It was a rough 12 hours or so for a handful of coaches across the NFL.
With the Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns already in the midst of their searches for new head coaches, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets turned Black Monday into Black Sunday, cutting ties with their respective coaches just hours after the season ended.
Those teams were joined by the Miami Dolphins, Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals, as all of those teams also decided to go in a different direction as the offseason began Monday.
With the coaching carousel now in motion, get caught up below on all the latest news and rumors from a wild day in the NFL.
2:04 p.m.: The Denver Broncos might be doing some big-game hunting.
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio wrote the following Monday afternoon:
“The chatter in league circles regarding Denver’s future continues to be that G.M. John Elway would like to find a way to hire Ravens coach John Harbaugh or, failing that, a path to returning Mike Shanahan to the franchise.”
1:45 p.m.: Adam Gase is going to be a very popular man.
11:40 a.m.: A little more on the talk of Adam Gase and the Browns:
10:48 a.m.: After firmly saying he’d only consider the Browns’ job, Bruce Arians apparently is open to Tampa Bay, too.
10:40 a.m.: The feeling is that now-fired Dolphins head coach Adam Gase won’t have to wait long before getting another job. Apparently.
10:35 a.m.: The Bucs apparently have no interest in doing something new and innovative.
10:09 a.m.: It’s going to be a busy week for Patriots de-facto defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
10:01 a.m.: This one isn’t very surprising, but it’s taken long enough: Marvin Lewis reportedly is out in Cincinnati.
9:58 a.m.: The Dolphins also are in the market for a new head coach, as Adam Gase is out.
9:50 a.m.: And the axes are starting to fall across the NFL.
9:13 a.m.: Gregg Williams and Freddie Kitchens each did a tremendous job for the Browns after the team fired Hue Jackson midseason, and each will be rewarded for their efforts with an interview for the club’s head coaching opening.
9:09 a.m.: It sounds like there will be an opening in the desert, as Steve Wilks’ tenure will last just one season, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.
8:33 a.m.: Everything fell right for the Minnesota Vikings this season and despite high expectations entering the season, they couldn’t make the playoffs. But it doesn’t sound like the face-plant will cost Mike Zimmer his job.
8:30 a.m.: The Raiders obviously aren’t making a coaching change after the first of a 10-year contract for Jon Gruden, but after firing general manager Reggie McKenzie, the Raiders reportedly are hiring another household name to take that job.
7:55 a.m.: The New England Patriots earned themselves a bye week with a win Sunday, but the week off will be productive in more ways than one for at least a pair of Patriots assistant coaches.
Not only will they get an extra week to prepare for the divisional round, the Patriots’ two coordinators — Josh McDaniels and Brian Flores — might also spend part of the week interviewing for head coach openings.
The Green Bay Packers, according to The Boston Globe’s Jim McBride, have requested permission to interview both McDaniels and Flores.
The Browns, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, also requested to interview Flores.
7:45 a.m.: Some teams across the league moved swiftly upon the end of the season, wasting little time in making moves.
The New York Jets on Sunday night fired head coach Todd Bowles. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers did the same with Dirk Koetter. Interestingly, however, the Jacksonville Jaguars announced Doug Marrone’s job was safe, despite their free fall one year after reaching the AFC Championship Game.
So, for those keeping score, here are the open coaching jobs as it stands right now.
New York Jets
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Green Bay Packers
Cleveland Browns
That list is expected to grow, too.
7:40 a.m. ET: The futures of a handful of NFL teams could change Monday morning — in addition to the ones that already have.
The regular season is behind us, leaving a lot of tough decisions for teams across the league who weren’t lucky (or good) enough to be moving onto the playoffs.
The Monday after the season ends, harshly nicknamed “Black Monday,” typically signals the end of head-coaching tenures, and this year figures to be no different, with as many as six or seven jobs opening up as the offseason begins.
Not only that, we’re already starting to learn which assistants or college coaches teams with vacancies are targeting.
It figures to be a busy day filled with news across the league, so check back here for all the latest rumors and news.
