Stefanski, McDaniel, Taylor Gain Job Security While Glenn, Gannon Face Growing Uncertainty

If we're keeping a running account on NFL coaches that are either in very hot water or merely lukewarm water when we're gauging the temperature of their job status, then Sunday was a great day for Mike McDaniel, Kevin Stefanski and Zac Taylor. 

And it was another awful day for Aaron Glenn, Jonathan Gannon, Todd Bowles, and Pete Carroll – none of whom can be certain they'll still be the head coach of their teams after this season.

Mike McDaniel Did Good Work

But let's begin on a positive note for the guys who did good work on Sunday and generally have been doing better in recent weeks as they try to save their jobs.

We start with McDaniel, who has been on the hot seat since October. As late as last week, his status following this year had not been settled despite national reports that he was safe. But Sunday was a good day for him because he rallied a team with a rookie quarterback making only his second start.

And that rookie, Quinn Ewers, showed marked improvement from his first start a week earlier. So if Miami can finish strong against the newly crowned division champion New England Patriots next week, it would go a long way toward McDaniel saving his job.

Dec 28, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski looks on in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Taylor, Stefanski Seem In Good Shape

Taylor and Stefanski are similarly making attempts to keep their jobs, and it currently looks good for both.

The Browns not only upset the Steelers on Sunday but denied them an opportunity to clinch the AFC North. Do you have any idea how happy that makes the Haslam family that owns the club?  

Yeah, a lot.

Taylor, meanwhile, is getting his team to play its best football late in the season, which he's done for multiple years in a row. The issue this year is that quarterback Joe Burrow has played only seven games.

The fact the Bengals are 5-2 in those games suggests they had more a backup quarterback problem than head coach problem earlier in the season.

Dec 28, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon during the first half against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

Gannon Pink Slip Seems On Way

And then we've got the guys in hot water. We're talking boiling hot for guys who have won division titles, and Super Bowls and some who are only in their first season.

None of that, of course, applies to Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon, who has been in hot water all of December and seems destined for a pink slip on Black Monday.

The Cardinals lost for the 13th time in 14 games on Sunday and for the third time in four weeks the result was a blowout. He is 20 games under .500 in his three seasons. 

And, yes, there have been injuries. But that's not his defense for convincing ownership he's the right guy. 

"I think their effort and energy and enthusiasm are there," Gannon said of his team. "I think they're educated. They have belief. But we got to coach and play better, there's no doubt."

Todd Bowles Has Had No Answer

That's not exactly an endorsement. And neither is what the Buccaneers have been showing for Bowles.

The Bucs had everything to play for against a Dolphins team that did not. If the Bucs had won, they would be the NFC South champions today. That was also true had they won last week, or the week before or the week before.

But the Bucs are on a four-game losing skid and have lost seven out of eight games. The defense doesn't scare anyone and the offense relies too much on Baker Mayfield, who lately hasn't been up to the task.

It's quite likely if Tampa Bay doesn't beat Carolina to win the division next week, Bowles will be gone.

HENDERSON, NEVADA - JANUARY 27: Pete Carroll speaks as he is introduced as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders during a news conference also introducing John Spytek as the team's general manager at the Las Vegas Raiders Headquarters/Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center on January 27, 2025 in Henderson, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Pete Carroll: See What Happens

Then we've got the first-year coaches – Carroll and Glenn.

Carroll is a former Super Bowl winning coach. But his first season with the Raiders has been a mess.

On Sunday, after the Raiders' tenth consecutive loss which clinched the top pick in the 2026 draft, Carroll was asked if he still has the support of ownership. 

"Yeah, I do," he said. "From all the guys I've talked to, I do feel I have their support. What that means, I don't know. But our conversations have been really good."

Those conversations apparently have not so good as to contain guarantees Carroll will be back for a second season because the coach has zero confidence about that.

"I have no comment to make about that at all," Carroll said. "We're getting along great, we're communicating really well, we'll see what happens."

(Photo by Evan Bernstein/Getty Images)

Aaron Glenn Is Not Safe

Glenn was a popular coach prospect in January and landed with the Jets as a nostalgic move that returned the former cornerback to his old team. Cool story but this is starting to feel like Jerod Mayo in New England last season. 

Glenn is not safe.  

New York has been blown out each of the last four games, including by the unremarkable Dolphins and New Orleans Saints. The Patriots scored 35 points by halftime on Sunday. 

But somehow Glenn's confidence about his status with owner Woody Johnson is not diminished.

"I do know there’s a belief in me," he said. "I do know I believe in him. That’s why I’m glad I took this job, is because of ownership and what he’s about …

"I’m disappointed. I know he’s disappointed. So, now we’ve got to figure out what we do to make sure that we get over that hump and move forward."

Glenn better hope Johnson doesn't think firing the coach is next on that list of things to do.