While many teams are eying the playoffs, a number of franchises are already sunk and are starting to shift their focus to next season. That means it’s a nervous time for some head coaches, who are feeling the heat with front office bosses evaluating their performance.
Here’s a look at four head coaches that are squarely on the hot seat right now:
Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons (2/1 odds)
In Week 8, the Falcons had their hearts ripped out when they blew a 21-0 lead to the Detroit Lions in London en route to losing their fifth straight game. At that point, it looked like Mike Smith would be asked not to join the team on the plane ride back home.
However, the firing squad has been told to stand down for now. That’s because the team that was leading the NFC South at the time, the Carolina Panthers, has since lost two straight. Coupled with the New Orleans Saints home loss to the San Francisco 49ers and the Atlanta Falcons road win in Tampa Bay, the Falcons are now only one game out of first place.
The Falcons are just 3-6 right now but with a road trip to Carolina this week to face a banged up Panthers squad, and with home matchups against the Cleveland Browns and Carson Palmer-less Arizona Cardinals in the coming weeks, it’s not crazy to think that this team could be .500 in a few weeks. In that same timeframe, the Saints have to play three quality AFC North teams (vs Cincinnati, vs Baltimore and at Pittsburgh).
Smith is still under a very hot spotlight and the next few weeks should determine his fate.
Ron Rivera, Carolina Panthers (4/1 odds)
Rivera is a great example of how quickly your fortunes can change in the NFL. In his first two seasons in Carolina, the Panthers were just 13-19. Many felt he was lucky to even get another shot with the Panthers in 2013 but he righted the ship with a 12-4 record. However, the Panthers have fallen on hard times again, going 3-6-1 so far. The issue for Rivera is that his team is looking worse by the week. After winning their first two games, they’ve registered just one win in their last eight games. The concern is the margin of defeat as they’ve lost by at least 18 points in five of their last six losses.
Rivera is also known as a defensive coach and it doesn’t help his case that the defense – the backbone of last year’s success – is being undressed on a weekly basis. The Panthers are 29th in points allowed (28.0 points per game), 31st against the pass and 27th against the run.
He might get some leeway based on his 12-4 record last season but not if the Panthers can’t find a way to win some games down the stretch.
Marc Trestman, Chicago Bears (4/1 odds)
Trestman earned positive marks in his first season in Chicago after the Bears offense – long a mess in the Lovie Smith era – turned it around. The offense leaped from 28th in 2012 to 8th in 2013, and they managed to do all of that while relying on backup quarterback Josh McCown for eight games. But the defense went in the other direction, allowing a whopping 29.9 points per game in 2013 after giving up just 17.3 (third) in 2012. This season the defense has remained pitiful and the other shoe has also dropped as Bears offense has reverted back to its calamitous ways.
The biggest reason Trestman is on the hot seat is that the Bears have looked unprepared in recent weeks. They’ve allowed 50+ points in back-to-back games, including a 55-14 drubbing in Green Bay on Sunday Night Football, which came after the Bears bye week. That’s the best they could do after two weeks of preparation?
Quarterback Jay Cutler is currently the primary scapegoat because of his careless turnovers. However, Trestman will undoubtedly earn himself a pink slip unless the Bears can start winning some games or – at the very least – start losing in respectable fashion.
Rex Ryan, New York Jets (12/1 odds)
Regardless of records, stats and accomplishments (or lack thereof), Ryan looks like a dead man walking. Remember back when he started? He would brazenly call out the New England Patriots and confidently boast through media sessions. Nowadays, he looks like a man who has been read his rights.
The bottom line for Ryan: after back-to-back appearances in the AFC Championship Game, the Jets have never finished a season above .500 since. The personnel moves have been disastrous, ranging from Mark Sanchez, to Geno Smith, to even some head scratching moves on the defensive side (Darrelle Revis, Dee Milliner and Antonio Cromartie). Ryan’s one calling card was always defense but the Jets enter Week 11 ranked 25th in points allowed per game at 26.5.
The writing is on the wall. Ryan will be looking for new work at the end of the season, and maybe even sooner.
