With the 2013 NFL regular season winding down, the playoff picture is becoming clearer. A few select teams and their head coaches are already preparing for the excitement and the challenge of vying for a Super Bowl title, while others are simply hoping for better fortunes in 2014. Then, like with every season, there’s the handful of coaches simply hoping they have a job in 2014, after leading their respective squads to disappointing finishes this year.
So far this season, we’ve already seen one head coach get the dreaded ax, as the Houston Texans fired Gary Kubiak after leading the preseason AFC South favorite to a dismal 2-11 record. The question many NFL fans are asking now is: Who else could be tossed back into the ever-rotating coaching carousel this offseason? We’ve certainly got our picks, so check our list of top five NFL coaches on the hot seat in 2013 below!
Leslie Frazier – Minnesota Vikings
After guiding the surprising Vikings to an NFC wild card playoff berth last season, Leslie Frazier found his name among the 2012 NFL Coach of the Year candidates. So, some will be shocked to see his name here, but after posting a 3-9-1 record with virtually the same squad coming into week 15 of this season, Frazier’s seat has to be heating up.
Considering NFL coaches rarely get more than three seasons to turn a franchise into a winner, Frazier, who is finishing his third season with Minnesota this year, could be watching his time with the Vikes expire. The players seem to be fond of Frazier, but his 19-31-1 overall record will tell the front office more than any player can. And if his win/loss mark wasn’t a big enough indication that his job is in danger, the fact that the team denied Frazier a contract extension this winter should be.
Greg Schiano – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The 2013 season couldn’t have started any worse for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Greg Schiano, whose name quickly became part of the hot seat discussion after the Bucs started 0-8 and were forced to release starting quarterback Josh Freeman. However, after placing Mike Glennon under center, the team has heated up and is entering their week 15 showdown with the Rams as winners of four of their last five. Subsequently, talk of Schiano’s dismissal has cooled off a tad this winter.
Still, that doesn’t mean Schiano is entirely off the hook. With a 4-9 record this season, he’s already guaranteed a second straight losing year as the head man in Tampa Bay and if the Bucs finish 2013 with a whimper, there’s a strong chance Schiano will be quietly emptying out his desk at the end of the season too. On the other hand, if his Buccaneers can show some fight, maybe it will tell the team’s ownership that the young coach has some promise at the professional level after all.
Mike Munchak – Tennessee Titans
With a 20-24 career record in his third season with the Titans, Mike Munchak, is another head coach seriously feeling the heat this year. Despite working with what was supposed to be a solid running game led by Chris Johnson, and a stout defense, Munchak has failed to improve the Titans during his tenure and is currently enduring his second straight losing year at the helm with a disappointing 5-8 record entering week 15.
Unfortunately for Munchak, unlike Schiano, there may not be anything he can do to save his job. According to NFL Media columnist Michael Silver, via NFL.com, a “lot of dissatisfaction” exists within the organization, which is already looking at other coaches and planning to get rid of Johnson, as well as acquire a new quarterback – possibly Jay Cutler, who will be a free agent after the season. It sounds like a lot of change is coming for the Titans and that change will almost certainly involve Munchak.
Mike Shanahan – Washington Redskins
Considering the 3-10 Redskins are most fans’ biggest disappointment of 2013, it’s no surprise that Mike Shanahan makes this list. With his young dynamic quarterback seemingly healthy after recovering from an ACL tear in last year’s playoffs, Shanahan appeared poised to lead the Skins to a second straight postseason this year, but Robert Griffin III hasn’t quite been himself since the injury and the defense has been an absolute mess (that’s a nice way to put it). With the team in shambles, Shanahan decided to bench RGIII for the rest of the season in favor of Kirk Cousins, a move that has understandably drawn even more ire from an already irate fanbase.
Whether the decision was made to protect and preserve the future well being of Washington’s franchise quarterback or not, the sheer divisiveness of the move has seemed to only heat up Shanahan’s seat. Needless to say, if Cousins makes Shanahan, the Redskins, and the decision look bad this weekend, talk of searching for a new coach in Washington will only intensify.
Tom Coughlin – New York Giants
Despite owning a wining record in 10 seasons with the New York Giants and two Super Bowl titles, Tom Coughlin’s name seems to creep into the hot seat discussion every year due to the team’s habitually slow starts. This was the case again in 2013, as the Giants lost their first five games.
Fortunately for Coughlin, the Giants have improved since then and now sit at 5-8, but the team is still on track for its first losing season since Coughlin’s first year in New York in 2004. Considering all the success he’s had, it would be a shock to some if the Giants let Coughlin go, but the NFL is known as a league that asks “What have you done for me lately?” And unfortunately, Coughlin will have a hard time putting much convincing spin on his answer this year.
