Black Rainbow
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I think if you've been a Bears fan for more than 10-15 years, you know the Bears are not getting Brian Daboll. This list is comprehensive...I bet our next coach is on here somewhere towards the middle or bottom of the list.
Top Candidates
Nathaniel Hackett, offensive coordinator, Green Bay Packers
When Hackett quietly interviewed for the Falcons’ job last year, it was a head slap moment for the rest of the league, which had spent years turning over every rock to find smart, offensive coaches but largely ignored one that had been available all along. Hackett, whom we wrote about in much more depth Thursday, has a trajectory includes massive offensive turnarounds at nearly every stop. At Syracuse, he turned a downtrodden program’s offense into one of the nation’s leaders and established quarterback Ryan Nassib as a draft prospect. In Buffalo he helped turn a sub-.500 team into a 9–7 outfit with a respectable offense, despite its lack of firepower. In Jacksonville, he designed an offense for Blake Bortles that finished fifth in points per game and sixth in yards.
While the assumption is that he is the product of a system in Green Bay, it is Hackett’s combined expertise in both the trendy outside zone system and his roots in the West Coast offense (where Aaron Rodgers’s basis of understanding lies) that help the engine go. The Packers’ offense has been particularly dominant since his arrival (Week 1 notwithstanding), and he has the ear of one of the NFL’s most demanding quarterbacks, proving that he can run the gamut between reclamation project and established star.
Brian Daboll, offensive coordinator, Buffalo Bills
Daboll continues to cement his status as an offensive mastermind capable of creating mismatches anywhere on the field. His role in the development of Josh Allen has been overlooked, though the football world got a small taste in his QB acumen after watching current pupil Mitch Trubisky carve up his former team in the preseason. Having an eye for matchups that can transcend scheme is a gift few offensive coaches possess, which makes Daboll’s skill set all the more valuable. Some in coaching circles were surprised to see him miss out on the cycle last year, especially with some obvious fits with the Texans or Chargers.
Todd Bowles, defensive coordinator, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Perhaps the Buccaneers’ locking up Bowles to a three-year deal foreshadows long-term plans for the defensive coordinator to ultimately succeed the 68-year-old Bruce Arians, though every head coaching situation in the NFL is fluid. Bowles’s winning 10 games with a Ryan Fitzpatrick–led Jets team seems all the more impressive in hindsight now that a second regime came in and struggled with a similarly threadbare roster. Bowles still has the only winning season by a Jets head coach over the last decade. It was his mastery in the Super Bowl that placed him firmly back atop the coaching map. Bowles’s vision for a linebacker-centric defense changed schemes around the league and set off a ripple effect that altered plans for the previous two drafts. Having this kind of coach, who has a proven ability to adjust to offensive trends, is sometimes more valuable than an offensive coach simply riding a trend.
Patrick Graham, defensive coordinator, New York Giants
Graham turned down an opportunity to interview for the Jets’ vacancy last year and instead took an extension with the Giants. While some of their statistical numbers looked a tad pedestrian, Graham had a middling unit playing near top-10 football. The Giants were 11th in net yards per passing attempt allowed, despite having, on paper, one of the more dismal sets of coverage linebackers in the league and a secondary that revolved around one very good player in James Bradberry. Should the Giants contend for the division this year, Graham will be at the top of many lists for interviews. The Yale graduate has an impressive résumé, with stops in both New England and Green Bay, as well as a brief stint as the Dolphins’ defensive coordinator in 2019.
Eric Bieniemy, offensive coordinator, Kansas City Chiefs
Bieniemy has become the coaching carousel’s Rorschach test. It all seems to be in the eye of the beholder as to why he’s not an NFL head coach right now. It’s not responsible to sit here and disseminate some anonymous tidbits about how certain interviews may have gone and why that justifies an owner’s decision, but the reality is this: At some point, some team will give him a chance. Until then, he’ll be on the list. Bieniemy is, at the moment, the face of the NFL’s racial hiring disparity. Each time a report emerges about why he may not be a head coach, there are white coaches who seem to get jobs in spite of those same perceived drawbacks. The issue is, and seemingly always will be, ownership’s not reflecting the diverse makeup of the league and its coaches. Regardless, he continues to have the loud and emphatic recommendation of Andy Reid, whose previous loud and emphatic recommendations have resulted in the expedited hiring of other assistants like Matt Nagy and Doug Pederson.
