Dan Pitcher | With Pitcher, the Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator, not among the initial candidates to receive a second interview, his chances of landing the Browns job appear slim. That might be for the best, although making the in-state move would have strengthened the AFC North rivalry.
If the Browns cast a wider net, Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, who was fired by the Bengals last offseason, would also add a personal touch to next season’s Bengals-Browns games. Hiring Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, who coached Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase at LSU, would be another intriguing storyline for 2026.
Bill Belichick | We’re veering into the realm of the unlikely, but after firing McDermott, there isn’t another coach as proven as Belichick. He’s been embroiled in a petty back-and-forth with New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft in the years since their relationship fractured, with both taking shots at the other last year.
Kraft told reporters hiring Belichick in 1999 was a “big risk,” saying, “I gave up a No. 1 draft pick for a coach that had only won a little over 40% of his games to get him out.”
Belichick, who spurned the New York Jets to join the Patriots, fired back in comments to ESPN.
“I had been warned by multiple previous Patriots’ coaches, as well as other members of other NFL organizations and the media, that the New England job was going to come with many internal obstacles,” Belichick said.
It’s time the war of words gets settled on the field.
Mike Tomlin | Tomlin didn’t step down after 19 years as Steelers head coach to take another coaching job. That doesn’t mean the Ravens should just let him waltz into a plum studio analyst gig (or a season away from the sport) before trying to add petrol to the league’s most fiery rivalry.
“Holy s—, wouldn’t that be awesome,” owner Steve Bisciotti said earlier in January about the prospect of hiring Tomlin, under the condition that fired Ravens coach John Harbaugh, who has since signed a five-year, $100 million contract with the New York Giants, join the Steelers. C’est la vie.