{"id":257109,"date":"2025-12-02T10:00:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-02T15:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=257109"},"modified":"2025-12-02T07:14:21","modified_gmt":"2025-12-02T12:14:21","slug":"top-4-nfl-coaches-on-the-hot-seat-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/12\/02\/top-4-nfl-coaches-on-the-hot-seat-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 4 NFL Coaches On the Hot Seat, Ranked"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two NFL head coaches have already lost their jobs, but more firings will almost certainly occur once the season is over. With December officially here, contenders are beginning to look at potential playoff matchups while losing organizations begin to evaluate whether their current leadership can bring future success. Not every team with a losing record will fire its coach, but the following four names could be looking for work in just over a month.<\/p>\n

4 NFL Head Coaches on the Hot Seat, Ranked<\/h2>\n

Note: This list will not include interim head coaches Mike Kafka and Mike McCoy.<\/em><\/p>\n

Main Photo: Robert Deutsch – Imagn Images<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

4. Pete Carroll<\/h3>\n

You don’t hire a 73-year-old head coach unless you think you’re ready to compete for a playoff spot. After spending the 2024 season out of football, Pete Carroll joined the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a> to bring some much-needed stability to the team’s sideline. The team traded for Geno Smith<\/a> shortly after bringing Carroll aboard and, on paper, solidified the two most important pieces for organizational success.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, games aren’t played on paper, as the Las Vegas Raiders are currently 2-10 and in contention for the first-overall pick. Smith has been one of the league’s worst quarterbacks, the team already fired two of its coordinators<\/a>, and Carroll’s old-school mentality isn’t meshing well with today’s game. The Raiders may not want to fire another head coach for the third straight season, but perhaps Carroll agrees to “retire” after one year at the helm.<\/p>\n

\"Pete
Nov 23, 2025; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) talks to head coach Pete Carroll in game against the Cleveland Browns during the fourth quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

3. Mike Tomlin<\/h3>\n

Mike Tomlin is not a bad head coach, but it’s fair to wonder if the Pittsburgh Steelers have reached their ceiling with him at the helm. Ever since Ben Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury<\/a> in 2019, the organization has been effectively stuck in neutral and treading water. Regardless of the talent on the roster, the 2019-2025 Pittsburgh Steelers always finish with 8-10 wins, occasionally sneak their way into the playoffs, and get killed by a superior team in the Wild Card round.<\/p>\n

While we still have a month of regular season football remaining on the schedule, history appears to be repeating itself. The Steelers are 6-6, Aaron Rodgers is playing hurt<\/a> and wasn’t anything special when healthy, and the defense cannot stop anyone. Even if the Steelers make the playoffs, it’s hard to envision this team winning anything. Are there worse head coaches in the NFL than Mike Tomlin? Absolutely. However, better ones are out there too, and Tomlin’s message may have run stale in Pittsburgh. A change of scenery could be good for both sides.<\/p>\n

\"Steelers
Nov 30, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin looks on after the game against the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

2. Jonathan Gannon<\/h3>\n

Jonathan Gannon inherited a mess, so nobody should blame him for the 2023 Arizona Cardinals having a bad record. However, it’s been three years, and the team has yet to show any notable improvement. Kyler Murray and Jacoby Brissett aren’t elite quarterbacks by any stretch of the imagination, but they’re good enough to win games in the right environment. Unfortunately, Gannon has not provided that environment, as the team currently sits in the NFC West basement with a 3-9 record.<\/p>\n

Put simply, NFL head coaches can’t expect to keep their jobs if they cannot create a winning environment, and Gannon has yet to prove he can do that. With Kyler Murray likely on the way out following the season, Arizona is staring down yet another full rebuild.<\/p>\n

\"Arizona
Feb 27, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon speaks at a press conference during the NFL Scouting Combine at Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

1. Raheem Morris<\/h3>\n

The Atlanta Falcons traded their 2025 first-round pick to the Los Angeles Rams for James Pearce<\/a> because they believed they had the talent and coaching staff to go on a deep playoff run. Unfortunately, the 2025 season proved that wasn’t the case. While Michael Penix hasn’t played up to expectations, Raheem Morris has been the team’s biggest issue. Currently sitting at 4-8, Atlanta’s season is effectively over and they don’t even have a first-round pick to be excited about.<\/p>\n

Raheem Morris went 17-31 as Tampa Bay’s head coach from 2009 to 2011, and he’s 12-17 during his current run as Atlanta’s full-time head coach. Put simply, he’s not a good head coach and should find a more stable career as a defensive coordinator.<\/p>\n

\"NFL
Nov 30, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris during the first half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The following four NFL head coaches could lose their jobs when the 2025 regular season comes to a close.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2376,"featured_media":257110,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6431,33,27,17,9],"tags":[9226,499,238,9277],"class_list":["post-257109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-teams","category-cardinals","category-falcons","category-raiders","category-steelers","tag-jonathan-gannon","tag-mike-tomlin","tag-pete-carroll","tag-raheem-morris"],"modified_by":"David Latham, Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2376"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257109"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":257111,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257109\/revisions\/257111"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}