Black Monday has arrived and so far, we are seeing many vacancies from teams across the NFL.
Typically, we will see a lot of coaches get the chop if the team doesn’t perform well throughout the season. This year is a little different now that we see a coach get fired after the team won 8 out of the final 9 games of the season. It seems like some General Managers are just ready for change and need to do anything to save their job while some owners are cleaning house.
In-Season Changes
We already saw a few changes during the season including Las Vegas Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden and Jacksonville Jaguars Head Coach Urban Meyer. Both of these firings were more about off-field issues rather than performance. Of course, Gruden had the emails that were exposed earlier in the year while Meyer had a load of different issues that finally led to his dismissal from the organization.
Both the Raiders’ and Jaguars’ positions will be interesting heading into the offseason. The Raiders should retain Interim Head Coach Rich Bisaccia after getting the Raiders into the playoffs with big wins over the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Chargers in back-to-back weeks. The Raiders could have folded a few weeks ago and focused on the off-season, but their fight to keep winning got them all the way to the 5th seed in the AFC with a Sunday Night Football win over the Chargers to clinch their spot in the playoffs. You have to believe that Bisaccia was a large part of that drive.
The Jaguars won twice in Week 18. With a big win over the Colts and a Detroit Lions win over the Green Bay Packers, the Jaguars not only spoiled the Colts playoff chances but clinched the first overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. This now makes two years in a row with the first overall pick. Last year, they selected Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence. This year, it is likely the team will go with a defensive pick or trade back and gain a ton of draft capital. The Jaguars originally requested an interview with Colts Defensive Coordinator Matt Eberflus, but after the embarrassing loss for the Colts this weekend, I don’t know if that interview will happen anymore.
Black Monday Firings
Denver Broncos
On Sunday, it was announced that both Denver Broncos Head Coach Vic Fangio and Offensive Coordinator Pat Shurmur have been let go. Not really surprising that Fangio was let go from the Broncos. He could not get a proper quarterback developed between Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock. Defensive Coordinator Ed Donatell was retained but could be fired depending on who the Broncos bring in for the Head Coaching vacancy. With a defense that was beginning to take shape in a positive direction, I could see the Broncos going with another defensive-minded coach here. Could we see Cowboys DC Dan Quinn get a new chance at being a leader?
The Broncos will have interviews.
I suspect some of the names to be interviewed will be Dan Quinn, Leslie Frazier, Nathaniel Hackett, Byron Leftwich, Jonathan Gannon among others. https://t.co/JoaQ6HEA4N
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) January 9, 2022
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are finally cleaning house, maybe one year too late. After trading away draft capital to move up and select Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, Matt Nagy did absolutely nothing to help him develop. Fields had statistically one of the worst seasons for a rookie thanks largely to the quarterback situation that Nagy put Fields, Andy Dalton, and Nick Foles in. A confusing nightmare is an appropriate assessment of the Bears’ offense this season. The McCaskeys fired both Nagy and GM Ryan Pace today for the Bears’ downfall over the last few seasons. It seems like it was long ago when the Bears had the best defense in the league when they traded for Khalil Mack. Look for the Bears to get a head coach that has a great working relationship with a young quarterback. Coaches like Jim Harbaugh or Eric Bieniemy would be a great fit for the offense. Could we see Vic Fangio return to Chicago as a coordinator now that he is free from Denver?
Matt Nagy: "We need to figure out the why" #Bears pic.twitter.com/5Lw1h6O9FR
— Jacob Infante (@jacobinfante24) December 5, 2021
Minnesota Vikings
Is it just me or was it weird that both the Minnesota Vikings and Bears played in Week 18, followed by both teams cleaning house? The Vikings announced today that they have parted ways with Head Coach Mike Zimmer and General Manager Rick Spielman. The Vikings have been very stagnant since making it to the NFC Championship and a change was needed. I’m a bit surprised with the firing of Spielman. Considering the talent that he has drafted over the last few seasons, but Zimmer was an obvious firing. Look for the Vikings to go with an offensive-minded coach. The can really take advantage of having guys like Kirk Cousins, Dalvin Cook, and Justin Jefferson. That’s assuming the Vikings don’t try to move on from Cousins, that is. If the team goes defensive-oriented, I could see Brian Flores getting calls to move up North. This team doesn’t have to hit the rebuild completely. The pieces seem to be there and who knows what the NFC North will look like next year if Aaron Rodgers leaves Green Bay.
Not a huge fan of firing Spielman. I guess we'll see what happens from here
— #Fantasy #SKOL Dave (@VikingDave18) January 10, 2022
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins have moved on from Brian Flores. I don’t think this was the only move they should have made today, but at the moment, it is. There are a lot of talks about General Manager Chris Grier needing to be gone as well. This move might be his last chance at saving his own job first. The organization is so close to being really good. They’ve started to figure out the defense and have a few offensive weapons to pair. By a few, I mean Jaylen Waddle, who now has the most receptions from a rookie in NFL history. The Dolphins just need a new offensive line, quarterback, running back, head coach, and some coordinators and they could be a contender. That’s not asking for much, is it? Let’s see the Dolphins get an offensive guy to either grow Tua Tagovailoa or get the quarterback he wants. Nick Saban isn’t a big ask, is it? On a real note, I could see the Dolphins also targeting Jim Harbaugh for this position, too.
What?! The man that is the biggest issue is staying? The man that can’t draft to save his life? https://t.co/KGxPmZi8p3
— Bret LaGasse (@BretLaGasse67) January 10, 2022
On Our Radar
Dave Gettleman officially announced his retirement as Senior Vice President and General Manager of the New York Giants.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 10, 2022
We know Jim Harbaugh is going to have a plethora of job openings. Will he want to return to the NFL? Does he leave Michigan after making the College Football Playoffs in the same season that he defeated Ohio State finally?
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