5 NFL Teams That Should Be Worried Right Now (Week 9)
Patrick Kelleher
Host · Writer
As another week has passed in this NFL season, playoff pictures are starting to fully take shape, along with the outlooks of teams already looking towards next season. For those teams on the outside looking in, who should be the most worried after Week 9? Which coaches are on the hot seat? Find out in this article.
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons have now suffered three straight losses and sit at 3-5. Michael Penix Jr. played well in his return from injury with three touchdown passes, but it was ultimately not enough as the Patriots earned an exciting one-point victory. Each loss that passes makes the noise around head coach Raheem Morris that much louder. They have pieces on offense, including Penix’s development, alongside Bijan Robinson and Drake London. Atlanta must finish the season strong, or it will be looking for yet another new coach.
Cincinnati Bengals
When you think the Bengals’ defense cannot get any worse, they find a way to one-up themselves the following week. If giving up 39 points to the Jets wasn’t bad enough, they managed to allow another 47 to the Bears, which included a 54-yard game-winning touchdown from Colston Loveland on a play that is simply inexcusable for an NFL defense to allow at that point in the game. Cincinnati will have many roster decisions to make this offseason after going all-in on offense and neglecting defense.
Dallas Cowboys
Dallas suffered their most humiliating loss of the season last night at home after losing 27-17 to the Jacoby Brissett-led Arizona Cardinals. We knew the Cowboys’ defense was subpar, but to make Brissett look like 2008 Kurt Warner is an alarming indictment of this Dallas defense. Now sitting at 3-5-1, the Cowboys have a tall hill to climb if they want to jump back into playoff contention. This defense will continue to haunt them for the rest of the season.
New York Giants
It is now not a matter of if, but when the Giants finally let go of head coach Brian Daboll. The team was absolutely embarrassed by Mac Jones and the San Francisco 49ers this past Sunday. It got to a point in the second half that the Giants had to go to a silent count on their home turf because the San Francisco faithful had taken over the stadium after the Giants fans left. Shane Bowen is the worst defensive coordinator in the NFL by a country mile on a defense that gets gashed weekly. The one thing New York has going for it is Jaxson Dart. Now the only question is which coach will have the opportunity to help develop him further after this season.
Washington Commanders
The injury to Jayden Daniels appears to be the final nail in the coffin for the Commanders’ hopes of returning to the playoffs this season. Many predicted before the year that they would take a step back after shocking the world last year and reaching the NFC Championship game. The rest of the season is about Washington finding out who will stick around on the roster next season. What will they do with Deebo Samuel? It’s unfortunate, but offseason plans should be the primary focus for the Commanders the rest of the way.
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