NFL Rumors: Latest Buzz on Marshawn Lynch, Mike Holmgren and Browns GM

The NFL playoffs are just over a week away, and there are still three division titles up for grabs and 14 clubs vying for the 12-team tournament. 

The Seattle Seahawks could get star running back Marshawn Lynch back in time for a run at their third NFC title, and reports are already swirling about coaching and front office moves for next season involving the Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers. 

Here is a glance at the latest buzz.

Lynch Could Return to Practice Wednesday

Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll indicated Lynch could return as soon as Wednesday, per the team's official Twitter account:

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Carroll says RB Marshawn Lynch has a chance to be back on Wednesday "if today and tomorrow go well." If cleared, he would be able to return.

— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 28, 2015"

Lynch has missed eight games, including six straight, with an abdomen injury. 

Seattle hasn’t been at a huge loss in Lynch’s absence, going 6-2 in those games as opposed to 3-4 with Lynch in the lineup.

That’s not an indictment on the All-Pro running back by any means, as he should immediately bolster their beleaguered backfield. The Seahawks will have to win out on the road as a wild card in the playoffs if they hope to capture their second Super Bowl in three seasons. 

Mike Holmgren Interested in 49ers HC Job

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Holmgren hasn’t coached since 2008, but the former Super Bowl winner is reportedly interested in taking the helm of the San Francisco 49ers, according to Robert Klemko of the MMQB:

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Coaching carousel wild card: Per source, Mike Holmgren has, for the second time in as many years, expressed interest in the 49ers HC job.

— Robert Klemko (@RobertKlemko) December 28, 2015"

Holmgren isn’t keeping his interest under wraps either, per Dave Mahler of 950 KJR:

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Has said many times he would talk to SF. They haven't called yet https://t.co/aVjG9XNofd

— Dave Softy Mahler (@Softykjr) December 29, 2015"

After reaching the NFC Championship Game in three straight seasons under Jim Harbaugh's direction, the 49ers fired him after last year’s disappointing 8-8 campaign. While many believed it was a dumbfounding decision, it was one that was foreshadowed long before the season ended. 

Holmgren is considered one of the game's all-time greats after successful tenures with the Green Bay Packers and Seahawks, in which he won Super Bowl XXXI with the Packers and played for two more, compiling a 161-111 overall record in 17 seasons. 

But his success came in a past generation, as he's been away from the sidelines for seven years. The 49ers job may not even be open if they opt to retain head coach Jim Tomsula. 

While Holmgren’s interest certainly generates warranted attention, the fact that the 49ers didn’t reach out a year ago indicates he’s probably not a part of their future plans. 

Browns Likely To Fire GM, Not HC Mike Pettine

Jason Miller/Getty Images

The Browns are 3-12, haven’t had a winning season since 2007 and will miss the playoffs for the 13th straight year. 

Speculation has surfaced that head coach Mike Pettine could be out of a job, but Bleacher Report NFL Insider Jason Cole indicated it’s instead general manager Ray Farmer who could be on his way out:

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Sources indicate that the bigger problem within the Browns organization is not Pettine, but is actually general manager Ray Farmer, and the selections that Farmer has made throughout his tenure and even before that when he was under Joe Banner. The problem here is more of a personnel issue, and that is what’s going to have to be fixed by [owner Jimmy] Haslam.

"

The Browns' top three candidates, per Cole, are Chris Ballard, director of football operations for the Kansas City Chiefs, George Paton, assistant GM for the Minnesota Vikings, and Duke Tobin, director of player personnel for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Talent has long been an outlier in Cleveland, and though he’s only been there three years, two as GM, Farmer may not be the man to resurrect a franchise with a well-chronicled history of on-field struggles.