Sportsnaut
The NFL coaching hot seat claimed its first victim this season, with the Tennessee Titans firing head coach Brian Callahan in October. A few month of the NFL calendar opens the door to another head coach putting himself in danger of being fired, depending on how his team performs in the next few weeks.
Let’s dive into our NFL Coaching Hot Seat rankings after Week 10.
A single decision in Week 10 feels like it should seal the fate of New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll. The team led 17-10 in the first quarter and just stalled at the 1-yard line after a 79-yard drive. From 4th-and-Goal at the 1-yard line, Daboll settled for the 19-yard field goal and then doubled down on that call by declining a Too Many Men on the Field penalty that would’ve given the Giants offense a second chance from the half-yard line. That needs to be the final straw for a head coach who is now 13-34-1 in his last 48 games. An organization simply can’t allow for that level of conservativism to be allowed when the team has been this bad for so long.
Related: New York Giants Coaching Candidates to Replace Brian Daboll
When you are on pace to lose 12-plus games for the second consecutive season and you decide to surrender play-calling duties as an offense-minded head coach in November, that’s all the sign we need. The Cleveland Browns stood by Kevin Stefanski after a seven-win campaign in 2022, he delivered an 11-6 mark and made the playoffs. However, he’s now 5-21 in the last two seasons and Cleveland has been saddled by one of the league’s worst offenses. Giving a head coach six seasons shows patience, but three campaigns with double-digit losses in the last four years leaves an organization with no other choice. The Browns need to reset at both quarterback and head coach this offseason.
The fact that Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel is now third in our NFL coaching hot seat rankings says both that there aren’t many of his peers in real jeopardy right now and he’s stabilized his own situation a bit. It goes beyond just the 30-13 victory in Week 10 over Buffalo. Miami has won two of its last three games, with this Dolphins offense averaging 23.3 points and 346.7 total yards per game with a 5.78 yards-per-play average in the last three contests. The upcoming Dolphins schedule – vs Commanders, Saints and at Jets – also provides McDaniel with a real chance to turn a 1-6 mark into a 5-7 record by early December. If that happens, we believe there’s a very real chance McDaniel returns in 2026.
Related: Miami Dolphins Coaching Candidates to Replace Mike McDaniel
It takes special circumstances for us to believe a first-year head coach should be fired. Pete Carroll...
