The cheer of the holiday season makes way for the harsh reality that NFL head coaches will be fired in a couple of weeks. There is no shortage of disappointments this year and there could be a large amount of job openings looming. Here is where I expect those to happen:
COLTS
Duh, since they've already fired Frank Reich earlier this season and hired Jeff Saturday off of ESPN's desks to come in and take over. The Saturday experiment likely won't last to 2023 so the Colts will be looking for a new coach ... and another new quarterback.
PANTHERS
Carolina fired Matt Rhule early in the season, but Steve Wilks has kinda turned the season around. They aren't really good by any stretch, but he's playing to the team's strengths and they are a) competing and b) winning enough games to have a shot at winning the NFC South. Carolina will be sort of tearing it all down next season (they already traded away Christian McCaffery and dumped Baker Mayfield) so who knows where their head is at in regards to keeping Wilks
BRONCOS
Denver has been an unmitigated disaster this season and the financial promises to Russell Wilson means he's not going anywhere. Hackett not only has run a miserable offense but the team has been so dysfunctional (they seem to get into a sideline fight every week) that it is clear he has lost control of this thing. Amazing how this was a buzz team to win a Super Bowl when the season started and now they are one of the more lost franchises out there.
CARDINALS
There are already reports that Kliff Kingsbury will resign when the season is over, and from his body language in the Cardinals' loss to the Buccaneers he already looks like he's already packed up to move out. Arizona was a disappointment before they lost Kyler Murray for the season and next year could be just as rough with the expectation that he'll miss most of the season. I had a small feeling that the Cardinals would keep Kingbury on just one more year since it would be difficult to break in a new coach without having your franchise quarterback but it seems the decision has already been made.
TEXANS
No one knows why Lovie Smith was hired in the first place and he's proved the doubters right with the worst record in the NFL. Of course, that isn't all on Smith. They have no quarterback and the team has lost a lot of their top talent (Watson, Hopkins, Watt) over the last few seasons that the roster is pretty bare. On Smith's side is that the Texans have competed all season long despite not having the talent to win a lot of games. However, this has the look of a team that will draft a quarterback with the top pick and will want a new coach to come in and work with him.
CHARGERS
This is so tough. There are many people who really like Brandon Staley ... and there are many others who have no idea why he does the things he does. Even though the Chargers will likely be in the playoffs despite a slew of injuries, it seems like the season is a disappointment. Like a lot of decisions on this list, the coaching job will tie to the quarterback for the foreseeable future. Justin Herbert is due to get paid and the Chargers will need to make a decision about who they want as their coach going forward.
RAMS
There's no way Los Angeles is firing Sean McVay, but there is a chance he hangs it up and heads into broadcasting. There was a though that he could do that after the Rams won the Super Bowl in February but the team had a "run it back" sentiment in the offseason. Instead, the Rams looked fat and happy and weren't really competing at a high level even before Matthew Stafford's injury (which has some really big questions surrounding it). Maybe the guys who thought about hanging it up last offseason will do so this year. Maybe McVay heads to the booth.
RAIDERS
It was starting to look like Josh McDaniels just isn't cut out to be a head coach, but the Raiders have gone on a late run. Of course, those games have been very fluky so you don't want to put too much stock into the end results when there seems to be issues below the surface. I don't see McDaniels as a one-and-done guy, but it may be better for everybody if Las Vegas gets a new coach and McDaniels heads back to run the Patriots offense.
SAINTS
Another one-and-done possibility? The Saints join the Broncos as teams whose seasons really went wrong fast. We know that their franchise quarterback isn't in the building. Andy Dalton will continue to be a solid backup quarterback but he's no longer a guy that can take you places. If Jameis Winston was the answer, well, he'd be playing. The NFC South is really ugly and the Saints haven't been able to take advantage of that (though at 6-9 are still in the playoff hunt). This looks to be headed to a rebuild situation and I'm not sure Allen could survive that. Then again, they may just decide to give him one more year as a babysitter for the team (a Lovie Smith situation).
FALCONS
Like the entire division, the Falcons may be looking at replacing their head coach. Arthur Smith's offenses haven't been very good, and that's why he's there. Sure, Matt Ryan showed us all how old he was and Marcus Mariota was an interesting starter for 2022, while Desmond Ridder has yet to show us much. I think Smith may get one more year, but he better show a ton of progress.
BUCCANEERS
The fact of the matter is that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were build to make a Super Bowl run this year. That's the way this roster is constructed and the reason Tom Brady un-retired. Sure, injuries to the offensive line early on hurt, but this hasn't looked anything like the team Bruce Arians ran the past few years and not one that Brady is going to win another title with. That begs the question: what will this team look like next year? If Brady retires or decides to walk to another team, does the roster get tore down? If so, does Todd Bowles survive that? Heck, if Brady comes back does he ask for a replacement for Bowles? This just doesn't seem to be working out, but how long do they keep trying?
BROWNS
Okay, so Kevin Stefanski just got Deshaun Watson to play with after nearly two years away from football. He likely gets to have a full season with Watson, even though it has gotten off to a slow start. If the final two weeks look ugly against the Commanders and Steelers, then a change may be warranted.
COMMANDERS
There is a lot to unpack here. First off, the team has been streaky all season. After starting 1-4, Washington went 6-1 over its next seven games before going 0-2-1 the last three weeks. Games at home to the Browns and Cowboys aren't easy, and Washington could look at a similar collapse like they had last season, which could cost Ron Rivera his job. Still, there is a lot to be said for what Rivera has done as the head coach of a franchise that had to navigate COVID, power through all the Daniel Snyder crap that seems to pop up every couple of weeks and having one of the weirdest quarterback situations any head coach has seen over a three year period (Dwayne Haskins, Alex Smith and his shattered leg, Ryan Fitzpatrick's hip injury less than a half of a game, Carson Wentz and Taylor Heinecke). Also, there is the universal assumption that the Commanders will have a new owner by next spring ... which could mean Rivera's job is safe for one more season at least.
JETS
Robert Saleh has made some questionable moves on the field and comments off the field but this team feels like a quarterback away from making noise in the AFC next year. I think he's likely to stick around for 2023.
COWBOYS
Say what you want about Jerry Jones, but he's been loyal to his coaches of late. Unless Mike McCarthy embarrasses Jones, he'll likely be back once again in '23.
