NFL coaching carousel: What head coach jobs are open, which coaches are on hot seat
The NFL coaching carousel heading into the offseason is in full motion.
The Jets, Bears and Saints fired their coaches during the season, and the Patriots added to that by firing Jerod Mayo shortly after their Week 18 win Sunday over Buffalo.
As many as five other openings could be added to the list, depending on decisions the next couple of days.
Let’s take a look at the NFL coaching carousel.
- Fired coach: Robert Saleh (20-36 in four seasons)
- 2024 record: 5-12 (2-3 when Saleh was fired in October)
- What’s to come in 2025? The Jets will have a new GM and coach. What they won’t have is a long-term solution at quarterback. Will Aaron Rodgers return? If he doesn’t, is there a veteran who can lift the offense? The Jets’ No. 7 pick in the NFL draft is likely too low to get Miami’s Cam Ward or Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.
- Fired coach: Dennis Allen (18-25 in three seasons)
- 2024 record: 5-12 (2-7 when Allen was fired in November)
- What’s to come in 2025? Does QB Derek Carr factor into the plans? If not, the Saints will have to either make a major acquisition for a quarterback or sign another veteran stopgap. Other than Alvin Kamara (who turns 30 in July) and Chris Olave, who scares opposing defenses? A new offensive system could help.
- Fired coach: Matt Eberflus (14-32 in three seasons)
- 2024 record: 5-12 (4-8 when Eberflus was fired in November)
- What’s to come in 2025? Caleb Williams was hit a lot in his rookie season, but his overall numbers were encouraging, given the bad offensive line and a midseason coaching change. The question is whether the roster is good enough to be in playoff contention in 2025 with some tinkering.
- Fired coach: Jerod Mayo (4-13 in one season)
- 2024 record: 4-13
- What’s to come in 2025? Multiple reports already have linked former Titans coach (and Patriots Hall of Fame player) Mike Vrabel to the opening. Whoever is the new coach will have QB Drake Maye in Year 2 and a substantial roster build ahead of him. New England’s roster is devoid of impact players, and the No. 4 overall pick in April’s draft can only do so much. Free agency will be key with an estimated $131 million in cap space for 2025 according to Spotrac.
All of the teams below have had disappointing seasons for one reason or another. Will all make a change?
- Current coach: Doug Pederson (22-28 in three seasons)
- Is he on hot seat? Yes, per multiple reports. Jacksonville slumped at the end of the 2023 season, missing the playoffs via a loss at the Titans in Week 18, then struggled from the start of 2024. QB Trevor Lawrence has regressed, and the defense was very bad.
- What’s to come in 2025? If Pederson is out, then what becomes of top executive Trent Baalke? Once owner Shad Khan makes decisions on both, the focus turns to remaking the defense and giving Lawrence at least one more quality receiver to go along with Brian Thomas Jr.
- Current coach: Mike McCarthy (49-34 in five seasons)
- Is he on hot seat? Yes, if only because his contract reportedly ends this month. GM/owner/public speaker Jerry Jones has not publicly made a declaration what the future holds for McCarthy in Dallas despite being in front of a microphone multiple times a week with a chance to do so.
- What’s to come in 2025? Dak Prescott should be healthy and return to the offense, which probably needs at least one more impact skill player. Defensively, there’s not a lot of ability outside of Micah Parsons to wreck a game plan.
- Current coach: Brian Daboll (18-32-1 in three seasons, 3-14 in 2024)
- Is he on hot seat? After two disappointing seasons, yes. Without Saquon Barkley, Daniel Jones was bad. Malik Nabers is very good, but there’s not a lot of positivity coming out of the Giants’ 2024 season.
- What’s to come in 2025? Daboll and GM Joe Schoen will either stay and figure out the quarterback position or exit. It’s up to owner and president John Mara. Either the current leadership or the new regime will be tasked with finding the Giants’ next franchise QB.
- Current coach: Antonio Pierce (9-17 in two seasons, 4-13 in 2024)
- Is he on hot seat? It’s possible. The Athletic reported before the Week 18 loss to the LA Chargers that the Raiders coaching staff had been given “no guarantees” about the future. The Raiders struggled to run the ball and take care of it on offense, with uncertainty at quarterback moving forward.
- What’s to come in 2025? It’s a trend, no? Whether the incumbent stays for another season or is fired, the Raiders must be better at quarterback. Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew are not the answer.
- Current coach: Brian Callahan (3-14 in one season)
- Is he on hot seat? It’s unclear.
- What’s to come in 2025? Tennessee has the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and the 10th-most cap space to work with, per Spotrac, so a needed roster face-lift should be doable. But with GM Ran Carthon and top executive Chad Brinker also reportedly with uncertain futures (ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on the network’s pregame show Sunday that people inside the organization “are bracing for something to happen” after the season), who will be performing the roster makeover? No matter coach or GM, the top priority will need to be the quarterback position.
Related
A top recruiter says sports marketing roles are hot right…
Jobs are opening up in the sports industry as teams expand and money flows into the industry.Excel Search &
Public employees and the private job market: Where will fired…
Fired federal workers are looking at what their futures hold. One question that's come up: Can they find similar salaries and benefits in the private sector?
Mortgage and refinance rates today, March 8, 2025: Rates fall…
After two days of increases, mortgage rates are back down again today. According to Zillow, the average 30-year fixed rate has decreased by four basis points t
U.S. economy adds jobs as federal layoffs and rising unemployment…
Julia Coronado: I think it's too early to say that the U.S. is heading to a recession. Certainly, we have seen the U.S. just continue t
