There are three vacant head coaching positions and one GM job, and those totals are expected to at least double in the coming days.

Changes are afoot in the NFL as the regular season wraps. Sources have maintained throughout the year that between six to eight head coach gigs will open with another two to four GM spots freeing.

Of the three teams with openings, only the Jets have started their searches in earnest. They’ve conducted three GM interviews and one head coach interview already.

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and former Titans head coach Mike Vrabel are the consensus two top candidates this cycle. Every team with an opening has done work on both coaches, and other head-coach candidates have admitted their paths may not be determined until those two decide on their futures.

As much as Johnson and Vrabel may be perceived to be in competition for jobs, sources say they really aren’t.

“A team all-in on Ben won’t be all-in on Vrabel,” a source said. “If a team is looking for Dan Campbell, that’s a Vrabel build. If a team is looking for a skillset Ben has, no one else has it.”

This coaching cycle has been quieter than usual leading up to what’s known as Black Monday. Several sources around the league have attributed that to the ongoing Brian Flores lawsuit against the league. Teams have not wanted to appear at all as though they are skirting NFL rules when it comes to their searches.

Here’s a look across the NFL landscape as the carousel spins.

General manager Ryan Poles will be at the controls for the search for the next head coach of the Bears. As previously reported, the Bears will seek out a “leader of men” as one of the primary traits in their next head coach.

Several sources have said team owner George McCaskey plans to be hands-off during the early search.

“George wants Ryan to run this,” said a source. “Kevin will get what he needs to keep him involved but it’s Ryan’s decision, and Ryan’s running point. Philosophically George’s view is football stays football. Even though the reporting structure is Ryan going to Kevin, George wants football people making football decisions.”

A second source offered a more cynical view of McCaskey being hands off. “He doesn’t want any of the blame if this doesn’t work out,” the person said.

A third source noted that Warren, in his first search as team president, may want a splash hire to excite the fan base and “help him get a stadium,” alluding to the issues facing the team as it hopes to move on from Soldier Field in the coming years.

A head coach candidate in Chicago needs plans for Caleb Williams and game management. The young quarterback has had an up-and-down rookie season, and the team has been plagued by situational football issues throughout the year.

It is possible the next head coach decides to move interim head coach Thomas Brown back to offensive coordinator, where Williams had some brief success before Brown was named the interim head coach and had his focus taken away from the quarterback’s development as his main priority.

Recent comments from Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones have made it seem as though Dallas will bring back head coach Mike McCarthy, whose contract is set to expire a week after Sunday’s game. But does McCarthy want to return to Dallas?

It’s a high-pressure job for the former Super Bowl-winning head coach, and 12-win seasons aren’t good enough. He’s wrapping up the last year of his five-year contract, and a source wondered whether McCarthy would settle for a four-year deal if an extension is offered.

There’s a belief that McCarthy, an 18-year head coach, could get another job this cycle if he chooses. He could handle the New York market, he could work with a young quarterback like Caleb Williams in a familiar division and he was the offensive coordinator in New Orleans in the pre-Sean Payton era.

Dallas sources have held McCarthy will ultimately return, citing his family’s love of the area and his relationship with quarterback Dak Prescott. But no one is willing to say it with certainty, and no official talks have taken place yet.

If both sides agree to stay together, there’s a good argument that it should be done quickly. As a half-dozen other teams try to find their next head and stock their coaching staffs, the Cowboys can retain their own or hire new coaches before any top picks land elsewhere.

There is also the human element of not making two dozen coaches and their families wait unnecessarily to learn whether they’ll be retained or unemployed.

Detroit Lions

Dan Campbell is preparing for the Sunday night showdown with the Vikings, and he’s also prepared to lose both of his coordinators. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn could very well land top jobs this cycle, but when they can interview will depend on the outcome of Sunday night’s game.

If the Lions win and secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs, Johnson and Glenn can conduct virtual interviews as early as Wednesday. But if the Lions lose and play in next weekend’s wild-card game, those virtual interviews cannot begin until Tues. Jan 14.

Glenn will be a top candidate with both the Jets and the Saints. He is a Bill Parcells disciple after playing with the Jets from 1994-2001. And after he finished his playing career in New Orleans, he joined the Saints coaching staff years later as the defensive backs coach.

Johnson has been one of the most sought-after coach candidates the last two years but decided each time to stay in Detroit. He’s gotten raises that pay him a salary in the neighborhood of $5 million, according to sources, and he has the comfort of great personnel while being able to focus on scheming an offense without the rigors that come with being a head coach.

He will be selective in this process, and he won’t take an interview with a team he knows he doesn’t want to coach for. Sources say there has been mutual interest with Chicago, but many have thought Jacksonville is the best fit for Johnson.  

Campbell has considered replacements and succession plans for the last two years. Assistant head coach/running backs coach Scottie Montgomery, offensive line coach Hank Fraley and passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand would be considered possible Johnson successors should he take a head coaching position.

