Five NFL head coaches on the hot seat in 2025

Training camps have started, and the NFL season is a month away. Here are five head coaches who will be on the hot seat in 2025:

5. Jonathan Gannon, Arizona Cardinals

Record with team: 12-22 in two seasons

Playoff appearances: None 

Arizona improved in Year 2 of the Jonathan Gannon experience. Still, in the NFC West, it wouldn’t shock anyone to see the Cardinals finish in last place. On paper, the Rams and (healthy) 49ers look better. Gannon’s job security might depend on whether he can finish ahead of the rebuilding Seahawks. Kyler Murray is entering his seventh season and has yet to deliver on the promise of being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He has some young weapons in Trey McBride and Marvin Harrison Jr. If Arizona disappoints again, Gannon and Murray might both be gone.

4. Kevin Stefanski, Cleveland Browns

Record with team: 40-44 in five seasons

Playoff appearances: Two (1-2)

Kevin Stefanski is the best Browns coach since the franchise rebooted in 1999. And yet, Jimmy Haslam might be making a complete overhaul due to the Deshaun Watson contract. The juicy rumor is that Nick Saban and Arch Manning could be coming in to save the day. Right now, that seems like speculative fantasy, especially since Manning could easily remain at Texas in 2026. For this season, the Browns’ best player, Myles Garrett, asked for a trade but decided to stick around after Haslam gave him a ton of money. In the rugged AFC North, Stefanski is fighting a losing battle.

3. Mike McDaniel, Miami Dolphins

Record with team: 28-23 in three seasons

Playoff appearances: Two (0-2)

Remember when the Dolphins crushed the Broncos 70-20 in September 2023? That seems like the distant past now. Mike McDaniel is feeling the heat because Tua Tagovailoa is concussion-prone, and Tyreek Hill might be in decline. If both are healthy, the Dolphins are probably a playoff team. But that might not be enough for a franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game since the 2000 season. The roster has changed with the losses of veterans like tight end Jonnu Smith and cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Owner Stephen Ross is 85 and running out of patience.

2. Brian Daboll, New York Giants

Record with team: 18-32 in three seasons

Playoff appearances: One (1-1)

For many gambling sites, Brian Daboll is the betting favorite to be the first coach fired. However, the Giants are a conservative organization. Owner John Mara probably won’t make a change in the middle of the season. The good news for Daboll is that making substantial progress, even if it doesn’t necessarily lead to the playoffs, might save his job. If first-round picks Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart play well, and New York is in the postseason hunt, that could be enough. Russell Wilson is the starter at quarterback for now, but all eyes will be on Dart.

1. Shane Steichen, Indianapolis Colts

Record with team: 17-17 in two seasons

Playoff appearances: None

Shane Steichen has plenty of adversity to overcome. First, there’s new ownership as Carlie Irsay-Gordon has taken over for her late father, who passed away in May. New management loves to make changes. Second, there’s a quarterback problem. Anthony Richardson can’t seem to stay healthy, and Daniel Jones is a journeyman at age 28. Steichen needs to make the playoffs in a watered-down AFC South, and even that might not be good enough. There’s a chance Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard, who drafted Richardson, will both be gone.