For NFL playoff teams, the start of a new calendar year represents a continuation of a marathon push for a Super Bowl title. For those that didn’t qualify for the postseason, January and February often signify a mad scramble to reconfigure coaching staffs.
This winter’s NFL coaching carousel defied all expectations, as what many thought would be a relatively muted period for change ended up being one defined by upheaval at every turn. In all, 10 teams ended up changing leadership at head coach, with the last vacancy officially filled when Klint Kubiak confirmed after the Seattle Seahawks’ Super Bowl 60 win that he would be taking the Las Vegas Raiders’ top job.
There’s still additional fallout to come from remaining coordinator and positional assistant hires, but here are the biggest winners and losers of this year’s coaching moves so far:
Winners
New York Giants
When the Giants fired Brian Daboll in early November, there didn’t appear to be a candidate for whom it would be worth rushing to the front of the line. Maybe Jeff Hafley or Lou Anarumo would make sense, given their local ties, but neither one seemed particularly well-suited to take over a franchise building itself around Jaxson Dart. Then, John Harbaugh emerged as one of the most in-demand established entities on the open market in years.
At the very least, Harbaugh should be able to install some baseline competence for an organization that already has a good number of building blocks in place. Outside of a 2022 playoff appearance that quickly proved to be an aberration, the Giants have done very nearly a decade without a dependable foundation, let alone any discernible form of progress. Most of all, though, it had to feel good for an organization that hasn’t been able to shake its standing as an also-ran to actually be picked by a top-tier head coach.
Baltimore Ravens
Might this be the rare coaching split that works out for both sides? While Harbaugh is being embraced in New York, Baltimore looks fully ready to take on a new chapter with Jesse Minter, who was the most highly sought-after candidate of all the first-time coaches.
Minter is bound to be unfairly measured against Mike Macdonald, who spent 2022-23 as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator before becoming head coach of the Seahawks and leading the organization to its second Super Bowl victory. While his departure and ascension in Seattle surely amplified some remorse for Baltimore’s fan base, the focus should be on the bright defensive mind the organization currently has rather than the one who went elsewhere. Minter has drawn rave reviews for his schematic prowess as well as his communication skills, and he should even out a Ravens defense prone to volatility. He’s also compiling an impressive staff, with former Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver taking on the same role for the organization for which he played. Installing 29-year-old offensive coordinator Declan Doyle as the person responsible for helming a Lamar Jackson-led attack does come with a good deal of risk, but the Sean Payton protege could give the unit considerable upside.
The LaFleur family
Who’s got it better than the Harbaughs? Possibly only the LaFleurs, the NFL’s newest brotherly pairing in the head-coaching ranks. Matt not only managed to hang onto his position leading the Green Bay Packers despite a late-season unraveling, but he also landed a multiyear contract extension. Meanwhile, young brother Mike landed his first head-coaching gig leading the Arizona Cardinals, filling the league’s last remaining vacancy once Kubiak unofficially accepted the Las Vegas gig. The two teams aren’t set to meet in 2026, so a sibling rivalry grudge match will have to wait at least another year … unless Mike pulls off a Coach of the Year-caliber feat and sets up a postseason showdown.
Mike McCarthy
Getting a second NFL head-coaching position is far from a guarantee for those who reach the pinnacle of their profession. Getting a third is almost impossibly rare. Yet here’s McCarthy, again taking the reins to one of the league’s most storied franchises in the Pittsburgh Steelers after previously guiding the Packers and Dallas Cowboys.
It’s fair to wonder whether the 62-year-old is the proper figure to lead Pittsburgh out of the Mike Tomlin era, with the organization intent on clinging on to whatever competitive fibers remain. But there’s no doubt that this might have been it for McCarthy, who sat out last year and was not in the running for any other jobs after the Giants and Tennessee Titans made their hires. Still, this move was about more than power or status for the Pittsburgh native, who became emotional at his introductory news conference when talking about all that had led him to this return home. Maybe McCarthy can defy expectations similarly to how he did in Dallas, where he compiled three consecutive 12-win seasons. Regardless of what happens from here, however, McCarthy must consider himself a winner merely by arriving at this point.
Tom Brady
Losing unquestionably exasperated Brady, who remains the NFL’s modern-day standard-bearer for greatness. But in his first full season as a minority owner of the Raiders, Brady was subjected to levels of incompetence that the seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback had only seen from a handful of opposing sidelines throughout his career.
Can Kubiak be Brady’s Kyle Shanahan? Like the San Francisco 49ers coach, Kubiak has established himself as an upper-echelon play-caller after coming from a storied football family. The Raiders also had to mirror their former Bay Area counterparts in waiting for Kubiak’s hire until after the Super Bowl. Landing him seems like a significant milestone for a franchise that’s been stuck in perpetual relaunch mode since the Jon Gruden debacle. There’s a good amount of work to be done before Las Vegas can even reach a level of respectability that’s been absent for years. Yet with Kubiak in the fold and a partnership with Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza waiting in the wings, Brady shouldn’t have to shuffle along with the same level of hopelessness that dogged the franchise throughout last fall.