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Raheem Morris, defensive coordinator, Los Angeles Rams
Morris stepped into a difficult situation last year, spelling the popular Dan Quinn, who was fired after an 0–5 start with the Falcons. In that time, the team went 4–7, avoiding a meltdown while ticking off some respectable wins in the process. Atlanta also came within four points of beating the Buccaneers and three points of beating the Chiefs down the stretch. Both of those teams reached the Super Bowl. Morris received his first chance at the NFL early in his career, taking over for Jon Gruden in Tampa. Morris went 3–13, 10–6 and 4–12 before moving to Washington and then Atlanta. He also had a stint as the Falcons’ receivers coach, which, at a time when many Kyle Shanahan assistants are getting poached, seems to be somewhat overlooked.
Now, he’s landed in Los Angeles, the place that launched Staley to head coaching heights. Being in Sean McVay’s orbit has been a boost for talented coaches in the past. What about Morris?
Mike McDaniel, offensive coordinator, San Francisco 49ers
You can follow the path of offensive evolution over the past 10 years, and it’s not hard to see McDaniel quietly in the background, a Where’s Waldo of sorts for some of the most significant leaps the game has taken since the days of Robert Griffin III in Washington. For the previous three years, McDaniel has been the run-game coordinator for Kyle Shanahan’s 49ers, as integral a role as any for Shanahan given that the run game sets up all aspects of their offense. McDaniel is soft spoken but cerebral and could fit with the right team and situation that doesn’t need a kneecap-biter to juice the fan base. With Mike LaFleur in Florham Park coordinating the Jets’ offense, McDaniel will have a chance to bite off a larger chunk of San Francisco’s much-copied offense and stand out. An owner bringing him in for an interview should be prepared for a crash course on the future of offense.
Matt Eberflus, defensive coordinator, Indianapolis Colts
The Texans pursued Eberflus aggressively this offseason, though he was wise to let the situation play out with other candidates. The Colts’ defensive coordinator since 2018, he’s led a somewhat talent-starved defense to a pair of top-10 weighted DVOA seasons. Last year, the Colts were top-10 in points allowed, yards allowed, turnovers caused, first downs allowed, interceptions, rushing yards allowed and rushing yards per attempt, the last two of which had the Colts No. 2 in the league. The presence of DeForest Buckner has allowed Eberflus’s creativity to shine. He’s been instrumental in the development of star inside linebacker Darius Leonard.
Joe Woods, defensive coordinator, Cleveland Browns
As one coaching insider put it, this could be “his time,” assuming Cleveland continues its ascent in the AFC North. Woods has been in the NFL since 2004 and coaching professionally since 1992, with valued internships under the great Monte Kiffin (Buccaneers), Leslie Frazier (Vikings) and Wade Phillips (Broncos). Woods also spent a year with new Jets head coach Robert Saleh, helping coordinate the pass defense of the 49ers’ recent Super Bowl team. Despite a unit riddled with injuries in key spots, the Browns, in Woods’ first season, were a top-10 rushing defense and finished 10th in turnover percentage. With a personnel overhaul this offseason, Woods could enjoy the same benefit as former coaching mate Saleh—a team and defense too good to ignore.
Kellen Moore, offensive coordinator, Dallas Cowboys
Because of Dak Prescott’s injury last year, some of Moore’s forward momentum stalled, though not enough to stop him from interviewing with the Eagles last year. The 33-year-old former Boise State quarterback will be a head coach at some point, though a lot may depend on how the Cowboys fare at a transition point for their roster. Dallas finished first in yards during Moore’s first season as offensive coordinator, and Prescott was the most efficient quarterback in football before his injury last year. There’s no doubt his system brought much-needed change from the somewhat pedestrian Jason Garrett system before it. A young coach recently removed from the game who can handle the rigors of a star quarterback and design a top-flight offense checks a lot of boxes for owners and the search firms that sometimes head up their process. Expect his name to be bandied about quite a bit if Dallas is in the mix this season.
Byron Leftwich, offensive coordinator, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Leftwich was a bit of a forgotten part of Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl run last year, with many incorrectly assigning all the credit to quarterback Tom Brady and “quarterback whisperer” head coach Bruce Arians. The story of that season, though, came down to someone’s ability to combine what Brady was comfortable with, what Arians was comfortable with and what the league’s defenses were susceptible to. That wouldn’t have happened without Leftwich. Bruce Arians was livid that Leftwich didn’t receive any head coaching interviews last year and, like Reid with Eric Bieniemy, has made it clear to those in need of a head coach that Leftwich was instrumental in the process. The former Jaguars quarterback and first-round pick has seen an expedited rise since breaking into the coaching circle as a quarterbacks coach in 2017.
