AS THREE first-year coaches prepare their teams to kick off the playoffs this week, six franchises begin the offseason hoping to find the right man for their job.
Four head coaches — Kevin Stefanski (Browns), Jonathan Gannon (Cardinals), Pete Carroll (Raiders) and Raheem Morris (Falcons) — were fired since the regular season wrapped on Sunday. The Tennessee Titans and New York Giants had a head start because they dismissed coaches during the season, and both kept their existing general managers (GMs) in place.
For Joe Schoen, the general manager of a Giants’ franchise with only 22 wins in the past four seasons, there’s a sense of longing in seeing the Jaguars win the AFC South under new coach Liam Coen, and the Bears win the NFC North for first-time head coach Ben Johnson. Along with Patriots coach Mike Vrabel, the pilot behind New England’s worst-to-first flip in the AFC East, decision makers like Schoen have enough traits and characteristics to study before seeking out the “right” candidate.
Of course, all three of those teams are also fortunate to have the right fit at quarterback with top draft picks in Trevor Lawrence (Jaguars), Caleb Williams (Bears) and Drake Maye (Patriots).
The Giants (4-13 in 2025) might be ahead of the curve in Schoen’s estimation, with rookie Jaxson Dart already in the building.
“Caleb Williams and Chicago, what they were able to do,” Schoen said on Monday. “Each of those franchises brought in new head coaches and were able to turn it around rather quickly. Drake Maye is in the MVP race right now. Caleb Williams, we obviously played against him. He had a really good year and playing at a high level. That’s certainly an opportunity that you look at those franchises and how they put it together in a quick turnaround. In an ideal world, yeah, that would be it.”
The Raiders (3-14) have the first overall pick in the draft for the first time since drafting JaMarcus Russell in 2007. Las Vegas is a safe bet to consider quarterbacks given Geno Smith underperformed and is 35 years old, and the Browns and Cardinals are not settled at the position.
The Titans (3-14) hit the ground full stride on Monday with a series of official interview requests from general manager Mike Borgonzi, who used the top pick in the 2025 draft on quarterback Cam Ward last April. Tennessee fired Brian Callahan following a 1-5 start; he was 4-19 overall with the Titans.
“He has a vision, we do see eye to eye,” Ward said of Borgonzi. “He’s a GM that is connected to his players.”
In Arizona, Gannon had a 15-36 record and the Cardinals finished 3-14 in 2025 with Kyler Murray out for the majority of the season due to a foot injury. Murray, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft, has already played for two coaches with the franchise. Whether Murray will get a shot to return to a third coach — given his $19.5 million in guarantees and injury history — is not clear. — Reuters
