The NFL has seen ten different jobs open up for new candidates this year. Among them, all ten spots have been filled. Many of these teams are looking for a new coach because they had a rough year and need to go in a new direction. Some of these teams had decent seasons, but still chose to terminate the coaches because they wanted to take their organizations to the next level.
First was Brian Callahan of the Tennessee Titans. After a 3-14 season with last year’s number one overall pick in Cam Ward, they needed a change to try to turn it around quickly. They hired the former Jets head coach and 49ers defensive coordinator, Robert Salah.
Next to the fire was the New York Giants. Brian Daboll was fired mid-way through the season. While the giants posted a 4-13 season, the future is bright with Jaxon Dart at quarterback, along with Cam Skattebo and Malik Nabers. They have chosen to hire John Harbaugh, who is a longtime coach of the Baltimore Ravens and was also fired at the end of the season after not making the playoffs. This was a more controversial fire, considering they had recently achieved success in the playoffs. They had decided to move forward and hire the former Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
The Cleveland Browns decided to move on from two-time coach of the year Kevin Stefanski. They turned in a 5-12 record this year and felt it was time to make the change. Stefanski interviewed for several jobs and ended up taking the headcoaching position for the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons have a bright young future with stars like Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and A.J. Terrell. They recently moved on from Raheem Morris after back-to-back 8-9 seasons.
The Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders fall in the same boat this offseason. They both had underwhelming seasons at 3-14. It looks like Arizona is going to get Mike Lafleur, who is the current offensive coordinator with the Los Angeles Rams. The Raiders plan to sign the current Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator, Klint Kubiak, after the Super Bowl.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills are in similar positions to each other as well. Both of them had good seasons by the NFL’s standards, but not up to par with where the owners wanted to be. The Steelers posted a 10-7 record and lost out in the first round of the playoffs. Mike Tomlin had spent 19 seasons with the Steelers and never had a losing season. They did, in fact, reach success, but it has been a long time since they had any type of playoff success. They chose to hire former Packers and Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy. The Bills fired Sean McDermott after a pretty successful season and an AFC divisional round run. They want to achieve the ultimate success while they have star quarterback Josh Allen in his prime.
The Miami Dolphins fired former coach Mike McDaniels after a 7-10 season. They moved on from him after four seasons and hired former Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley. He spent two seasons with the Packers and had a good amount of success.
