Hoodie Network
Grading the Firings
Raiders – Jon Gruden Resigned | A-
Jon Gruden technically wasn’t fired, but he resigned because of… well, he
said some things. Gruden may have been a good head coach in his time, but this
recent stint with the Raiders made it very clear that it is not his time
anymore. He made questionable personnel choices and didn’t achieve over a .500
record for any of his 3 full seasons before he resigned. I believe this to be
an “addition by subtraction” situation for the Raiders. Rich Bisaccia stepped
in as Interim Head Coach, using his incredible leadership skills to go 7-5 and
leading the Raiders to a playoff berth. I think Rich Bisaccia has more than earned
a shot at HC next year, and time will tell if he will be successful.
Edit: This original article previously said, “The
Raiders haven’t traded away many draft picks, so GM Mike Mayock can develop
this team through the draft. That’s if Jon Gruden is the reason for the
questionable draft selections in recent years.” As of 1/17, GM Mike
Mayock has been fired. I guess the Raiders decided that he shared
responsibility for the questionable roster decisions.
Jaguars – Urban Meyer | A+
Urban Meyer was an excellent college coach, but an awful NFL coach. He
struggled with not having as much power over grown men as he did young college
kids. He had, let’s call it, “off the field issues”. He essentially wasted a
year of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ time. He will more than likely never get
another shot to coach in the NFL, which is a shame for the college coaching
legend.
Broncos – Vic Fangio | C+
Vic Fangio is a good defensive coordinator, but I don’t know if he is a great
head coach. He was okay, but nothing spectacular. The main reason for his 19-30
record with the Broncos was the lack of talent on the roster. The defenses were
great, but starting QBs Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater over Fangio’s tenure
leave a lot to be desired. I think that the Broncos have more issues to solve
than just a new HC. Vic Fangio should get a shot to be a defensive coordinator
again.
Vikings – Mike Zimmer | B-
Mike Zimmer is a good head coach. Things just got a little bit stale. I think
that Mike Zimmer will get another shot to lead a football team. I think his
.562 winning percentage over his 8 years in Minnesota warrants that much. He
led the Vikings to a Wild Card game, a Divisional Game, and a Conference
Championship game. He went 2-3 in the playoffs, but it’s worth noting that the
three quarterbacks in those seasons were Teddy Bridgewater, Case Keenum, and
Kirk Cousins. I am not sure whether a new head coach or a new quarterback is
the solution for the Vikings, but it seems like they are keeping Kirk Cousins
and hoping a new face will help rejuvenate this team.
Bears – Matt Nagy | B+
Matt Nagy ended up with a .523 winning record, but I don’t think that tells the
whole story. He gained perennial Pro Bowler Khalil Mack before his first season
with the Bears. He didn’t exactly turn Mitch Trubisky into a star, not that
anyone could. Either way, despite being an offensive coach, it was the Bears
defense that was the soul of the team. During the end of his tenure, he was
making questionable playcalls and in-game decisions. It was time for the Bears
to move on. They have a young QB in Justin Fields and they need to bring in
someone who can develop a young QB.
Dolphins – Brian Flores | F
Guys like Brian Flores don’t grow on trees. He took a bad roster and turned
them into a functional team. He was a complete culture changer. He is
everything you want out of a head coach: responsible, a leader, and able to
connect with players. This is a total head scratcher and any team with an
opening needs to give him a call.
Giants – Joe Judge | B
Joe Judge is in a unique position. I don’t think he was necessarily ready to be
an NFL HC, which is just of one of the many faults of Dave Gettleman. That
being said, Joe Judge was an okay coach at best. He didn’t connect too well
with players, and he didn’t have much success on the field (going 10-23 in 2
seasons). I’d say Joe Judge gets another shot at head coaching down the road,
but not before he spends a couple years in a different role.
Texans – Dan Culley | D+
Another head scratcher. I can’t help but feel like no matter what happened, the
Texans were going to get rid of Dan Culley. He had an awful roster, but he
showed promise. The only negative I can think of is he finished 4-13, but,
again, terrible roster. He deserves another shot at head coach.