Joe Brady, offensive coordinator, Carolina Panthers
Brady interviewed with a handful of teams last year, likely as an appetizer for a far more active cycle in 2021. He has a difficult but golden opportunity ahead of him this year, to assist in the saving of Sam Darnold. Brady had a stint with noted offensive guru Sean Payton on his record before transforming LSU’s passing game and future first-round pick Joe Burrow in the process. While his stock could ebb with the Panthers’ performance this year, any tangible progress from Darnold should be noted. This may be a bigger overhaul than the lay fan might think. Brady received interest from the Jets, Falcons, Chargers, Eagles and Texans during last year’s cycle.
Josh McDaniels, offensive coordinator, New England Patriots
Here’s my sense of what’s going on with McDaniels: Like a former vice president mulling a run for office, he has an idea of what the entire operation would look like if he chose to go all in. I think McDaniels would know, for example, who he’d like to poach as a defensive coordinator. I also think Bill Belichick’s pivot to Mac Jones shows he has no signs of slowing down. It would not surprise me to see him on the sidelines for at least another four or five years. So, with that, it’s irresponsible not to put McDaniels on this list
Keep an eye out if the 2021 season goes well
Don Martindale, defensive coordinator, Baltimore Ravens
Martindale has been brilliant throughout his time as Baltimore’s defensive coordinator, with the second-, third- and second-ranked defenses in terms of points allowed each year since 2018. He reminds us a bit of Rex Ryan or Mike Zimmer in the fact that, there will be a place for him in the NFL, but it will take time for that market, that roster, that owner and that GM to materialize together. Martindale’s age, 58, shouldn’t be a deterrent given how long current head coaches are remaining effective in the league. He was identified during the Giants’ ’19 head coaching search, which, despite the team’s recent shortcomings at head coach following a string of bad hires, is often looked at as a gold standard in terms of process.
Shane Waldron, offensive coordinator, Seattle Seahawks
Waldron was a quality control coach during the infamous Mike Shanahan Washington years, which has already produced a slew of head coaches and promising coordinators. After three seasons as Sean McVay’s passing-game coordinator, he gets a big opportunity to step out on his own with Russell Wilson as the muse. If Seattle’s offense undergoes a renaissance despite Pete Carroll’s run-first fever dream, Waldron will sky to the top of the list.
Kevin O’Connell, offensive coordinator, Los Angeles Rams
O’Connell is someone whose football intellect has been celebrated since his days as a Patriots and Jets quarterback. Now the sole offensive coordinator for the Rams, he gets the chance to ride a potential Matt Stafford boon.
Shane Steichen, offensive coordinator, Philadelphia Eagles
While Anthony Lynn and Pep Hamilton were rightly credited with the rise of Justin Herbert, Steichen was a bit of a forgotten castoff who landed on Nick Sirianni’s staff in Philadelphia. Like Brady in Carolina or Tim Kelly, the next name on our list, there are obvious challenges from a roster standpoint, but a gigantic opportunity if the quarterback plays above expectation.
Tim Kelly, offensive coordinator, Houston Texans
Had the Texans not taken an incredible, rapid, nosedive, there’s a good chance we could have been talking about Kelly as a head coaching candidate last year. All of that changes now. But … can he salvage something offensively without Deshaun Watson, on a roster that is made to be sold for spare parts?
DeMeco Ryans, defensive coordinator, San Francisco 49ers
Ryans will skyrocket through the coaching ranks and should dazzle during the interview process this offseason. While much has been made about the sometimes-laughable rise of recently retired NFL quarterbacks through the coaching ranks, Ryans, now 37, likely won’t make it to age 40 before getting some serious looks as a head coach, or getting a job outright. The former linebacker for the Texans and Eagles has been with the 49ers since 2017, rising from the quality control room to defensive coordinator, where he’s taken over for new Jets head coach Robert Saleh.
Jerod Mayo, linebackers coach (possible co-defensive coordinator), New England Patriots
Mayo factors prominently into the New England coaching power structure behind Bill Belichick and, like any highly thought of defensive coordinator from that tree, should begin to see his profile rise. Mayo already interviewed for the Eagles’ head coach vacancy and, following a year in which the Patriots should feast on the division’s corral of substandard quarterbacking beyond Josh Allen, will get plenty of attention this winter.