Nfl Teams That Fired Their Head Coach This Year

Let me tell you about my buddy Dave. Every January, he buys a single, sad-looking jersey from the team that just fired its coach. He frames it. Last year it was a tattered Raiders jersey. The year before, a slightly burnt Panthers one. He calls it his “Wall of Accountability.”

It’s a weird tradition, sure. But it captures the exact vibe of this NFL season: the ownership suite got out the guillotine early and often. By midseason, we weren’t just talking about bad playcalling; we were talking about who’s next on Dave’s wall.

The Two Big Heads That Rolled First

Let’s start with the splashiest cuts. Matt Eberflus of the Bears got the axe after a Thanksgiving Day loss so ugly it made the turkey look good. He was the first Bears coach fired midseason in franchise history. (You know it’s bad when even the Chicago weather feels sorry for you.)

Then there’s Robert Saleh—fired by the Jets after just five games. The supposed “culture changer” got shown the door while his defense was still top-five. But the locker room was a mess, and owner Woody Johnson wanted a scapegoat. Classic Jets, right? They’re like that friend who always blames the Wi-Fi for their own bad decisions.

The Surprise Axe (And the “Duh” Axe)

Now, Dennis Allen of the Saints. This one felt like watching a slow-motion car crash. He survived the off-season, then stumbled to a 2-7 start. The Saints finally pulled the plug after a loss to—wait for it—the Panthers. The Panthers! If you lose to that team, you deserve a cardboard box for your office belongings.

But the Antonio Pierce firing in Las Vegas? That was pure theater. The Raiders hired him to be a “player’s coach.” Then the players stopped playing, his press conferences got weird, and owner Mark Davis decided to start over again. Again. That’s the sixth coach they’ve burnt through since 2020. At this point, the Raider brand is just a carousel of disappointment with silver face paint.

10 NFL Teams Have Officially Fired Their Head Coaches - The Spun

The “Wait, Really?” Category

I have to mention the Doug Pederson situation in Jacksonville. Technically, he wasn’t fired midseason (he resigned after the last game). But everyone knows the Jaguars forced him out. After a 4-13 season, the locker room was a warzone. Trevor Lawrence looked lost. And Pederson—the guy who won a Super Bowl with the Eagles—looked like a man watching his own funeral from the sideline. It was brutal to watch.

Oh, and the Nick Sirianni scenario in Philly? Sort of counts. He wasn’t fired, but after the Eagles collapsed in 2023, everyone expected him to be. Instead, they kept him, he turned the locker room into a reality show, and now he’s on the hottest seat in the league. It’s like your boss saying, “We believe in you,” then installing a hidden camera in your cubicle.

The Real Lesson (And the One Stat That Matters)

Here’s what I’ve noticed: eight teams fired their head coach this calendar year. That’s a quarter of the league. Let that sink in. That’s more turnover than a bakery. And every single owner promised the new hire “patience and stability.” You know what happens next? They get impatient. It’s the NFL’s version of New Year’s resolutions.

But here’s the irony most fans miss. You look at the teams that kept their coach—like Kansas City or San Francisco—and they didn’t win because of the coach. They won because the quarterback and front office weren’t a dumpster fire. Firing a coach is often just theater. It’s the owner yelling, “Look! I did something!” while the actual problem—bad drafting, a weak QB, or meddling ownership—stays hidden under a rug.

8 NFL Head Coaches Have Now Been Fired - Men's Journal

What Happens to These Guys Now?

The market for fired head coaches is weird. Some, like Bill Belichick (left on his own terms) and Pete Carroll (pushed out), are considered “legends” even when fired. But the guys from this year? Eberflus will probably be a defensive coordinator within two years. Saleh is already rumored to be a top candidate for defensive jobs. Allen might become a defensive guru somewhere, pretending the Saints mess never happened. It’s the circular firing squad of NFL coaching—everyone gets a second chance.

Meanwhile, the new guys—like Jim Harbaugh in LA or Dan Quinn in Washington—are under a microscope before they’ve even held a single padded practice. You want pressure? Try inheriting a roster that went 3-14 while the owner counts the money you make from selling ugly jerseys.

A Final, Possibly Pointless Thought

I called Dave yesterday. He’s already ordered a custom frame for this year’s Raiders jersey (again) and a Jets one. He’s starting a second wall. It’s morbid, but it’s honest. Because in this league, if you think you’re safe, you’re just one bad quarterback sneak away from your own “Thank You For Your Service” tweet.

So raise a glass to the fallen. To Matt, Robert, Dennis, and Antonio. They took the job, they tried their best, and they got fired on a Tuesday morning in October because the owner couldn’t sleep. Next year, there will be eight more names on Dave’s wall. And you know what? We’ll watch again. Because that’s what we do. We love the chaos. We just pretend we don’t.