Now that the Tennessee Titans have become the first team to fire their head coach this season, I thought I’d take a look at some other coaches on the hot seat. Listed in order of most likely to be out of a job come January:

White Hot

• Mike McDaniel, Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins are a mess. They have issues on both sides of the ball and in the locker room. They were not even competitive against the Cleveland Browns, not exactly a juggernaut. McDaniel’s seat is nuclear hot. I wouldn’t be shocked if he’s gone before Thanksgiving. Side Note- I think Miami will be breaking in a new coach and quarterback in 2026.

• Jonathan Gannon, Arizona Cardinals: When the Cardinals organization imposed a fine on Gannon for his altercation with running back Emari Demercado on the sideline during the game against the Tennessee Titans, Gannon’s seat became hot. With each mounting loss, the seat gets hotter. To be honest, Gannon is an example of a guy who probably rushed into being a head coach without fully looking into the situation he was getting into. The Cardinals, and Gannon, are tied to Kyler Murray and, sadly, that was never going to work. Murray has never shown a consistent ability to be a top tier quarterback and the Cardinals investment in him had hamstrung them in other areas. The offense has actually looked better without him the last two weeks. Gannon’s best hope to make it through the season may be to stick with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback and maybe, just maybe, they win a game or two along the way.

Smoldering

• Brian Daboll, New York Giants: Not only do I think Daboll is safe for the rest of this season, I think there’s a chance he returns in 2026. The reason? Jaxson Dart. Dart was Daboll’s hand picked quarterback and he’s looked the part. If he continues to grow, Daboll could be retained. BUT… Meltdowns like Sunday’s against Denver don’t help his cause. Sure, coaches aren’t making the plays on the field, it was the players that made the mistakes that allowed that improbable comeback, but Daboll made questionable decisions. He should never have put Dart in the position to throw that critical interception. There is such a fine line in this sport. Had the Giants won that game that would have been two big time upsets in a row and Daboll wouldn’t even be on this list, but here we are.

• Kevin Stefanski, Cleveland Browns: Personally, I think Cleveland would be stupid to move on from a two time coach of the year, but the Browns have a habit of making stupid decisions. Cleveland’s troubles are a direct result of the stupid decision to jettison Baker Mayfield in favor of Deshaun Watson, and give Watson an enormous contract, fully guaranteed, that he’s come nowhere close to living up to and Cleveland has no way to get out of. Stefanski could end up being the fall guy, deserved or not. He’d be a top candidate for any opening if he is let go.

Waiting on a Spark

• Zac Taylor, Cincinnati Bengals: Joe Burrow’s injury may have given Taylor a pass on this season, especially if he can keep the Bengals in contention until Burrow’s return. However, there’s a couple scenarios that could ignite the hot seat. 1) If the Bengals completely fall out of contention, even after acquiring Joe Flacco, perhaps Cincinnati’s front office will see it a justification for moving on from a coach who seems to be squandering some world class offensive talent in their prime. 2) Even worse would be keeping them in contention yet still falling short upon Burrow’s return. You have to wonder if the front office is not just a little frustrated with not living up to expectations.

• Sean McDermott, Buffalo Bills: Don’t get me wrong, I find this to be highly unlikely. I think the Bills will eventually win the AFC East and make a deep playoff run, but Buffalo’s last two games opens the possibility. The Bills are vulnerable, especially defensively, and that is McDermott’s specialty. If Buffalo should stumble down the stretch and miss the playoffs, I think the axe could fall. The inability to get over the hump in the postseason and wasting some prime Josh Allen years could weigh in as well.

• Demeco Ryans: I’m listing Ryans simply because Houston has a history of making rash coaching decisions. Ryans has made the playoffs every year he’s been head coach, but they have an uphill climb to get there this season. The regression of CJ Stroud and stagnation of the offense may be all the justification the Texans’ ownership would need.

Short Leash

• Aaron Glenn, New York Jets: I never thought we’d get here, but the Jets are an absolute embarrassment this season. They are undisciplined and make way too many mental mistakes. That’s coaching, and they’ve gotten worse as the season has progressed. Maybe Glenn will be able to scapegoat Justin Fields and not having his quarterback, but the problems are deeper. The Jets franchise has proven to be impatient in the past, so a one and done for Glenn isn’t out of the question.

• Brian Schottenheimer, Dallas Cowboys: Jerry Jones certainly does things his own way, and he’s proven to be impulsive and impatient before. Schottenheimer was a surprise hire and he’s been decent. The Cowboys’ issues have been defensive, not Schottenheimer’s forte, and he had nothing to do with trading away their best defensive player. Still, it wouldn’t surprise me if Jones moves on if Dallas misses the playoffs.

• Pete Carroll, Las Vegas Raiders: Pete Carroll’s career resume should earn him a longer leash, but this is the Raiders. Whether in Vegas, Oakland or Los Angeles, the Raiders have a long history of quickly moving on from head coaches. Make no mistake, the Raiders are very bad and much worse than many expected. It wouldn’t be a total shock to see Carroll gone after one season.

No Heat, but…

• Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers: Let me be clear, Tomlin won’t get fired unless Pittsburgh doesn’t win another game this season. However, I think a mutual decision to part ways is certainly in the cards if Tomlin can’t lead Pittsburgh to at least the second round of the playoffs.

• John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens: Even if Baltimore’s season continues on its downward spiral, there is no way Harbaugh would get fired. But, maybe he’d get moved up to the front office. Some kind of mutual agreement type thing. Highly unlikely, nearly impossible in my mind.