As several coaches are set for their final games guiding their respective teams, SI.com’s Greg Bedard tabs suitable successors, the most interesting being a potential Nick Saban return to the NFL as Chuck Pagano‘s replacement with the Colts.

Andrew Luck‘s presence and Indianapolis’ small-town feel would be draws for the Alabama architect, per Bedard, while Jim Irsay‘s visible stature wouldn’t.

Bedard also lists several retreads as viable second-chance options for franchises, connecting Josh McDaniels with the Giants, Todd Haley with the Dolphins and current UCLA coach Jim Mora with the 49ers.

McDaniels-to-New York would be an interesting fit, given Eli Manning‘s forward strides in second-year offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo‘s offense and the Patriots current OC’s play-calling penchant.

Here are some other notes from around the league with Week 15 set to commence.

• Christian Hackenberg‘s disappointing season ordinarily may have relegated the Penn State quarterback to the second round, should the junior decide to declare for the draft. But sources told ESPN.com’s Chris Mortensen that the 20-year-old Hackenberg, who had his best season as a freshman in 2013 under Bill O’Brien, will have a floor of wherever the Texans select in the first round. Houston’s first-round spot could drop into the low 20s if the Texans make the playoffs or rise toward the top 10 if the team falters.
• The NFL’s change in postseason officiating procedure, which will give officials more freedom to confer with the league, could have a negative impact, former head of officiating Mike Pereira tells Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. “Basically, what it looks like is that the league office is making decisions on who possibly wins or loses the game,” Pereira said. “You could go back to the old theory of the conspiracy of the Raiders, that the league didn’t like [former owner] Al Davis and all the stuff that went along with it. All of a sudden, decisions that were being made on the field or in the stadium, all of a sudden are being made in the league office.” The new policy is designed to allow the league to help coordinate with officials on clock operation, penalty yardage and administrative issues.
• The NFLPA sent a proposal to the league last month calling for neutral arbitration in personal conduct appellate hearings, Tom Pelissero of USA Today reports. Under this proposal, Roger Goodell would remain responsible for levying initial rulings, as he’s permitted to do under Article 46 of the CBA, but a three-person panel would decide the players’ ultimate punishment during the appeals process. NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith said the league has been discussing solutions along this line for months, although the league has yet to respond to this proposal.

The Rams won’t fire Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead after this season, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com report (Twitter link).

Despite a 25-35-1 record in more than four seasons, Fisher and Snead won’t be discarded even as the franchise potentially relocates to Los Angeles. Fisher’s job would have been one of the key positions out there post-Black Monday, with the speculation the Rams will be moving back to the west coast.

Schefter did mention that Fisher could step away on his own accord (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk), although the 57-year-old coach who has just six playoff appearances in 21 seasons with the Oilers/Titans and Rams probably wouldn’t receive a third head-coaching opportunity if he did so.

Fisher is a Los Angeles native who played at USC before being drafted by the Bears in 1981.

Here’s some more from the Los Angeles situation and additional notes from the Western divisions.

• The Rams and Chargers remain in the lead in the LA pursuit, Schefter reports, with the Raiders still in the race but lagging behind. Schefter notes the NFL shutting down the San Diego market would be hard to believe; it’s housed an NFL team since the Chargers moved from Los Angeles in 1961. Both note the NFL apparently planned ahead for a scenario in which these fanbases say goodbye to their teams prior to the end of the season, with the Rams playing their season’s final home game tonight and the Chargers doing so Sunday.
• Some coaches and executives have taken issue with John Elway‘s decision to hire Gary Kubiak, knowing what it meant for Peyton Manning‘s role with the Broncos, Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com reports. Elway initially proposed a $10MM paycut for Manning, who eventually took a $4MM reduction, but Mortensen notes that was a message to leave town, with Kubiak’s style ill-suited for the 39-year-old quarterback’s skill set. A defensive coach mentioned Denver’s once-prodigious offense is much easier to game-plan for now that Kubiak’s in charge compared to Adam Gase and his more-nuanced attack. “Kubiak is a good offensive mind, a well-respected guy, but it’s about as elementary as it gets,” this coach said. “He did a good job in Baltimore but he also had a veteran offensive line, maybe one of the three best in the NFL. I think he has to take a serious look that it’s 2015 going on 2016.” This coach also pointed out Manning supplanting Brock Osweiler might not make that much of a difference considering how many hits the Broncos’ offensive line, which houses two of Pro Football Focus’ worst tackles in Ryan Harris and Michael Schofield, are allowing Osweiler to take.
• Justin Houston received a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews today that revealed a hyperextended knee, per Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder (via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star, on Twitter). “I don’t want anyone to be alarmed that he saw Dr. Andrews. We knew it; we’re good with it, Burkholder told Paylor (Twitter link). Houston remains without a return timetable, with reports circulating he will miss the regular season’s remainder. Andrews also told the Chiefs’ top active player the swelling in his knee has decreased.

Here are Thursday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:

Baltimore Ravens

• Signed: RB DuJuan Harris (Twitter link via team)

Miami Dolphins

• Signed: CB Tyler Patmon, DE Julius Warmsley, RB Trey Williams (Twitter links via Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Dolphins WR, RB dealing with injuries

Lamar Miller (limited, ankle) and Jarvis Landry (DNP, knee) are among nine players on the Miami Dolphins’ injury report. (miamidolphins.com)

Nerdy Football Analysis: Landry was limited on Wednesday, meaning he could have suffered a setback from the injury that appeared to bother him throughout the Dolphins’ MNF loss to the New York Giants. Miller didn’t seem to be hobbled at all in the same game, but an ankle tweak might serve as a reasonable excuse as to why he saw only five touches in the second half after single-handedly destroying the Giants’ defense in the first half.

Browns wideout Josh Gordon will be eligible to apply for reinstatement from his suspension in February, and if Gordon gets the go-ahead from the NFL to return to action, head coach Mike Pettine would welcome him back with open arms, tweets Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “Absolutely we would,” Pettine said. “He’s a Cleveland Brown.”

Of course, given the way the Browns have played this season, it’s fair to be skeptical that Pettine will even be around to make that decision in February — it’s possible Cleveland will have hired a new head coach by then.

As we wait to see what the future holds for Pettine and Gordon, let’s check in on a few more items from around the NFL’s North divisions….

• The two-year deal Ryan Mallett signed with the Ravens is basically a $1.6MM pact, says Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links). Of course, most of that money will be due next season, and the quarterback’s 2016 salary (about $1.5MM) is non-guaranteed. If Mallett does make the team, he can earn an extra $500K for playing just 1% of Baltimore’s regular snaps, and $1MM if he plays 10% of the snaps, maxing out the year at $2.5MM, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.com.
• “Lovely” isn’t a word that makes its way into NFL interviews too often, but that was the adjective Calvin Johnson used today to describe the possibility of finishing his career with the Lions, as Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com details.
• Willie Young‘s transition from defensive end to outside linebacker hasn’t always been smooth, but it has gone better than expected, and it looks like Young could have a future with the Bears, writes Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.