Tim Tebow is out of the NFL playoff mix after the Denver Broncos' 45-10 loss to New England on Saturday, but his offensive coordinator might be in the mix for the Dolphins' coaching job.

NFL.com and CBS analyst Charley Casserly, on Saturday's broadcast and on Twitter, said Miami will interview Mike McCoy, who has been in Denver since 2009 after eight years at Carolina, where he was the quarterbacks coach and offensive assistant.

Casserly said the Dolphins also could talk to Saints offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael and Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano.

Miami has interviewed five coaching candidates and has been spurned by one.

Favored candidate Jeff Fisher is headed for St. Louis. The Dolphins also have interviewed interim coach Todd Bowles, Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer and Bears special teams coach Dave Toub.

McCoy, 39, was with the Panthers for three playoff runs with Jake Delhomme at quarterback, including a 12-win season in 2008, McCoy's last season.

Pagano had had two stints at the University of Miami, where he worked as linebackers coach in 1987 and then as secondary coach for Butch Davis in 1995-2000. He rejoined Davis at North Carolina for the 2007 season.

Elsewhere

San Francisco: The helmet-to-helmet hit by safety Donte Whitner that sent Saints running back Pierre Thomas to the locker room early in Saturday's NFC playoff game was legal.

Whitner was not penalized because the tackle was not against a defenseless player. Helmet-to-helmet hits are banned against defenseless players in eight categories, and a runner is not one of those categories. Thomas was considered a runner because he'd made a catch, turned and made a "football move" before being hit.

The 49ers' 36-32, last-minute win against New Orleans attracted a bigger share of the television audience than the New England Patriots' 45-10 prime-time rout of the Denver Broncos. San Francisco's afternoon game drew a 38 share, Lou D'Ermilio, a spokesman for Fox, said in an email. The Patriots-Broncos matchup had a 34 share, CBS said in an emailed statement.

Atlanta: Completing an unusual swap of offensive coordinators, the Falcons on Sunday hired Dirk Koetter from Jacksonville to replace Mike Mularkey only four days after the Jaguars introduced Mularkey as their coach. Atlanta hired Koetter despite Jacksonville ranking last in the league in total offense and yards passing in 2011.

Green Bay: Offensive coordinator Joe Philbin rejoined the Packers for Sunday's game after the death of his son.

The body of 21-year-old Michael Philbin was recovered Monday from an icy river in Oshkosh, Wis. A preliminary autopsy found he drowned.

NFL: Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league will look into making about 10 game officials full-time employees to help with consistency in the way rules are applied.

As of now, all of the officiating crews for NFL games are part-time employees. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS AND BLOOMBERG NEWS CONTRIBUTED