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Cam Ward
The No. 1 pick last April became the latest victim of organizational misalignment when he was paired with coach Brian Callahan, who was fired 10 games into his second season with the Titans. Now, the quarterback should have a far more auspicious setup entering Year 2 under Robert Saleh.
Many expected the Titans to center Ward’s development in their search. Though they prioritized experience and overall vision ahead of play-calling ability, the team still afforded the signal-caller something that had been absent in his initial NFL acclimation: stability. As a rookie, Ward often reverted to his devil-may-care habits to compensate for a team that didn’t prop him up in any facet. That should change considerably under Saleh, who is sure to build out a formidable pass rush and a defense that will deter shootouts. The hiring of Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator should also allow Ward to indulge his aggressive tendencies without tilting overboard, as the play-caller pushed Josh Allen and Jaxson Dart to embrace their identities as dynamic playmakers.
Bijan Robinson
Raheem Morris, Robinson’s former coach, repeatedly called him ‘the best player in football.’ The All-Pro running back’s new coach with the Atlanta Falcons could help that become a more widely shared sentiment. Kevin Stefanski’s final few years with the Cleveland Browns obscured how adept he is at crafting a run game, but his wide-zone scheme should equip Robinson with ample opportunities to reel off the explosive gains that the ball carrier has been seeking to take his game to the next level. With the outlook behind center still shaky for Atlanta, Robinson should remain the centerpiece of the offense yet still be afforded a wider variety of looks with the ball in his hands, even after leading the NFL in yards from scrimmage with 2,298.
Mike McDaniel
After the stretch run of his time with the Dolphins provided no real path forward, McDaniel learned a vital lesson for all second-chance coaching hopefuls: Sometimes it’s better to wait for a better opportunity to arise. McDaniel bowed out of consideration for several top jobs to take the Chargers’ coordinator position, taking the step toward what could be a much more desirable landing spot in 2027.
Beyond the mere entertainment factor at play, McDaniel pairing up with Jim Harbaugh should prove immediately fruitful. That seems especially likely for Justin Herbert, who should be afforded many more easy looks than he was in a 2025 season in which he led the league in pressure rate (43.3%), according to Next Gen Stats. And so long as the offensive line isn’t waylaid by a comparably calamitous run of injuries as it suffered last year, a more dynamic rushing attack should surge to new heights. With a little distance from the Dolphins’ dysfunction, too, McDaniel may see his appeal as a coaching candidate tick upward.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Though his maiden voyage as an NFL head coach was overshadowed by the debuts of Ben Johnson in Chicago and Mike Vrabel in New England, Liam Coen still struck it big in Jacksonville with a nine-win improvement. A staff that achieves that kind of turnaround typically would be raided by less successful organizations, and a few sniffed around offensive coordinator Grant Udinski and defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile. Yet with both returning, the Jaguars will enter 2026 as one of just eight teams not to have a change at head coach or either coordinator spot. That continuity could prove vital as Jacksonville searches for a way to push to the front of an AFC contending class that currently lacks any true heavyweights.
Harold Fannin Jr.
Todd Monken’s hire sparked some skepticism from Browns fans distressed not only with the endpoint of the team’s search but also a process that saw at least three candidates withdraw from consideration. Regardless of how things go from a macro perspective, Monken’s arrival ensures that Fannin’s stock should only surge even higher after a stellar rookie season for the third-round pick. In Monken’s three-year tenure as the Ravens’ play-caller, Baltimore led the NFL in tight end touchdowns with 38. Fannin has already demonstrated extensive versatility as a receiver, a trait that Monken is sure to prize as he takes over an offense with few dependable pieces.
Losers
Cleveland Browns
Leave it to Cleveland to somehow stumble even in an attempt to wipe the slate clean. Jim Schwartz loomed over the team’s search as a desired holdover, but the defensive coordinator didn’t entertain sticking things out with the new regime after losing out to Monken for the top job. Now the Browns will be attempting to run his system while scouring an already settled landscape for someone to direct it. Monken seemed to downplay Schwartz’s impact a good deal prior to the coach’s resignation, saying, ‘When I was preparing for the Cleveland Browns, I wasn’t trying to chip Jim Schwartz. I was chipping Myles Garrett.’ This unit, however, is far from a perpetual motion machine, and there’s a good chance for substantial regression after the group allowed the fourth-fewest points of any team last season.
As for Monken, maybe his adaptable approach and play-calling acumen will promote actual progress for a franchise that has been rudderless offensively for the last two years. But the Browns are certainly going out on a limb in expecting a 60-year-old first-time coach to have the staying power necessary to pull off this turnaround. And while Cleveland brass praised Monken for his ‘direct, demanding, and detail-oriented leadership style,’ it’s easy to see how that same blunt approach could become a point of contention if things don’t coalesce quickly.
