Fans of flailing franchises have started to focus on that topic now, with the end of the season approaching, and with it, the start of firing/hiring season.
I’ve previously taken a deep dive into the top candidates for several teams, including the Giants, Browns, Colts, and Cardinals. However, a lot of those lists mirror each other with similar names at the top. For this exercise, I wanted to assign only ONE COACH for each franchise, along with possible coordinators to support and complement them. Hopefully, these staffs all make sense. But if they don’t, feel free to submit better ideas down below.
Chicago Bears
Matt Nagy becomes the new heads coach of the Bears.
There are familiar shades of the Los Angeles Rams’ 2016 season in these 2017 Chicago Bears (good young RB, solid defense, young/green QB without many weapons, old/conservative coach, etc.) Heck, both teams even had their own disappointing West Virginia WR. Presumably, the Bears will be eyeing their own version of Sean McVay this offseason and hoping that a young offensive coach can sprinkle that same magic pixie dust over their offense in that same way.
Bears fans on Reddit have rallied behind New Orleans OC Pete Carmichael as that possible fix, and he’s a candidate that makes sense. However, I’d be more excited about current Kansas City OC Matt Nagy instead. The former Arena League QB has helped open up the Chiefs’ offense this season and could help create a QB-friendly offense and environment for Mitchell Trubisky. Like McVay, he’s also in his 30s.
OC
Current Buffalo QB coach David Culley had previously worked on Andy Reid‘s staff as a WR coach/assistant head coach, so he’d be an ideal lieutenant to help Matt Nagy install their offensive system.
DC
There’s absolutely no reason to replace current DC Vic Fangio, provided that Fangio would like to stick around.
Cincinnati Bengals
In my opinion, the Cincinnati Bengals’ franchise doesn’t need a complete overhaul. They’ve done a solid job of establishing consistency and stability under Marvin Lewis over these last few decades. In fact, I wouldn’t mind seeing Lewis kicked upstairs to a front office role to help continue that task.
That said, this is still a team that could use some fresh blood and new ideas. With that in mind, I’d submit Carolina DC Steve Wilks as a strong fit for this post. Wilks is only in his first full season as coordinator, but he’s been an assistant head coach who should be more ready for a top job than that resume suggests. He’d be well versed in a 4-3 defense, but also has revved up the pressure packages for the Panthers, which the Bengals could utilize as well.
OC
Presuming Hue Jackson gets the ax in Cleveland, he could slink back to Cincinnati and step right back into his role as the OC there. Hue Jackson’s always been a solid coordinator in his past, including his stint with the Bengals.
DC
I don’t have any problem with current DC Paul Guenther retaining his post, provided that a new coach like Steve Wilks agrees. After all, Wilks would want to infuse some of his own ideas and may not want any lingering ownership from Guenther. I don’t see Guenther as an egomaniac in that way, but that’s up for a new coach to decide.
Cleveland Browns
More than anything else, the Cleveland Browns need a stabilizing force to help pull them up from the muck and mire of near 0-16 seasons. There’s one coaching candidate that’s already taken on an endeavor like that before in Philadelphia DC Jim Schwartz.
While Schwartz’s reputation as a head coach may be mixed, he did lift a 0-16 team in Detroit back into relevance and playoff contention. Since then, he’s excelled a coordinator for both Buffalo and Philadelphia. He has a confidence in himself and a clear vision for his system, which happens to suit this Cleveland Browns roster well.
OC
If a QB-needy team hires a defensive-minded head coach like Jim Schwartz, experience at the offensive coordinator position would be crucial. While he’s also getting a lot of flak right now, current Giants head coach Ben McAdoo does have that experience. He was a better offensive coordinator than head coach and could return to the familiar confines of that role here. When hired in Detroit, Schwartz employed a similar strategy with a strong OC turned failed head coach in Scott Linehan.
Another darkhorse contender here could be Schwartz’s staff mate and OC counterpart in Philadelphia Frank Reich; I have a feeling that, if push came to shove, the Eagles would keep QB coach John DeFilippo and let Reich go.
DC
Again, there’s no reason to replace current DC Gregg Williams. Better yet, Jim Schwartz and Gregg Williams come from the same coaching tree, having worked on the same staff back on Jeff Fisher‘s strong Tennessee teams. If they can keep their respective egos in check, then the fit makes sense.
In theory, Schwartz could also bring along his bright DB coach Cory Undlin; however, I would expect the Eagles would promote Undlin to DC if Schwartz left.
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts have so many needs across the board that they can consider any number of candidates. Having Andrew Luck on board (hopefully?) may allow them to recruit big names like Jon Gruden and Stanford coach David Shaw as well.
Personally, I’d love to see them give a chance to a big name among hardcore NFL fans in Dave Toub, currently the special team’s coordinator for Kansas City. Toub’s arguably the best special teams coach of all-time and deserves a chance on a bigger stage. The hope is that GM Chris Ballard (who worked with Toub back in Kansas City) would agree.
OC
The one downside of having an overseer like Dave Toub would be the need for strong coordinators on both sides of the ball. There’s no one with a stronger point of view on offense than Baltimore TE coach Greg Roman. Although he’s gotten criticism from fans during his stints as an OC before, Roman’s consistently established elite running games everywhere he’s been. It’s not a shock that Roman’s come to Baltimore and helped RB Alex Collins run for near 6 yards a carry; Roman’s done that consistently, from Stanford to San Francisco to Buffalo.
And yes, I said Stanford. Roman worked on Jim Harbaugh‘s staff back when Andrew Luck played for the Cardinal. I can’t speak to their working relationship, but in theory, those two smart minds could work together again to engineer an offense that takes some pressure off Luck’s shoulders.
DC
Rather than switch schemes, it’d be easier for the Colts to keep some 3-4 principles in place. For a job like that, former DC/head coach Mike Pettine makes a lot of sense. He may not have excelled as a head coach, but he’s been an elite defensive coordinator for the Jets and then the Bills. While the fact that Pettine hasn’t landed another gig may be a red flag, the same applied for other top coordinators before him like Jim Schwartz and Wade Phillips, both of whom sat out on the shelf for a full year before returning to the sidelines.
New York Giants
This job was the hardest to assign because there are a number of directions you can lean to here. Do you need a QB-mentor to help find and develop the next franchise quarterback after the Eli Manning era ends? Or is “leadership” more important on the heels of Ben McAdoo’s struggles?
I ended up siding with leadership here with Detroit DC Teryl Austin. He’s a charismatic presence who should be a hit in the locker room and with the New York media. In fact, Austin is such a promising head coaching candidate that I wouldn’t be surprised if the Lions squeezed out Jim Caldwell in favor of him.
OC
For a rookie head coach, an experienced coordinator like Hue Jackson would have made sense, but he’s been snapped up by Cincinnati in our world. Instead, Austin and company could turn to now-available Rob Chudzinski of the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts’ fans aren’t too fond of Chud right now, but he’s a seasoned pro who helped coax Andrew Luck’s most efficient season in 2016 and helped Jacoby Brissett acclimate to their offense without much notice this year. He’s also been known to feature tight ends, which fits a Giants’ offense that will be highlighted TE Evan Engram quite a bit moving forward.
DC
Current DC Steve Spagnuolo will be politely dismissed here, because he may be too strong of a personality to mesh with a new defensive-minded head coach. Instead, the team can turn to a rising star like Jerome Henderson, Atlanta’s passing game specialist.
