The NFL is a third of the way through the 2024 season, and the league don’t have many teams separating from the pack yet. Plenty of them are still in contention for the playoffs, as the league doesn’t have any out of contention yet (yes, even the Carolina Panthers).
Even though the majority of the league is in the hunt, the seats are hot for certain coaches whose teams are underperforming. The Philadelphia Eagles are 3-2 and every week there seems to be speculation if Nick Sirianni is coaching for his job. Meanwhile, a blowout loss to the Detroit Lions has Mike McCarthy’s shelf life as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys expiring fast.
These five coaches are firmly on the hot seat after six weeks and need to start producing wins or their seats will get even hotter in the weeks ahead.
5. Nick Sirianni (Eagles)
- Record this season: 3-2
- Career with Eagles: 37-19 (.661 win percentage)
Sirianni wouldn’t even be on this list if it wasn’t for the Eagles collapse last season, which seemingly has internally carried over despite the team’s 3-2 start (and not in the locker room). The Eagles are winning games, but they are struggling to beat bad teams.
Sirianni may be feeling the pressure of coaching in Philadelphia, getting criticized no matter what he does. Even after Sunday’s win over the Browns, the controversy surrounded Sirianni because he was caught telling off his own fans.
The NFC East is still there for the taking, and the Eagles are still trying to figure out some things for the stretch run. The players do like Sirianni, but the controversies he creates could send the team spiraling — or elevate them to their expectations.
Sirianni has made the playoffs in every season he’s been Eagles head coach, and has taken them to a Super Bowl. The Eagles are still 4-8 in their last 12 regular-season games, a trend they are trying to reverse. They need a winning streak.
4. Dennis Allen (Saints)
- Record this season: 2-4
- Career with Saints: 18-22 (.450 win percentage)
Allen wasn’t on the hot seat — for two weeks of the season at least. What the Saints have displayed the last four weeks is par for the course, plummeting from the 2-0 start to third in the NFC South. The Saints have been outscored 118 to 76 during their four-game losing streak, as Allen’s defense has allowed 29.5 points per game (including 51 to the Buccaneers on Sunday).
The Saints have been mediocre at best under Allen, showing signs they are going to turn a corner before drifting back into mediocrity. New Orleans does get somewhat of a pass with Derek Carr out, yet its unacceptable for the defense to play this bad when Spencer Rattler is making his first career start.
New Orleans is the third-best team in the division, which is expected given how little the team has improved during the Allen era. The Saints appear headed for another mediocre season.
3. Kevin Stefanski (Browns)
- Record this season: 1-5
- Career with Browns: 38-35 (.521 win percentage)
The Browns being the Browns isn’t the fault of Stefanski at all. This comes down to the team deciding to give Deshaun Watson $230 million guaranteed and deciding to keep him as the starting quarterback, despite Watson arguably being the worst starting quarterback in the NFL.
Watson is 28th in passer rating (76.6), 25th in completion percentage (61.3%), 31st in yards per attempt (5.1) and 31st in sack rate (13.7%) — out of 31 qualifying quarterbacks. The Browns are the only team not to score 20 points in a game this season nor accumulate 300 yards of offense. They are 30th in points per possession (1.18) and 32nd in yards per possession (21.4).
Stefanski is essentially the fall guy for being forced to play Watson, having to work with a player who can’t play anymore. He’ll easily get a head-coaching job somewhere else, easily a better situation than what he’s endearing in Cleveland.
2. Mike McCarthy (Cowboys)
- Record this season: 3-3
- Career with Cowboys: 45-28 (.616 win percentage)
McCarthy has been on the hot seat since the Cowboys got destroyed at home in the wild card round by the Packers last season, and things haven’t gotten any better. The Cowboys just can’t win a home game, essentially getting destroyed in every game they play at AT&T Stadium.
The 47-9 loss to the Lions was historic, but for the wrong reasons. Dallas had its largest home loss (38 points) in a game under Jerry Jones since he bought the team in 1989, certainly an embarrassment on the owner’s 82nd birthday.
Slow starts have been the norm for the Cowboys in their home building, too. The Cowboys have been outscored 110-35 in the first half and allowed 14 touchdowns on 19 first-half drives (excluding kneel downs) and have allowed 13.8 yards per pass attempt in the first 30 minutes of games. The offense has been poor and the defense has been atrocious (Mike Zimmer was McCarthy’s hire for defensive coordinator). Dallas has allowed 39.7 points per game at home.
The Cowboys offense has averaged 17.7 points per game this season. That’s unacceptable with the rich contracts of Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb. In McCarthy’s second year as a play-caller, the offense has gotten worse.
McCarthy appears to be on borrowed time right now. He may be out before the end of the year if the Cowboys don’t turn this around.
1. Doug Pederson (Jaguars)
- Record this season: 1-5
- Career with Jaguars: 19-21 (.475 win percentage)
The end of the road appears near for Pederson, as the Jaguars are one of the worst teams in the NFL with one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the league. Jacksonville just hasn’t been able to recover from the collapse that plagued the franchise last season, sporting a 2-10 record in their last 12 games.
Since sporting an 8-3 record last season, the Jaguars have been one of the worst franchises in the NFL. Pederson has no answer for the offense’s struggles, either, as the Jaguars are 22nd in points per possession (1.75) and 19th in yards per possession (29.5). Lawrence has lost 10 of his last 11 starts, and his 28th in completion rate (60.3%), 19th in yards per attempt (7.0) and 18th in passer rating (89.2). That’s incredibly average for a player who makes $55 million a year.
The defense is even worse, as Jacksonville has allowed 30+ points in two straight games and in three of the past four games. The Jaguars are allowing 29.7 points per game this season — 31st in the NFL.
No mater what Pederson tries, he can’t fix it. The Jaguars’ season is already spiraling out of control, and just seems as it’s a matter of when — not if — Pederson will be fired.
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Author: Jeff Kerr
October 15, 2024 | 11:40 am
