Turbulent season for NFL coaches

Kaelib Courtwright, Sports Editor

Although the NFL season has not yet reached its halfway point, a few coaches have already been fired. So far, Bill O’Brien of the Houston Texans and Dan Quinn of the Atlanta Falcons have been relieved of their duties. However, other coaches, most notably Adam Gase of the New York Jets and Matt Patricia of the Detroit Lions, have been rumored to soon be released.

            In general, many people agree that O’Brien and Quinn deserved to be fired. Senior Kyle Thole, a fan of the Atlanta Falcons, stated, “Dan Quinn was fired due to his continued failures over the past few years, and his choking. I don’t think any football fan thinks that the Falcons lack talent on their roster, which makes it difficult to put blame on much other than the coaching staff.” For O’Brien, the consensus is similar from the coaching standpoint, and in addition, he was also the general manager, and has made many questionable roster moves, including the DeAndre Hopkins trade. 

Most people think that the Falcons and Texans will improve without their experienced coaches. Thole says, “It’s certainly possible that the defense will get better as it was, to be quite frank, awful while being run under Dan Quinn. I would also like to be able to think that the team is winning a game when they are up 28-3 or similar scores going into the second half of the game. All I really want is for the talented players on the roster to find success.” For the Texans, the feeling is mutual, as most want quarterback Deshaun Watson to be able to grow and lead the Texans, with better coaching and protection around him.

For the fans of the newfound coachless teams, other teams seem to have a positive message for them. Senior Carson Zell, an Arizona Cardinals fan, has seen his team introduce two head coaches in the past three seasons. Zell says, “Kingsbury had a scheme that overall fit the team better, and then he brought in Kyler Murray who already knew a similar system to Kingsbury’s own system, which gave us a head start over the rest of the league”. Perhaps a new coach could offer the same advantage to the Falcons and Texans.

Although only two coaches have been released thus far, more could be in the future. Both Zell and Thole said that they are surprised New York Jets head coach Adam Gase has not already been relieved of his duties. Rumors about Gase’s release have been prevalent dating back to last season, but he has not been fired yet. Other coaches at risk include Matt Patricia of the Detroit Lions and Mike Zimmer of the Minnesota Vikings, one of the longest-tenured coaches in the league.

Although the NFL season is young, many coaches have already been fired or are close to being fired. However, most fans just want their players to succeed, and good coaching is vital in order for this to happen.

Falcons choke rates under Dan Quinn