NFL Offseason Black Monday Report

Black Monday Firings

Lovie Smith/Houston Texans

The Texans did finish 2-1 in the last 3 and played much better towards the end of the season minus the Jacksonville game. They defeated Indianapolis (on the road) with a final 2-point conversion to win the game 32-31. The Texans finished 3-13-1 this season. Fans of this organization must re-boot yet again and will truly need to give the next head coach a real shot at turning the organization around if they want to have any chance of success.

They will have the number 2 pick in April’s draft and will have most likely draft their new franchise QB. Is Lovie Smith and his staff the right coach to mold the new draft pick, probably not. This was, most likely, the main decision going into the staffs firing this offseason. It also appears that he was a stop gap coach which they will be criticized for in this age of media. Early reported candidates are 49ers DC (and former Texans player) DeMeco Ryans and Eagles DC Johnathan Gannon.

Kliff Kingsbury/Arizona Cardinals

Kingsbury, not surprisingly, has been relieved of his duties and will not return next season. Cardinals GM Steve Keim will also not be returning next season as GM but may return in a lesser capacity. Cardinals finish with a 4-13 record this season and Kingsbury finishes with 28-37-1 record overall. This team has deeper problems than the head coach.

There are leadership questions with Kyler Murray and the team will lose its most vocal leader to retirement in JJ Watt. The organization needs a complete reset all around. Hard to say which direction they would go for head coach especially with Kyler potentially out for most, if not all of 2023. They will either roll with Colt McCoy or grab a year rental in free agency.

It"s reported that the owner already has a few candidates in mind. Candidates might include current DC Vance Joseph, San Francisco DC DeMeco Ryans, former Saints coach Sean Payton and Lions OC Ben Johnson.

Early Look at Remaining Job Openings

Carolina Panthers

Carolina finishes the season at 7-10 after an early season firing of Matt Rhule after his 1-4 start to the season. Steve Wilks gave the team that interim jolt and he finished 6-6 on the season during his tenure. Wilks has given himself a very strong case for the permanent job.

The team has played hard for him and they showed vast improvement under his tutelage. Panthers have a unique opportunity to really take control of a weak division. With Brady, potentially, leaving Tampa Bay, Carolina has a chance to take over this division if they can figure out the quarterback position.

They have a top 10 draft pick to try to find one or they could give last seasons 3^rd round pick Matt Corral an opportunity next season after suffering a season ending Lisfranc injury early in the season. Some rumored candidates for the positions include: Current Interim Coach Steve Wilks, Former Colts Coach Frank Reich, and Former Colts/Lions HC Jim Caldwell. There are confirmed reports that University of Michigan HC Jim Harbaugh did reach out to Panthers ownership about the position but the interest does not appear to be mutual between them after a phone conversation.

Denver Broncos

Broncos finish the season strong with a win over the LA Chargers 30-27 in a meaningless game for the Chargers. We did see some vintage Russell Wilson in the game and hopefully a sign of better things to come for next season. It does not appear that the current interim HC Jerry Rosburg will be considered for the HC position, but it appears he does not want it as he was brought on as a consultant earlier in the season. This will be a unique opportunity because there is good and bad to this position in the coming years.

The good is you will have every single resource you could ever want from ownership as they are owned by the Walton family (WalMart heirs) and they have mentioned they will "spare no expense" to make this a successful franchise again. The bad is you will be in the same division as Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert and will have to play them each twice a year in that pesky division. The Waltons will be very aggressive with this coaching hire and the list of confirmed interviews confirms just that. 

Candidates with confirmed interviews are: University of Michigan HC Jim Harbaugh, former Saints HC Sean Payton and Dallas DC Dan Quinn. Harbaugh appears to be the favorite, but the other two candidates are both very strong. Let’s not forget, any team that wants to hire Sean Payton will have to provide compensation to the Saints as he is still under contract through the 2024 season. The Broncos mortgaged their future by acquiring Russell Wilson last offseason so it will be difficult to obtain Payton if they want him as the head coach.

Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts season mercifully ended with a home loss to the Houston Texans 32-31. Indianapolis did make a mid-season firing of Frank Reich and brought in team consultant Jeff Saturday to finish the season. Saturday finishes the season with an embarrassing 1-7 tenure as interim coach. They regressed the entire season in every facet. Saturday showed us nothing to prove he is worthy of the permanent job. Owner Jim Irsay has publicly stated that GM Chris Ballard will return, and they will have full head coach search led by himself and Ballard.

Jeff Saturday will still get an interview (if he wants it) and is still, reportedly, a strong candidate for the job. The candidate they should "make an offer he can’t refuse" to is University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh. He has a proven track record of turning programs around in both college and professional football.

He can build the new incoming franchise quarterback and will hire a top tier staff. Along with Saturday and Harbaugh, other candidates will most likely include current Bills DC Leslie Frazier, 49ers DC DeMeco Ryans and Lions OC Ben Johnson.

Coaching Decisions Still To Come

Sean McVay/LA Rams

McVay flirted with stepping down last season and is continuing that again this season. Lots of speculation here but the mixture of overall burn out, new marriage, potential re-build and other personal life matters are pulling McVay towards stepping down in the coming days.

This would be a huge coaching carousel shifting move. McVay won the Super Bowl last season and is still young for the profession at the ripe age of 36. He would make plenty of money on a TV deal and then would be refreshed and ready for another Super Bowl run when he is ready.

Mike McDaniel/Miami Dolphins, Mike McCarthy/Dallas Cowboys and Brandon Staley/LA Chargers

These are grouped together for one reason…Sean Payton. While I think all of these coaches are safe from the unemployment line, it bears mentioning that Sean Payton has either mentioned these franchises or the owner has interest in his services as potential head coach interest on their end. A blowout playoff loss might get the owner to look into Sean Payton. Again, I think its unlikely but just something to keep an eye out for if these coaches underwhelm this upcoming Wild Card Weekend.

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