With the 2022 NFL season nearly here, there’s already a list of coaches facing pressure to perform this season.
The most obvious coach needing to perform is the Carolina Panthers’ head coach, Matt Rhule.
After a disastrous 2021 season that saw the team implode, Rhule found himself in the hot seat.
However, he’s saved his job for one more year and has another new quarterback to save his job yet again.
But besides Rhule, who are two other NFL coaches on that hot seat with their team?
2. Kevin Stefanski
The Cleveland Browns haven’t been very good or consistent with head coaches over the last decade.
After Gregg Williams took over mid-season for the Browns in 2018, the team has gone through two other coaches.
In 2019, they hired Freddie Kitchens, who only lasted one year.
Now they have Kevin Stefanski, who they hired in 2020.
However, he’s on the hot seat with a franchise that expects him to win this year.
But that could prove difficult, after ownership mortgaged their future for Deshaun Watson, who might not play at all this year.
With a bonehead mistake like that, Stefanski’s job is now on the line with a team who could miss the playoffs again.
While having Watson was supposed to be an easy way to win games, he’s proven to be more of a headache.
The team now awaits the NFL’s decision on his fate in 2022, meaning they might have to scramble for a QB.
This all puts the heat on Stefanski, who was the coach behind the team winning their first playoff game since 1995.
The unrealistic expectations of a winning season, despite putting him in an unpleasant situation with Watson, should keep him off the hot seat.
However, this is the Cleveland Browns we are talking about, and ownership hasn’t really made any smart moves lately.
1. Mike McCarthy
One thing Jerry Jones wants in Dallas is a winning team.
When the Cowboys got Mike McCarthy as their head coach, they thought they had a winner.
However, that hasn’t proven to be the case in Dallas with the former Green Bay Packers head coach.
His first season with Dallas was a flop, as the team finished 6-10.
But some of that can fall on the fact that star quarterback Dak Prescott suffered an injury that season.
While 2020 was a flop, he improved to 12-5 last season.
So why would he be on the hot seat with a playoff appearance and first place in the NFC East from last season?
The reason falls on Dallas being one and done in the NFL playoffs last season.
With Dallas not reaching a Super Bowl since the 90s, it’s hard to think they will accept anything less than a Super Bowl appearance this season.
While the team showed much promise in 2021, they still fell short to a San Francisco 49ers team that snuck into the playoffs.
So the pressure is on McCarthy to show he can do in Dallas what he did in Green Bay.
That would be to win a Super Bowl game this season for Dallas.
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