NFL · 9 months ago

The NFL’s Worst Coaches of 2024: Ranking the Bottom 10

TJ Inman

Host · Writer

Brian Daboll - New York Giants
Many NFL experts think Brian Daboll is a good coach capable of leading good teams. I’m not one to disagree, but the 2024 Giants were awful, and at least a bit of the blame has to lay at Daboll’s feet. The Giants went just 3-14 and only beat the Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks, and Indianapolis Colts. The only part of the team that offers any hope for the future is wide receiver Malik Nabers, but he needs help around him in nearly every other spot. Daboll was retained for 2025, but he’ll need a quick turnaround with a new quarterback if he is to stay past this coming season.

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Matt Eberflus - Chicago Bears
Matt Eberflus was a curious hire by the Chicago Bears when they plucked him from the Indianapolis Colts in January of 2022. Although he had improved the Colts’ defense as the defensive coordinator, they were still only middling, and the fans were not particularly sad to see him go. Things went as expected, as the Bears went just 3-14 in 2023. That record landed them Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze. They started 4-2, but after a bye week, the team stumbled to six straight losses with the offense regressing. Eberflus was panned for failing to use his final timeout in yet another close loss, this time to the Lions on Thanksgiving, and the franchise fired Eberflus on November 29.

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Shane Steichen - Indianapolis Colts
Shane Steichen was a popular choice when the Colts tabbed him to lead the franchise and steer rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson. Richardson, an athletically gifted but raw player from Florida, has not been able to harness his ability under Steichen’s leadership, and he has missed multiple games in both seasons. Steichen guided the Colts to a 9-8 in his first season, but they missed the playoffs. Despite having the gift of the woeful AFC South, the Colts regressed in 2024 and went 8-9. The mishandling of the quarterback position continues to be a problem for the franchise, and Steichen doesn’t appear capable of solving it. The team fired defensive coordinator Gus Bradley but kept GM Chris Ballard and Steichen around for another shot in 2025.
Doug Pederson - Jacksonville Jaguars
After another frustrating campaign for the franchise, the Jacksonville Jaguars fired former Super Bowl-winning head coach Doug Pederson. The Jags won the AFC South in 2022 (but were only 9-8) but missed the playoffs in 2023. The team assembled what they considered a strong roster before this season, but the Jaguars went just 4-13 and looked inept in the weakest division in the NFL. The biggest issue for Pederson has been the inability to elevate the play of quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and if you can’t get the franchise quarterback right, then you won’t be around for long as the head coach.

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Antonio Pierce - Las Vegas Raiders
Antonio Pierce was a long shot to succeed in Las Vegas. He took over in 2023 as the interim coach after the franchise fired Josh McDaniels and guided the Raiders to a surprising 5-4 record. Pierce was handed the full-time job for the 2024 season, but the roster was a mess, and the team still doesn’t have anything resembling an answer at quarterback. Unsurprisingly, the Raiders were a punching bag in the AFC West and went just 4-13. After a brief pause and some uncertainty, owner Mark Davis canned Pierce. The franchise has played in only two playoff games in the past 22 seasons, and Pierce is another failed head coach on a growing list of them for the Silver and Black.
Mike McDaniel - Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel is quirky and hip, and many consider him an offensive genius. Still, he deserves some criticism for his squad's flailing season in 2024-25. The Dolphins went 8-9, which doesn’t look awful on the surface, but his offense was often stagnant, and the team failed to take advantage of the state of rival AFC East teams, New England and the New York Jets. Early in the season, the Dolphins lost six of seven games, with the lone win coming over the Patriots in an ugly 15-10 contest. They only beat one playoff team (the Rams) all season, and star Tyreek Hill expressed a desire to leave the franchise right after the season.

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Jerod Mayo - New England Patriots
Jerod Mayo’s tenure was a long shot, but few expected it to be as ugly as it was. The former Patriots linebacker was fired after his lone season in charge to make way for another former Patriots linebacker, Mike Vrabel. Bob Kraft liked Mayo and believed in him, but the evidence against keeping him for another season was overwhelming. Mayo was handed a poor roster, but his clock management cost the team a couple of victories, and it was clear he was in over his head.
Dennis Allen/Darren Rizzi - New Orleans Saints
Dennis Allen and Darren Rizzi combined for a 5-12 stinker of a season in New Orleans. The lone wins came over the Panthers, Cowboys, Falcons, Browns and Giants. That means the Saints failed to beat any playoff teams and had two separate losing streaks of four-plus games. It was hard to see what convinced the Saints to hire in the first place. He went 8-28 with the Raiders from 2012 to 2014, and the Saints made him the head coach in 2022. After middling results in his first two campaigns, Allen started 2-7 before being fired, and Rizzi finished the season with a 3-5 record—hard times in the Big Easy.

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Robert Saleh/Jeff Ulbrich - New York Jets
The New York Jets should have one of the league’s better rosters. With Aaron Rodgers returning for the 2024 season, there was optimism in New York that the Jets could compete with the Bills for the AFC East and find themselves in the playoff hunt. Despite subpar campaigns from the Dolphins and Patriots, the Jets were never a threat, and the franchise appears to be a mess. Saleh went 4-13, 7-10, 7-10 and then started 2-3 before the Jets fired him and let Ulbrich finish the season. It made no difference. The team continued to struggle and limped to another missed playoff finish.
Brian Callahan - Tennessee Titans
You fired Mike Vrabel for this? The Titans began the 2024 season with losses to the Bears and Jets, and things did not improve much from there. The lowlights under Brian Callahan include the aforementioned defeats to the lowly Jets and Bears, being swept by the Colts and Jaguars, surrendering 52 points to the Detroit Lions, and giving up 52 points to the Commanders. Callahan was not fired, but the general manager was, and most GMs want to pick the head coach, so he is in the hottest of seats moving to 2025.
Brian Daboll - New York Giants
Many NFL experts think Brian Daboll is a good coach capable of leading good teams. I’m not one to disagree, but the 2024 Giants were awful, and at least a bit of the blame has to lay at Daboll’s feet. The Giants went just 3-14 and only beat the Cleveland Browns, Seattle Seahawks, and Indianapolis Colts. The only part of the team that offers any hope for the future is wide receiver Malik Nabers, but he needs help around him in nearly every other spot. Daboll was retained for 2025, but he’ll need a quick turnaround with a new quarterback if he is to stay past this coming season.

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Matt Eberflus - Chicago Bears
Matt Eberflus was a curious hire by the Chicago Bears when they plucked him from the Indianapolis Colts in January of 2022. Although he had improved the Colts’ defense as the defensive coordinator, they were still only middling, and the fans were not particularly sad to see him go. Things went as expected, as the Bears went just 3-14 in 2023. That record landed them Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze. They started 4-2, but after a bye week, the team stumbled to six straight losses with the offense regressing. Eberflus was panned for failing to use his final timeout in yet another close loss, this time to the Lions on Thanksgiving, and the franchise fired Eberflus on November 29.

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The NFL’s Worst Coaches of 2024: Ranking the Bottom 10

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