Being a head coach in the NFL is incredibly difficult, but these three head coaches might be on the hot seat with a Divisional Round loss. In many respects, there is such thing as a 'good' head coach that just will never get over the hump and win the Super Bowl.
Or a good head coach whose practices just don't work in today's NFL. Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers is a very good head coach, but the team hasn't won a playoff game in over a decade with Tomlin as the head coach, and it's clear that the Steelers are a ways away from being a Super Bowl contender.
Well, there could be a small handful of coaches who might find themselves on the hot seat if they cannot get a win in the Divisional Round. Who would they be?
Are these 3 coaches on the hot seat with a Divisional Round loss?
Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles
There always seems to be a degree of drama with Nick Sirianni in his tenure with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles made it to the Super Bowl in 2022 and has never had a losing season on his four years as the team's head coach. He's got a 48-20 record and a 3-3 playoff record. However, the Eagles stumbled to the finish line in 2023 and lost in the Wild Card Round.
And if the lose to the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Round, while Sirianni might not get fired, the hot seat would surely kick up a notch. Philly has had top-tier roster talent for years now, and another playoff defeat might be seen by some as an underachievement.
The drama that Sirianni has been embroiled in from time to time also does not help.
John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
If the Baltimore Ra
Baltimore Ravens
vens were to lose to the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, that would make it yet another year where John Harbaugh failed to win multiple postseason games. The last time this has happened was all the way back in 2012, when the Ravens won the Super Bowl. Years of playoff defeats have to add up at home point, right?
This is especially true with having a future first-ballot Hall of Fame QB in Lamar Jackson, who might win his third MVP award. John Harbaugh has absolutely underachieved in the postseason with this current group of players in the Jackson era. Another one-win postseason could leave Harbaugh with more questions than answers.
Sean McDermott, Buffalo Bills
If the Buffalo Bills go one-and-done in the playoffs this year, that would be four years in a row where the Buffalo Bills would fail to advance past the Divisional Round. Right now, Sean McDermott has a 6-6 playoff record. He is loudly mediocre when the playoffs roll around.
And while many people think the Bills can make a Super Bowl run this year, they have a better team coming to their house in the Baltimore Ravens, who blew them out at the beginning of the 2024 NFL Season. I don't see how McDermott would not be on the hot seat with a loss.
He could have easily maxed out as a head coach. If something keeps up for year after year, it might not be just a silly trend, but instead an indication that something has