Now that the dust has settled, there are nine new NFL head coaches. This hiring cycle had some very interesting hires. Out of the new coaches, six of them come from the offensive side, while three have a defensive background. Five of the coaches are first-time head coaches while four of them have been head coaches before. But each of them will have one thing in common. Each one of these new NFL head coaches will be facing very difficult challenges.
A Closer Look at New NFL Head Coaches from 2022 Hiring Cycle
Who’s Missing?
There are some prominent potential NFL head coaches missing from this list. Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy was once again passed over. This isn’t anything new for Bieniemy. Even with Bieniemy being the offensive coordinator of one of the best offenses in the NFL, he has been consistently bypassed for openings.
Bieniemy isn’t the only minority candidate that has been shunned by NFL teams. Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich has also been bypassed. Leftwich coordinated the Buccaneers last season when they won the Super Bowl.
Of course, rounding out the list of minority candidates that were bypassed was former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores. It was shocking that Flores was let go by the Dolphins after the season. But it is even more shocking that he didn’t land another job this off-season. Flores isn’t accepting being bypassed. He filed a lawsuit against the NFL alleging race discrimination, a lawsuit that is well overdue when it comes to the hiring practices of NFL teams.
Even with those three missing from the list, there are some interesting hires that came out of this cycle. Some of these new NFL head coaches might be set up for some early success.
Chicago Bears: Matt Eberflus
Many expected that the Bears would hire an offensive-minded coach to replace Matt Nagy. Rookie, and last year’s number one pick, quarterback Justin Fields is the future of the Bears. A very raw prospect, it was thought an offensive coach would be hired to help him develop. However, the Bears had other ideas.
New general manager Ryan Poles hired Eberflus, who was the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts. Eberflus coordinated the Colts defense from 2018 to 2021. Under his guidance, the Colts had a very underrated defense. There isn’t any arguing that he was a very solid candidate. However, with Fields on the roster, and the Bears having a 3-4 style of personnel, it was a curious decision to hire Eberflus. Not only is he not an offensive coach, but he also ran a 4-3 style of defense with the Colts. It appears that the Bears will run a 4-3 next season. Eberflus is bringing with him Alan Williams from the Colts to be his defensive coordinator.
The new offensive coordinator will be Luke Getsy. Getsy was the quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers. Getsy is coming from an offense that ran their offense through the run. Expect him to do the same with Fields, taking some pressure off the young quarterback.
Denver Broncos: Nathaniel Hackett
Hackett will be replacing defensive-minded head coach Vic Fangio. He was the offensive coordinator for Matt LaFleur and the Packers since 2019 before being hired. Hackett was an integral part of the Packers offense, even without calling the plays. While he didn’t call the plays for the Packers, he did call them for the Buffalo Bills and the Jacksonville Jaguars in his past.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has given Hackett glowing reviews for his work as the Packers offensive coordinator. Many have speculated that if Rodgers departs from the Packers, the Broncos might be a possible destination. If that does occur, the Broncos become instant AFC West contenders.
Defensively, the Broncos are expected to run a similar defense to what they ran last season. Ejiro Evero, currently the Los Angeles Rams secondary coach/pass game coordinator, is expected to be the defensive coordinator. Evero once worked under Fangio and it is expected that he will implement a very similar style of defense.
New York Giants: Brian Daboll
Out of all the new NFL Head Coaches on this list, Daboll looks to be the best. As the Bills offensive coordinator, Daboll helped make quarterback Josh Allen into one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. It’ll be up to Daboll and his offensive staff to do the same with Daniel Jones. Jones is a physically gifted quarterback that struggled under former head coach Joe Judge. If Daboll can do what he did with Allen, Jones could finally play up to his potential.
The Giants defense will be in very good hands. It was announced that Don Martindale will be the new defensive coordinator. Martindale was the Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator before parting ways with the Ravens this off-season. Martindale is well respected by his peers and should do a solid job with the Giants defense.
The NFC East, as a whole, is pretty weak. If Daboll can get Jones and the offense going and Martindale can solidify the defense, the Giants might surprise people next season.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Doug Pederson
Pederson has the experience that should excite Jaguars fans. Pederson, the former Philadelphia Eagles head coach, helped guide the Eagles to a Super Bowl win. His past experience should help stabilize a franchise that was left in shambles by former head coach Urban Meyer.
There will be questions when it comes to Pederson, especially when it comes to the development of quarterback Trevor Lawrence. When the Eagles let Pederson go, there were reports that he and then Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz were on the outs. Under Pederson’s guidance, Wentz regressed. It was so bad that Wentz was shipped to the Colts after Pederson’s departure. The biggest task that Pederson will be faced with is developing the former number one overall pick. If he fails, his hiring will be deemed a failure.