Both coaches are aware it will be very difficult for them to take Lions assistants with them wherever they go. “Detroit is going to try to keep people there, whether that’s with salary or titles,” a source warned.

The Colts will miss the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year after losing to one of the league’s worst teams last week in the Giants. And it could cost GM Chris Ballard his job.

Ballard is in his eighth year as Indy’s GM but has zero AFC South titles to show for the work while the rest of the division has won it at least twice in that time span. The latest late-season collapse for the Colts under Ballard could be the last.

While Jim Irsay is the team owner, his daughter, Carlie Irsay-Gordon has considerable say and sway in organizational matters. She has represented the team at league meetings without her father in the past year, is on the sideline for every game with a headset and is a daily presence at team activities.

“She’s in the thick of it,” said a source. “She knows the ins and outs with what happened with the quarterback. She’s there on a daily basis.

“She may want a change to get more life back into the building.”

Head coach Shane Steichen has been considered safe as he finishes his second year in Indianapolis. If a move is made at GM, it’s possible someone with familiarity with the coach would be brought in.

One relatively easy fix in the building could be communication. There have been some public misconceptions due to the relatively high level of secrecy within the building, especially concerning Anthony Richardson’s benching earlier in the season followed by his injury status in Week 17. That guarded approach from the building preceded Steichen, but it has strengthened in recent years.

The Colts have one of the worst defenses in the league (27th in points and 29th in yards), and there’s an expectation defensive coordinator Gus Bradley won’t be retained after the season.

It’s been remarkably silent in Jacksonville the last few weeks, but as I touched on That Other Pregame Show with former Raiders CEO Amy Trask, that doesn’t mean there’s inactivity.

Sources feel Jaguars owner Shad Khan is being respectful of the football people he hired to do football jobs. He has never been a meddlesome owner, stepping in only to rid his franchise of the mistake of Urban Meyer three years ago.

Head coach Doug Pederson is almost certainly coaching his last game in Jacksonville, and many of his assistant coaches have been preparing as though they’ll need new jobs soon. There’s not as much certainty over the future of the GM position with Trent Baalke, though leaguewide the expectation has been there will be a full housecleaning in Jacksonville.

Jacksonville has plenty to offer a new regime. There are sparkling new facilities, no state income tax to attract free agents, a franchise quarterback under contract, a relatively low-pressure market and a winnable AFC South. And, again, a hands-off owner in Khan.

Because Khan has thwarted any attempts at contact from would-be coaches and GMs, the Jags would seemingly be behind the rest of the teams who are preparing for changes. But sources believe the Jags will hire a search firm to assist them.

Staff there have felt demoralized in recent weeks, sources say, and several have expressed privately they’re hopeful Khan knows the sentiments within the building. Khan hasn’t attended the last two Jaguars games, for what it’s worth.

The Jags also have 10 picks in the 2025 draft, including seven projected to be in the top 150. They also have nabbed another fourth-round pick in 2026 for the Cam Robinson trade (he’s already met the playtime conditions), meaning no team would have more draft capital over the next two seasons than Jacksonville.

Chris Grier has been in the Miami Dolphins organization since 2000. He has seen one Miami playoff win since then (a wild-card victory in his first season as a scout with the team.) A strong rumor around the league during the fall was that Grier could retire and move to a senior advisor role.

But many have questioned whether the 84-year-old Stephen Ross would want to conduct a search for a new GM, especially considering how well-liked Grier is within the building.

Since becoming GM in 2016, Grier has hired three different head coaches and gotten to three postseasons with no wins. The Dolphins have a slim chance of making the playoffs this year.

Tua Tagovailoa will miss his second consecutive game due to a hip injury. One of Grier’s biggest criticisms this season is not having the team prepared at backup quarterback after extending the starter with an injury history. Tagovailoa has had numerous injuries dating back to college, and this year Tagovailoa will play the fewest games in a season since his rookie year.

Team owner Robert Kraft has not wanted to make a move on head coach Jerod Mayo, the hand-picked successor to Bill Belichick. Kraft has boasted he tabbed Mayo as the guy a half-decade ago, so to abandon the plan after one season with a bottom-three roster in the league would be quite an admission by the proud Kraft.

As the Pats compete for the top pick in April’s draft, the belief has been he will be able to coach that team in 2025. But a 33-point embarrassment at home during the holidays and more public gaffes have not helped Mayo’s weakening case.

In the preseason, Mayo said rookie Drake Maye had outplayed veteran Jacoby Brissett yet still started Brissett in Week 1. He appeared to publicly question offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt’s play-calling last month before walking that back. And in Week 17 he told the pregame radio show that Antonio Gibson would start at running back before starting Rhamondre Stevenson less than an hour later, later citing “coach’s decision” for the Stevenson start.

“Maybe Bill was right about the media,” mused one source this season, referring to the former head coach’s approach to dealing with media.

