins offered to released him if he didn't take his $21 million contract bonus on April 1, but he accepted the money. He later asked to be traded, skipped offseason practices, needed 10 days to pass a training-camp conditioning test, traded verbal volleys with new coach Mike Shanahan and was well behind in learning the new scheme.
In fact, Haynesworth never caught up. And it doesn't sound as if he wants to.
"We've got a guy in front of me who can play the 3-4 better than I can, so whatever helps the team," Haynesworth said. "I do get to play the nickel, and I play well in that, so that's when you see me in there."
Defensive coordinator Jim Haslett said there came a point when the defense had to punt.
"Trying to get him to do the 3-4 stuff was trying to get a square peg into a round hole," Haslett said. "We tried to force the issue, and it hasn't worked out the way that we would like. I still think he can do it because he's a good athlete and he is athletic and smart and tough enough to do it."
Haslett estimated he has called the Okie formation 35 percent of the time this season, but that's because the Redskins have played such pass-happy teams as the Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts.
"He can do anything he wants to do -- he's just got to want to do it," Haslett said. "It's more of a mindset than anything."
Doesn't he want to be a starter?
"I would like to start and start playing like I used to ... but right now I'm fine with it," he said.
Haynesworth has missed three of seven games this season, including back-to-back games after the death of his half brother. Teammates point out the huge impact he can make if he's playing regularly -- even if it's mostly in the nickel.
"So much has happened the first part of the season," defensive lineman Vonnie Holliday said. "He's gone through an emotional roller-coaster, the tragedy with his family, coming into a bad situation through training camp and so many things. So many distractions, but it seems like now his focus is there, he's had some time to grow in this defense and learn the technique.
"He's just going to continue to grow in this scheme. Who knows? Maybe one day he will like it."
So what does Haynesworth have as his goal for the rest of the season?
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"Keep playing and help the teammates, and make plays and I guess get noticed more," he said, "so people will say I'm not a bust or whatever."
Does he think he'll be with the Redskins next season?
"I don't know. I have no clue," he said. "Right now, if I just keep playing, I'm going to be somewhere."
Once the session was done, Haynesworth was asked if he'll speak again next week.
"What is this? Week 8?" he said as he walked away from the podium. "I'll see you at Week 16."
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
CHICAGO -- DeAngelo Hall tied an NFL single-game record with four interceptions, running one back 92 yards for a touchdown, in the Washington Redskins' 17-14 victory over the Bears on Sunday.
The Redskins sacked Bears quarterback Jay Cutler four times while forcing five turnovers.
Hall tied a record held by 18 others and became the first player to pick off four passes since Deltha O'Neal with the Denver Broncos in 2001. Hall's one-handed interception and TD return late in the third quarter were made for the highlight reel and put Washington ahead for good, sending Chicago (4-3) to its third loss in four games.
The Redskins (4-3), meanwhile, equaled their win total from last season and joined a growing line of teams that has pounded Cutler. He has been sacked 19 times in his last three games, and when he wasn't on his back, he seemed to be playing catch with Hall.
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Max Hall's debut as Arizona's quarterback was a winning one as the Cardinals defense intercepted three passes by Drew Brees and went on to a 30-20 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
The undrafted rookie from BYU completed 17 of 27 passes for 168 yards, Jay Feely kicked three field goals and Kerry Rhodes returned a fumble 27 yards for a score to lead the way.
Hall threw an interception that led to an early Saints field goal and fumbled twice, but both turned out to be key plays for Arizona (3-2). The first was returned 2 yards by Cardinals tackle Levi Brown for a touchdown. Guard Alan Faneca pounced on the other for a 10-yard gain.
Arizona's defense, awful in a 41-10 loss at San Diego a week earlier, converted two turnovers by the Saints (3-2) into touchdowns.
Rhodes returned Ladell Betts' fumble for a score and, with 10 seconds to play, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie returned an interception 28 yards for the game-clinching touchdown.
"Pro Bowl linebacker Terrell Suggs said Friday that he is nearing a long-term deal with the Ravens, a contract that surprisingly wouldn't make him the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL.The league deadline to reach a new contract with players who have received the franchise tag is July 15. If no deal can be struck, Suggs would play under the franchise tag for a second straight season, earning $10.2 million this year.
"We are close to an agreement. We just have a few little things to work out," Suggs told The Baltimore Sun. "I don't want to go into great detail, but it's things like the years of the agreement and incentives, but the basic framework has been done."
Suggs, 26, is considered one of the rising defensive stars in the NFL. Some NFL observers have contended that Suggs would test the free-agent market in March, when he would become one of the top players available.
But the Ravens' top pass rusher said Friday that he would "be very surprised if this contract isn't done soon." He also denied speculation that this contract will make him one of the highest-paid defensive players in the NFL.
"No, that's not true," he said. "But that's cool if people want to believe that. Being one of the highest-paid players has never been my motivation. I just wanted to be paid what is fair, what I think I've earned."
A Ravens spokesman had no comment.
There has been speculation that Suggs is looking for a contract similar to the one given in 2007 to the Indianapolis Colts' Dwight Freeney, whose six-year, $72 million deal ($30 million guaranteed) made him the highest-paid defender in league history at the time."