Working for the Jaguars won’t be an easy task. The Jaguars are one of the worst franchises in the NFL (the worst is still to come on this list). Pederson will be working with general manager Trent Baalke. Baalke’s position as the general manager caused issues with the hiring of the new Jaguars head coach. Baalke has a track record for grabbing power, which might make things difficult for Pederson. Owner Shad Khan isn’t much better. Since taking over as owner, Khan has displayed that he has no idea how to run an NFL team.
Houston Texans: Lovie Smith
If the Jaguars are one of the worst franchises in the NFL, then the Texans are the worst. By a long shot. Vice president of operations Jack Easterby, a former team pastor for the New England Patriots, has run this franchise into the ground. He has been given the keys to the franchise by owner Cal McNair. McNair, who took over for his late father Bob, has made this franchise the laughing stock of the NFL.
General manager Nick Caserio fits right in with Easterby and McNair. He gave former head coach David Culley a four-year, $22 million dollar contract. He then proceeded to give Culley only a year before firing him. Culley is now out of coaching and collecting $17 million dollars from the Texans to not coach.
Caserio, who it has been reported wears a headset during games, totally botched the hiring of the new Texans head coach. It was reported that he wanted to hire former NFL quarterback Josh McCown as the new head coach, even though McCown has never been a coach in the NFL. When news broke of this, Caserio and the Texans were mocked. So much so, that Caserio passed on hiring McCown.
Instead, the Texans promoted associate head coach/defensive coordinator Lovie Smith as the new head coach. Last season, running the Texans defense, Smith led them to a 31st NFL ranking in total defense. Before being hired as the Texans defensive coordinator, Smith was the head coach of the University of Illinois. There, Smith ran Illinois into the ground and had a 17-29 record. Prior to that, he was the Buccaneers head coach from 2014 to 2015. There, he accumulated an 8-24 record. Smith had success once as the Bears head coach, but that seems like a lifetime ago.
Las Vegas Raiders: Josh McDaniels
Apparently, owner Mark Davis hasn’t seen how badly Patriots assistants have failed when they leave Bill Belichick. It wasn’t just McDaniels that Davis brought in, but his new general manager, Dave Ziegler, comes from the Patriots as well.
This isn’t McDaniels first go-around as a head coach. He was the Broncos head coach from 2009 to 2010. In his two seasons in charge of the Broncos, he had a record of 11-17 and never led them to the playoffs. Davis is betting that McDaniels has learned from his mistakes. McDaniels is inheriting a team that reached the playoffs and has a franchise quarterback in Derek Carr.
McDaniels did make a solid hire with his defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham. Graham interviewed for several NFL head coaching openings this off-season. He did a solid job with the Giants defense last season and should pick up where former Raiders defensive coordinator Gus Bradley left off.
Miami Dolphins: Mike McDaniel
McDaniel is another Kyle Shanahan disciple. Hiring an offensive coach who has worked with Shanahan has become the trend in the NFL. As of now, most have done a solid job. But will McDaniel break the streak?
McDaniel’s biggest task will be getting the most out of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. General manager Chris Grier spent a first-round pick on Tagovailoa and he is expected to be the future at that position for the Dolphins. It isn’t a secret that former head coach Brian Flores didn’t think much of the young quarterback. With McDaniel having an offensive background, it will be up to him to get the most out of Tagovailoa.
How McDaniel performs will be a big story next season. In the three seasons that Flores was in charge, he accumulated a 24-25 record. Last season, the team went 9-8 and barely missed the playoffs. If McDaniel stumbles out of the gate, many will question owner Stephen Ross’s decision to fire Flores.
Minnesota Vikings: Kevin O’Connell
Zygi and Mark Wilf decided to go the total opposite of former head coach Mike Zimmer. Zimmer was an older, no-nonsense coach with a defensive background. O’Connell, another from the Shanahan-Sean McVay coaching tree, is young, is an offensive coach, and is reportedly a player-friendly coach.
O’Connell once worked with Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins when he was on the Washington Commanders coaching staff. From all reports, the Vikings are planning on keeping Cousins. Keeping a veteran quarterback might be more difficult for a rookie head coach. Most veteran quarterbacks are set in their ways and could be against new things. But his relationship with Cousins might help overcome this.
Similar to McDaniel, there is a chance one of these Shanahan-McVay disciples is going to flame out and flame out in a big way. O’Connell and the Vikings are hoping it isn’t him.
New Orleans Saints: Dennis Allen
Allen, who was once the head coach of the then Oakland Raiders, gets his second chance to be an NFL head coach. During his three seasons as the Raiders head coach, he put together an 8-28 record. He has been the Saints defensive coordinator since 2015 and has done a solid job.
The biggest task he will have is hiring the right offensive coordinator to lead the offense. Sean Payton, who acted as his own offensive coordinator, was one of the best play-callers in the NFL before walking away. Allen can’t rely on what he did with the Raiders. He will need to find someone that can continue the success that Payton set.
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