8 NFL Coaches On The Hot Seat Heading Into The 2025 Season

Most NFL teams don’t have much patience for mediocrity, and there are plenty of people waiting in the wings to replace a head coach who’s failed to live up to expectations. Six franchises are heading into the 2025 campaign with a new skipper, and there are more than a few who could end up replacing the ones currently at the helm by the time the season wraps up.

These NFL coaches are heading into the 2025 season sitting firmly on the hot seat

The average NFL coach only spends three or four seasons with the same team before they find themselves looking for a new gig, and if you go more than a couple of years with a losing record or without a playoff appearance, you’re probably going to want to start working on your résumé.

Most of the coaches on this list have been with their current team for at least a few years, but it’s hard to believe all of them will still have that job by the time the season ends based on how things are trending.

Brian Daboll, Giants

I’m not listing these in any particular order, but if I were, Brian Daboll would probably be at the top.

Daboll inherited a team that had gone 4-13 during Joe Judge’s second and final season as head coach, and he rightfully won Coach of the Year during his first season in 2022 after taking a squad that was led by Daniel Jones to the divisional round.

However, New York has posted a 9-25 record since then, and it seemed like he was a top candidate to get canned after they went 3-14 last year. There was plenty of blame to go around (the front office let Saquon Barkley walk, and Jones was eventually benched due to his atrocious play), but Daboll will be an easy scapegoat if Russell Wilson can’t help them turn things around.

Mike McDaniel, Dolphins

It’s kind of wild to see Mike McDaniel on the hot seat when you consider it looked like the team was trending in the right direction after he kicked off his time in Miami with back-to-back playoff appearances while ending a five-year postseason drought during his inaugural season in 2022.

However, both of those were one-and-done runs, and the Dolphins ended up on the outside looking in after going 8-9 in 2024. There are plenty of questions surrounding both Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill, and if Miami isn’t able to right the ship this year, it wouldn’t be shocking to see the franchise head in a new direction.

Zac Taylor, Bengals

Zac Taylor is another name most people probably wouldn’t have guessed would show up on a list like this based on how the Bengals were looking a couple of years ago, but the clock is ticking for the man who’s heading into his seventh season in Cincinnati.

Taylor went 6-25 during his first two seasons before the Bengals staged a fairly shocking run to Super Bowl LVI on the back of Joe Burrow. They were unable to attempt to avenge that loss after losing in the AFC Championship Game the following year, but it was still the most successful two-year run in the history of a franchise that played its first season in 1968.

However, the Bengals have missed the playoffs two years in a row following back-to-back 9-8 campaigns, and if they’re not able to take advantage of their current window, it seems like the powers that be may try to find another coach who’s more capable.

Kevin Stefanski, Browns

The Browns are known for the revolving door of quarterbacks who’ve started for the franchise over the past few decades, but they’ve also had 12 different head coaches since the start of the new millennium.

None of them has hung around longer than Kevin Stefanski, who earned Coach of the Year honors two times in his first four seasons with 11-win showings that resulted in a playoff appearance. However, Cleveland cratered with a 3-14 record last year, and if Joe Flacco can’t perform at the same level he did when he swooped in to save the season in 2023, someone else could end up taking the reins.

Shane Steichen, Colts

As was the case with Daboll and Stefanski, Shane Steichen has had to grapple with a fairly unenviable quarterback situation, and it hasn’t really gotten much better when you consider he’s decided to put his faith in Daniel Jones, who will be starting over Anthony Richardson to start the season.

Steichen has been the textbook definition of average with a 17-17 record during the two years he’s spent in Indianapolis, and while I do think his seat is a bit cooler than some of the other guys on this list, any major regression could be more than enough to justify the decision to end his tenure after his thrid.

Jonathan Gannon, Cardinals

Jonathan Gannon, on the other hand, has been the definition of Not Great after going 12-22 with the Cardinals during his first two seasons.

However, he did double the number of wins he posted during his first season last year after inheriting a very underwhelming roster in 2023. If he can keep that trend going, the Cardinals would make the playoffs for the first time since 2021.

That’s obviously a big “ff,” and while I think he hangs onto his job if he can at least match the eight victories they had last season, there could be some soul-searching in Arizona if they take a step back.

Dave Canales, Panthers

The last couple of guys on this list are essentially honorable mentions, as I’d be fairly surprised to see them kicked to the curb unless either of these teams becomes the first one to post an 0-17 record (or something similarly disastrous).

Dave Canales only has a single season with Carolina under his belt, and the Panthers got off to a 1-7 start before rebounding a bit to finish at 5-12.

He also wasn’t the head coach when the team decided to take Bryce Young with the first overall pick instead of C.J. Stroud, and I think it’s fair to suggest he’ll be able to pin plenty of the blame on the QB who has severely underwhelmed during his first two seasons if he continues to do the same during his third.

Mike Tomlin

Mike Tomlin is currently the longest-tenured coach in the NFL, as he’ll be kicking off his 19th season with the team he’s led to the playoffs on 12 occasions since taking over in 2007.

The Steelers head into 2025 coming off back-to-back postseason appearances, but I think most NFL fans are aware they’ve failed to get past the first round the past five times they’ve qualified for the playoffs. You can do much, much worse than Tomlin, but if this season ends with another one-and-done, Pittsburgh might want to at least explore its options to see if there’s someone else who might get them over the hump.