Should he be retained, Mayo is expected to add more veteran coaches to his staff, according to a source. And speaking of the former coach, there’s expected to be some attrition from New England to Chapel Hill, with Belichick potentially pulling from the coaching staff as well as from the training, strength and personnel staffs.

And because EVP of player personnel Eliot Wolf didn’t get the job officially until May, there could be further changes to the personnel group. He added Alonzo Highsmith last year, but this will be his first full offseason permanently at the controls.

New York Giants

The belief remains that GM Joe Schoen will return for 2025, and sources still lean to Brian Daboll continuing as head coach. But that is not certain as the Giants head into the final game of the season.

Giants owner John Mara desires to retain Daboll, wanting to avoid yet another coaching search that he’s become accustomed to. Schoen’s security is due in large part to Mara being a present owner, so he’s been clued in on every major decision.

While no NFL owner likes to be embarrassed, the planes flying around MetLife Stadium have not impacted Mara’s decision-making process, sources say.

It’s possible a final decision won’t be made on Daboll until a few days after the conclusion of the season when real end-of-season conversations take place. No news on Monday won’t necessarily mean that it’s status quo.

The Giants have obviously had a difficult season with just three wins after cycling through three different quarterbacks. The team has been without Andrew Thomas for the final two-thirds of the year, which has significantly held the offense back.

Beyond Mara not wanting to do another coaching search, there’s a belief Mara may not feel he’s assured of getting a better coach than Daboll, the 2022 NFL Coach of the Year. Daboll is considered one of the best quarterback coaches in the league, and Big Blue is certain to have a new quarterback on the roster next year.

New York Jets

No team is deeper in their searches than the Jets, who have already interviewed four GM candidates and another two head coaching candidates with plenty more on the way. League sources have been impressed with the Jets’ efficiency and thoroughness so far, taking a full three hours for each of their six initial interviews.

Owner Woody Johnson has always drafted first-timers for coach and GM, but the sentiment has been the Jets will value experience this go-round. They want someone who can handle both the New York market and the owner, who plans on being around plenty after not getting a post in the Trump administration. It is hard to imagine both vacant positions will be filled by first-timers.

Even though the searches are being conducted parallel to one another, conventional wisdom dictates the Jets will hire the GM first. They can interview GM candidates currently employed by other teams in person beginning Monday. Meanwhile, they can’t get coach candidates who are in the playoffs in person until the week of Jan. 20. That said, it’s always possible the team falls in love with a head-coach candidate early and pulls the trigger once mutual interest is established.

There have been no edicts from Johnson to any of the candidates concerning Aaron Rodgers in 2025. Around the league, there’s great doubt Rodgers returns to the Jets considering his play and personality. Rodgers has hinted at possible retirement, and he’s going to take some time after the season to determine his own wishes and whether they align with what the Jets ultimately want.

Mike Vrabel, who interviewed Friday, and former Jets player Aaron Glenn were considered early favorites in Florham Park. It’s possible — if not likely — the Jets interview coaches they spoke with four years ago who have continued their career success. Before the Jets hired Saleh in 2021, they interviewed Glenn when he was a Saints defensive backs coach. Among their other interviews were Arthur Smith before he took the Falcons job as well as Joe Brady when he was the Panthers offensive coordinator.

Winning two consecutive games has lessened the heat on Antonio Pierce’s seat, but it’s still warm in Las Vegas for the first-year Raiders head coach.

Raiders owner Mark Davis noted last month the players are still playing hard for Pierce, and that has continued with wins over the Jaguars and Saints as the Raiders may have played themselves out of a top-two quarterback in the 2025 draft. As Pierce has noted, that’s a problem for GM Tom Telesco.

Getting out of Pierce’s contract would not be as financially difficult for Davis as the Jon Gruden settlement or Josh McDaniels’ deal. Before the two wins this month, the Raiders had lost 10 straight games.

A competitive game to close the season against a Chargers team playing for playoff seeding could go a long way for Pierce in his final push to retain his job. And remember that new part-owner Tom Brady will have significant say in the future of the franchise.

Tennessee Titans

The Titans underachieved this season, but first-year head coach Brian Callahan is expected back to build off what is currently a three-win season.

Tennessee will absolutely be in the quarterback market this offseason. The Titans wanted to give Levis as many opportunities as they could to learn whether he could be their guy going forward. Looking at success stories across the league like Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and Geno Smith, the Titans didn’t want to cast off Levis as quickly as some on the outside in the event he got things turned around late.

Years of top missed picks from the previous regime have caught up to Tennessee, and the Titans tried to patch it up in free agency with acquisitions like L’Jarius Sneed and Calvin Ridley that haven’t panned out. Expect the Titans to do all they can to accumulate draft picks this offseason and focus on a draft-and-develop plan to set the franchise on the correct course for the future.

Of course, that could be a challenge since the Titans currently have just two picks in top-100 of April’s draft, having sent their third-rounder to Kansas City for Sneed. A loss Sunday to Houston will guarantee the Titans have a top-two selection in the draft.