Potential HC Candidates
Here is a list of names that I keep seeing as potential candidates to fill these head coaching positions:
Former Head Coaches
Doug Pederson, Former Eagles HC
Jim Caldwell, Former Lions HC
Bill O’Brien, Alabama OC
Dan Quinn, Cowboys DC
Recently Fired
Brian Flores, Fired Dolphins HC
Mike Zimmer, Fired Vikings HC
Dan Culley, Fired Texans HC
College Coaches
Jim Harbaugh, Mich HC
Matt Campbell, Iowa St. HC
Luke Fickell, Cincy HC
Current Coordinators
Eric Bieniemy, Chiefs OC
Byron Leftwich, Bucs OC
Todd Bowles, Bucs DC
Brian Daboll, Bills OC
Matt Eberflus, Colts DC
Leslie Frazier, Bills DC
Nathaniel Hackett, Packers OC
Josh McDaniels, Pats OC
Vance Joseph, Cards DC
Ranking the Openings
8. Texans
The Texans roster is not good. They need help almost everywhere. Davis
Mills had a solid rookie year at QB, but we will have to see just how much he
improves. The Deshaun Watson situation is also something hanging over their
heads. I don’t think he will play another game for the Texans. They would love
to trade him, but the combination of his high trade value and the uncertainty
of his future pretty much make him untradeable. They have a decent amount of
draft capital to work with, but that all depends on if they hit on their draft
picks.
7. Giants
The Giants have some upside. First, young guys like LT Andrew Thomas, LG
Shane Lemieux, WR Kadarius Toney, DL Dexter Lawrence, and S Xavier McKinney
have played really well so far. Then, of course, is Saquon Barkley if he can
stay healthy. Add in DL Leonard Williams and you pretty much have all of the
Giants’ bright spots right there. QB Daniel Jones has shown nothing special to
prove that he is the future of this franchise. The new GM, whoever that is,
will have a good amount of draft capital to work with, including two top-7
picks in the 2022 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, there isn’t really a quarterback
worthy of taking that high. They are also already projected to be over the cap
for next season. The new GM will have their work cut out for them.
6. Dolphins
The Dolphins have some holes in their line-up, but they are miles ahead of
the previously mentioned teams. They badly need to solve their offensive line
problem. They also need some help to bolster their defense, but for the most
part they have solid players all over. The only reason they aren’t higher on
the list is because of the question marks at quarterback. Jacoby Brissett is
not the future, but Tua isn’t 100% the answer either. He’s played okay, but
hasn’t done anything spectacular to earn the job long-term, yet. The Dolphins
have two 1st-rounders in next year’s draft, which will most certainly have
better quarterback talent than this year’s draft. Remember #TankForTua? I
wouldn’t rule out #TankForBryceYoung. And with the most projected cap space in
the league next year, I also wouldn’t rule out some free agent splashes.
5. Jaguars
I actually think that the Dolphins roster is substantially better than the
Jags roster. So why are they ranked ahead of them? Simple: Trevor Lawrence. As
a Cleveland Browns fan, I know first-hand how difficult it is to find the right
guy at QB. It’s much easier to fill roster holes than it is to find the future
of your football team. Trevor Lawrence showed incredible growth towards the end
of the season. He will be a star in this league and will make the team around
him better. They can use some of the 3rd most cap space in the league to
help better their roster. The Jags have the 1st overall pick in the draft,
which they can use to either draft a blue-chip EDGE prospect to bolster their
defense or draft a blue-chip LT to protect Trevor Lawrence for the rest of his
career.
4. Bears
Chicago has some pieces that would get any HC candidate excited. Khalil
Mack, David Montgomery, Darnell Mooney, and a young QB with all the potential
in the world. However, the defense needs some retooling, some older players
will need young replacements, and they might need more pass catchers if Allen
Robinson II leaves in free agency. They also don’t have much draft capital so
don’t expect too much from the draft, but they do have a decent amount of cap
space so they could add cheap free agents to fill their needs.
3. Broncos
The Broncos are in a tough spot. They’ve got a good offense line, really
good weapons, but a below-average quarterback. CB Patrick Surtain II and RB
Javonte Williams are certified stars. They have a good amount of draft capital
and cap space to fill some of the holes they have on defense, specifically the
front 7. If they can figure out the quarterback position, they can be very
dangerous.
2. Vikings
The Vikings have enough talent to make a deep playoff run. They just
haven’t been able to put it all together. Kirk Cousins is a decent quarterback,
but he isn’t the type of quarterback that can carry a team to the championship.
He’ll need a team full of talent. They need a few upgrades on defense, but
overall they have a really good group. They also could use an upgrade on the
interior offensive line. Look to the draft for them to fill those needs, since
they are already $10 million over the cap for next season. Altogether, this is
a very solid squad that could be a good head coach away from competing next
year.
1. Raiders
Las Vegas is the best destination for a new head coaching candidate, and
they might not even be looking for a new HC. They have a good QB, a solid
defense, and good offensive weapons. They need to upgrade their offensive and
defensive lines, but other than that they are a very complete football team.
Rich Bisaccia should succeed in his next season should they choose to keep him
at HC.