Is it getting toasty in here? No, that’s not a heat wave you’re feeling (unless you’re in Seattle, where it’s been over 100 degrees for the past week). Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports has compiled a list of nine NFL coaches thought to be on the “hot seat” including one name you might not expect. Coming off their first winning season since 2016, you wouldn’t think the Dolphins would be particularly eager to make a coaching change. And while there’s something to be said for continuity, the embattled Dolphins have long been an organization that flies by the seat of its pants, swapping out coaches as routinely as waiting-room magazines.
Would a lackluster 2021 cost Brian Flores his job? Not necessarily, though that possibility does exist, says La Canfora. That uncertainty has much to do with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, whose underwhelming debut season in 2020 has many wondering if Miami made a mistake picking him fifth overall (one slot ahead of Rookie of the Year Justin Herbert) in last year’s draft. “Whether or not Tua becomes a thing or not will have ramifications for those involved in selecting him,” warned La Canfora. “There are a lot of rumblings around the industry about all not being well in Miami (which has pretty much been the norm for a few decades now), and people are already keeping a close eye down there.”
Flores, who is entering his third year as Miami’s head coach following a decade-long run as a Patriots assistant under Bill Belichick, finished third in last year’s Coach of the Year voting behind only Kevin Stefanski of the Browns and Buffalo’s Sean McDermott. Though the offense sputtered at times, Miami’s defense performed admirably in 2020, allowing the league’s fifth-fewest points per game (21.1) while also generating the most turnovers (29 total takeaways). The Fins, buoyed by the play of shutdown corner Xavien Howard (who set a franchise record with his league-leading 10 interceptions) and an opportunistic offense that looked to minimize turnovers while controlling time of possession, won nine of 11 at one point last year, but limped to the finish line with a brutal performance at Buffalo in Week 17.
Other names on La Canfora’s hot seat include Matt LaFleur (whose bizarre decision to kick a field goal late in Green Bay’s NFC Championship loss to Tampa Bay was widely criticized), Mike McCarthy of the Cowboys, Bears coach Matt Nagy and Houston’s David Culley, who many suspect is just a placeholder for eventual clipboard-holder Josh McCown.
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