New York Jets
How does a team end up in this section without firing its head coach? Start by parting ways with the offensive coordinator a full three weeks after Black Monday. While replacing Tanner Engstrand is a fully justifiable move for Aaron Glenn, it made no sense to arrive at the decision a good deal after many of the top available replacement options had been accounted for. That left Gang Green to settle for 64-year-old former Indianapolis Colts and Carolina Panthers head coach Frank Reich, who couldn’t get things in order in the latter spot the last time he was entrusted with getting an offense off the ground floor.
That wasn’t the only problem area for the Jets, who also fired eight other assistant coaches from Glenn’s handpicked inaugural staff. Rather than bring on an experienced hand to oversee the severely undermanned defense, Glenn opted to take on play-calling duties and hire first-time defensive coordinator Brian Duker. There’s nothing from his disastrous debut season that would suggest that adding more to Glenn’s plate as head coach is a palatable idea. If the Jets don’t show some signs of progress early in 2026, many might wonder why the team kept enough faith in this regime to avoid the type of one-and-done reset that helped set the Patriots straight.
Sean McDermott
In a cycle where almost every possible firing materialized, McDermott’s dismissal following a narrow AFC divisional-round playoff game loss still feels a bit surreal. Yes, Buffalo losing its perch atop the division to the Patriots was dispiriting, as was the inability to take advantage of a postseason field without Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. But McDermott managed to take the Bills to the playoffs eight times in nine seasons despite being severely hamstrung in key areas of the roster. Ultimately, however, owner Terry Pegula sided with Brandon Beane in determining a path forward, promoting the general manager to president of football operations before replacing McDermott with offensive coordinator Joe Brady.
Jettisoned so late in the search process for other teams, McDermott never had much of a chance to find a foothold with an immediate landing spot. Instead, he’ll take off 2026 and figure to be the most proven candidate on the open market next January. By then, other franchises might come to covet a track record that was insufficient in Buffalo.
Nick Sirianni
At first, it seemed as though the Philadelphia Eagles coach seemingly averted a full-on staff crisis with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio staving off retirement – at least for now. Then offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland – a legitimate titan in the assistant coaching ranks – announced he would not be returning to the organization in 2026. With that departure, Sirianni looks to be on even shakier ground than when the offseason first opened. Maybe 33-year-old offensive coordinator Sean Mannion will prove to be a quick study as a first-time play-caller. But Philadelphia needed a much sunnier outlook to put its failed Super Bowl repeat bid to bed, and it doesn’t seem like the storm clouds are dissipating any time soon if this trajectory holds.
Diversity in hiring
Of the 10 head-coaching openings, only one was filled by a minority candidate: Saleh, who is of Lebanese descent. The offensive coordinator ranks haven’t been much kinder, with Bieniemy and McDaniel – who is biracial – being the lone exceptions. With the likes of Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph and Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores again being denied the second chances that have come more easily for many of their peers, this was an especially discouraging development in a cycle that once seemed as though it might be more open than recent ones. Said the Fritz Pollard Alliance in response: ‘Progress is possible when intention is matched with accountability.’ Seems as though there’s significant work to be done on at least one of those fronts in the NFL’s ownership ranks.
Dan Quinn
After the Washington Commanders went all-in last offseason in an attempt to capitalize on their surprising NFC championship game run, it was no surprise that the organization responded to its deflating follow-up by making changes. Discordant visions for the offense precipitated the split with coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr.’s dismissal seemed bound to happen after Quinn stripped him of play-calling duties during the season. Yet while other organizations turned to steadier hands, Washington is counting on a pair of upstarts to pull the franchise out of the muck.
New offensive coordinator David Blough jumped two rungs in being granted the position after having only served as assistant quarterbacks coach for two seasons. While he’s a familiar and trusted voice for Jayden Daniels, entrusting him with at least a critical third season for the former Offensive Rookie of the Year is a massive leap of faith. The gamble on the other side of the ball isn’t quite as large, with the highly regarded Daronte Jones aligning with Quinn in having a heavy emphasis on takeaways following his time under Flores in Minnesota. Still, given Washington’s rampant personnel deficiencies throughout the unit, this is a considerable ask for someone whose lone experience as a defensive coordinator was at LSU in 2021. If the Commanders are to reassert themselves as a legitimate contender in the NFC, Quinn might have to carry a disproportionate load for a relatively inexperienced staff.
Michael Penix Jr.
Maybe Stefanski can help stabilize things for the Falcons quarterback, whose first two seasons have been defined by volatility. Still, an offensive approach that relies on being under center and attacking the middle of the field clashes with Penix’s predilection for operating from the shotgun and working the sidelines. Atlanta’s systemic overhaul of its football operations suggests there’s little buy-in for the existing setup, and new president of football operations Matt Ryan stopped short of committing to Penix serving as the starter for the 2026 season. The surprise No. 8 pick in 2024 should get the chance to prove himself as he works his way back from yet another torn anterior cruciate ligament – the third of his career dating back to college – but patience is probably at a premium for an organization desperate to end its postseason drought.
