Who will be the first NFL coach to be fired this season?
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With three winless teams and many others struggling, the NFL has several coaches who appear to be in danger of losing their jobs at any time. Who will be the first to be shown the door?
Writers from around Tribune Co. discuss the topic. Check back throughout the day for more responses and feel free to leave a comment of your own.
Dan Pompei, Chicago Tribune
You would not want to be in Tony Sparano’s shoes these days. Or should we say cement shoes? The Dolphins are 0-5. Their prospects of turning around the season are not good with Matt Moore under center.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross has been jonesing for a high-profile replacement for Sparano since the offseason, when his furtive pursuit of Jim Harbaugh blew up in his face. Ross’ not-so-secret interest in Jon Gruden may have prompted Gruden’s recent contract extension with ESPN.
The Dolphins want to market themselves through a head coach with a high Q rating. Sparano is not that guy. Sparano might not even last until the offseason. It’s possible he will be gone in the coming weeks, with defensive coordinator Mike Nolan replacing him on an interim basis.
Bill Kline, Allentown Morning Call Jack Del Rio has not lost all of his Jacksonville team just yet, but some Jaguars have criticized communication and player substitution. And their offense couldn’t drive 70 yards going against a window-sill draft.
Del Rio has only two playoff seasons in nine years and is 21-33 since 2008, while his old-school game planning is more out of date than the pills in a spinster’s medicine cabinet. This year includes an embarrassing defeat at home to the Bengals, and with losses booked versus Baltimore and Houston the next two weekends, the Jaguars will be 1-7 heading into their bye week -– which should become bye-bye week for Del Rio.
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