As of this posting, 7 NFL teams have let their head coach go; Philadelphia (Andy Reid), Arizona (Ken Whisenhunt), San Diego (Norv Turner), Cleveland (Pat Shurmer), Buffalo (Chan Gailey), Chicago (Lovie Smith), and Kansas City (Romeo Crennel).
Andy Reid and Lovie Smith seem most likely to re-surface immediatly as head coaching candidates in another locale, with Norv Turner seemingly destined to return to Dallas as the offensive co-ordinator.
The following are hunches on who may fill the vacancies created today:
Philadelphia Eagles - The long rumored destination of Oregon Ducks head coach Chip Kelly. No stranger to the northeast (he coached at the University of New Hampshire prior to traveling to Eugene), the Eagles have talent and are the team most poised to make a quick return to the playoffs. If Kelly is given enough say in personnel decisions, I'd say this is the pond that that duck lands in.
Arizona Cardinals - With news that GM Rod Graves and HC Ken Whisenhunt were let go today also came word that all but the TE position coach were let go on the offensive side of the ball. Not overly suprising considering the inept performance of the offense these last few seasons. Ownership did retain DC Ray Horton and the staff under him. It seems likely here that they elevate Ray to Head Coach, and bring in an experienced Offensive Co-ordinator to help facilitate the resurrection of the Cardinals offense. I think this could be where Pat Shurmer lands as an OC.
San Diego Chargers- The chargers will take a look at a few people, Denver OC Mike McCoy, I think you'll hear names like Jon Gruden, and Lovie Smith, the new sentimental choice of Bruce Ariens. But ultimately this is Andy Reid's job to lose. Its not that the Chargers don't have talent, they just never seem to put it together on the field.... sounds alot like Philly doesn't it. But the weather is MUCH nicer.
Cleveland Browns- The Browns are not as bad a job as you would think. They've devoted top draft picks to both sides of the line in recent years, have a good young CB in Joe Haden, and Trent Richardson is an everydown work horse back. Josh Gordon was a find at WR, though he seems to fall into the Mike Wallace/Alvin Harper type player, good for 90 yards on 3 catches. A reliable slot receiver and H-Back/Tight end would help Brendan Weeden alot, that and turning the clock back 6 years. With a new owner and whole new management group coming in the Browns would like to make a splashy move. But since I don't see Bill Cowher ever coaching in Cleveland, and I don't see Nick Saban ready to bolt from Alabama at this time, I think the Browns go with a familar choice, Ken Whisenhunt. He's taken his team to a superbowl, and he's familiar with both the AFC north, and the new owner from their shared time in Pittsburgh. I think this is who is eventually tabbed to lead the Browns, but I don't see this being one of the quicker hires, I think the search drags for a bit before they settle on Whisenhunt.
Buffalo Bills - An underperforming defense in an envirnoment just begging for a ground and pound attack. They've got the lightning half (CJ Spiller) of a Thunder and Lightning attack. I think the two best moves the Bills can make is to sign Steven Jackson and bring in Lovie Smith to run the team. This brings us to .....
Chicago Bears - The Bears are in desperate need of offensive line help. That being said they have talent at all the skill positions and a formidable defense. With some aggressive moves to improve the offensive line and a fresh voice the Bears could quickly become superbowl contenders. But after letting Lovie go, a coach that wasn't being universally ignored, anyone they bring in will have walk in the door with some street credability. Enter Jon Gruden. With a talented but enegmatic quarterback, and a talented roster that started the 2012 season with a 7-1 record, Gruden should be able to step in and lead the Bears to a play off birth in year 1.
Kansas City Chiefs - With Scott Pioli keeping his job as General Manager, but losing some of his power inside the Chiefs' front office this should not be a "Pioli" guy. It'll be interesting to see how eager and/or able they are to re-sign Dwayne Bowe. The hot name this year is Broncos offensive co-ordinator Mike McCoy. Having shown the ability to alter his schemes to fit his personnel (Orton to Tebow to Manning) he could be an intersting choice to bring into a mix of offensive talent that includes Dwayne Bowe, Jon Baldwin, Tony Moeki, Jamaal Charles and Dexter McCluster. Pairing him with a Geno Smith with the #1 pick, the Chiefs will hope to make a quick turnaround the likes of which the Colts, Seahawks, and Redskins have made.
