Some NFL coaches will receive pink slips on Black Monday, and reports started trickling in Sunday night, just hours after the final whistles blew on a few teams’ seasons.
The Cleveland Browns hired head coach Rob Chudzinski before this season, but that didn’t stop them from cutting ties. Chudzinski was fired Sunday night, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported. Chudzinski led the Browns to a 4-12 record, including 10 losses in the final 11 games.
The Vikings beat the NFC North rival Detroit Lions on Sunday, but after a 5-10-1 season, Leslie Frazier reportedly is out as the head coach in Minnesota. Frazier was just 21-32-1 in three-plus seasons with the Vikings, taking them to the playoffs only once in his tenure.
Chudzinski and Frazier aren’t the only coaches already on the way out, though. After a lot of speculation throughout the season, the Redskins are expected to fire head coach Mike Shanahan, according to The Washington Post. He led the Redskins to the second-worst mark in the NFL this season at 3-13, which is Shanahan’s third losing season since taking over in Washington in 2010. He is 24-40 in four seasons with the Redskins, leading them to only one playoff appearance (2012). His relationship with quarterback Robert Griffin III has soured in recent months as well, leading to even further speculation that the coach would be fired.
Rumors swirled that the Detroit Lions were set to part ways with Jim Schwartz after this season if the team didn’t make the playoffs. Considering the Lions were eliminated from the playoffs after a loss last week and finished the season with four straight defeats, it’d be no great surprise to see Schwartz let go. He is just 29-51 in five seasons with the Lions and has taken them to the playoffs only once (2011).
On the lighter side of things, the Jets acknowledged that they intend to keep Rex Ryan after Sunday’s win in Miami, meaning he’ll be back for a sixth season in New York.
Other coaches who could be under the ax Monday morning include Jason Garrett of the Dallas Cowboys, Dennis Allen of the Oakland Raiders, Greg Schiano of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Joe Philbin of the Miami Dolphins.
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