NFL Insider: Which Coaches Are Facing the Axe After This Season?

Jason La Canfora, NFL insider

Key Findings:

• Colts, Jets, Eagles and Commanders coaches appear to be on their way out: NFL insider Jason La Canfora places Shane Steichen, Aaron Glenn, Nick Sirianni and Dan Quinn in his “It’s Over” category, suggesting their departures are increasingly inevitable.
• Jets could have their sights set on Mike Tomlin: One NFL GM told La Canfora, “I think Woody wants (Mike) Tomlin,” as Aaron Glenn’s future in New York looks increasingly uncertain.
• Commanders could target a coach from Sean McVay’s coaching tree: A longtime NFL personnel executive believes Washington wants an offensive-minded coach to work with Jayden Daniels, telling La Canfora, “That’s what they want.”
• Cowboys, Saints and Panthers coaches face serious scrutiny: Brian Schottenheimer, Kellen Moore and Dave Canales could all be fighting for their jobs, while the Chargers, Titans and Buccaneers are identified as potential surprise coaching changes.

Here’s where things stand now

The worst teams in the NFL have spent the last few weeks trying to find ways to save their owners money and secure more draft picks for the future and determine how to navigate the rest of the season.

Whether these franchises sold off everything they could, or chose to do a little, or, in some cases, did nothing much despite every obvious provocation to do so, there is more change to come for many of them.

You can pretend a situation isn’t as desperate as it seems and play games with the media, but the standings don’t lie.

Soon enough, these teams will be sending out season-ticket renewals and trying to get fans to re-invest in their future, and they know darn well in many cases that no one is buying the coaching staff they currently have employed.

In the NFL, for the dregs, once we get past Thanksgiving, the behind-the-scenes work on 2027 will begin in earnest with everything beyond the existing roster.

The backchanneling and covert networking with agents and people close to top coaching candidates begin in earnest, and the race to get the first meeting with the best and brightest minds to come fix their broken teams starts way before most teams fire the head coach they currently employ.

We are more than halfway through this season, a host of coaches who entered the campaign on the hot seat are under more fire than ever, and you can sort the upcoming coaching landscape into three bins as we head to the NFL’s playoff push.

Teams whose searches have effectively already begun, those who are quite likely to explore what else is out there, and the proverbial surprise, because there is always a shocker or two, whether through retirement or delayed firing.

It’s Over

Colts: The only team to fire a general manager in-season so far, who were exploring trades for any and all veterans possible ahead of the deadline.

No way head coach Shane Steichen survives. Ownership put him on notice in January and already fired the guy who hired him (Chris Ballard). Do they chase a big-money guy or go young and cheap again? (My guess is young and cheap in a total rebuild, and execs I asked agreed).

Jets: Aaron Glenn’s job security was a very real topic of discussion within this perpetually toxic organization last year, and this year has been brutal.

They find ways to lose games and cannot manage the final two minutes of halves, and this is over.

“I think Woody wants (Mike) Tomlin,” one GM told us. Regardless, he’s not going to want Glenn in 2027; Glenn should be a coveted defensive coordinator.

Eagles: Everything is a mess there. Head coach Nick Sirianni and QB Jalen Hurts were always going to be under review in 2027.

The entire tenor of the franchise has changed this year given all the injuries and now the inquiry into how they handled Hurts’s blood clots.

The Eagles have not been averse to moving on quickly from head coaches who won a Super Bowl, the defensive staff needs an overhaul anyway (this is it for Vic Fangio), and we’d be very surprised if he’s back.

“Howie isn’t going to keep that staff together,” another GM told me even before the Hurts injury situation blew up.

Commanders: Basically, Dan Quinn’s entire staff was replaced under him last year, he no longer ran the defense (that was his calling card), he was under intense pressure to protect franchise QB Jayden Daniels and build an offense predicated on that, and none of that has happened.

He was hamstrung by an old-and-middling roster. Even in the lowly NFC East, where Washington will hang in contention because every team will, this is bad.

“They’re going to hire someone from the (Rams coach Sean) McVay tree to work with the quarterback,” one longtime NFL personnel exec told me. “That’s what they want.”

Seriously Under Review

Cowboys: Jerry Jones is stubborn and doesn’t like to admit defeat. That’s working in Brian Schottenheimer’s favor, but not much else.

Jones is also facing a lot of heat lately about skewing way cheap when it comes to his coaching staff. The NFC East is so forgiving this team could still host a playoff game. I don’t think they could win one, but maybe that’s enough to keep him around.

Saints: Ownership is miffed that this team can’t even really distinguish itself in the lowly NFC South.

They have crumbled on both sides of the ball. There were real questions being asked about Tyler Shough being the answer at QB, and the roster is still weird and too old in some spots. It begs a change in the front office, but we don’t think that’s happening.

“Mickey (Loomis, head of football) isn’t going anywhere, trust me,” the first GM told me.

“The owner loves him.” But the fanbase is miffed, and somebody might have to pay the price. Kellen Moore better have a heck of a second half.

Panthers: Dave Canales has done some really nice things expanding the offense and bringing Bryce Young along at QB, but he works for an impetuous billionaire who has made firing people quickly his brand, and they just fired their defensive coordinator, which is never a good sign.

The three teams that do not win the NFC South, much like the NFC East, are quite likely to be looking for a new coach.

“(Owner David) Tepper is not happy, I know that much,” one GM told me. “We know how he operates.”

January Jeopardy?

Chargers: Does this become a total rebuild? That’s not what Jim Harbaugh signed up for. Is Justin Herbert going to be dealt in February? (We think he will be).

Even if they don’t sell off everything at the deadline, a lot of high-priced vets won’t be there next year.

Harbaugh is mercurial as they come; he thought he was going to put them over the top with Herbert within the first three years. There will be some pointed and interesting conversations to come, especially if they can’t win any football games.

Titans: One and done? Robert Saleh is not a good head coach. There tends to be drama and chaos wherever he goes, he is working for terrible owners, and they already extended their best player (Jeffery Simmons) before the season, then dealt him a few months later.

They benched a massive free-agent signing who Saleh wanted mere weeks into his Titans career.

QB Cam Ward hasn’t taken off, and people around the league believe changes are coming to this staff barring a monster second half (good luck with that). If you are already dealing with all of that, questions will be asked about the main man in charge, too.

Buccaneers: We think Todd Bowles is going to end up winning the NFC South, and his defense is making big strides from the first few weeks of the season.

He’s had a long tenure there, and now the QB is making $50M a year. When that happens and you don’t win, it tends to cost jobs.

Jason La Canfora has covered the NFL full-time since 2004. He covered the Washington Commanders for five years at The Washington Post, then spent three years as NFL insider for the NFL network across all platforms and 10 years as the NFL insider for CBS Sports, appearing every Sunday on 'The NFL today', before returning to The Washington Post to cover the NFL for 5 years.

He has deep connections in front offices, with coaches and agents across the league to bring unique perspective to his coverage, along with an understanding of advanced data.

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