The Las Vegas Raiders made news overnight by becoming the first NFL team to fire its head coach during the 2023 season. Josh McDaniels’ 25-game stint with the Raiders included only nine wins and will almost assuredly be his final go-round as an NFL head coach.
But McDaniels’ loss will be another coach’s gain. Who are the top candidates to take over for McDaniels as the Raiders’ head coach?
Who Will Replace Josh McDaniels as Raiders HC?
Baltimore Ravens DC Mike Macdonald
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh has already cultivated a lengthy NFL coaching tree, with former staffers like Chuck Pagano, Rex Ryan, David Culley, and Mike Pettine all finding top jobs around the league.
Current Baltimore defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald could be the next name added to that list. Macdonald — with the Ravens from 2014-2018 before spending a season as the University of Michigan’s DC — returned to Baltimore last season and has turned the club’s defense into an elite unit.
The Ravens are leading the NFL in points allowed per game and yards allowed per play, rank second in EPA per play, and boast the most sacks in the league (31) despite not rostering a star pass rusher. The 36-year-old Macdonald will be a hot commodity on the 2024 head coaching circuit.
Detroit Lions OC Ben Johnson
Ben Johnson probably could have secured a head coaching job last offseason had he wanted to. The Lions’ play-caller interviewed with the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts and was considered a frontrunner with the Carolina Panthers but ultimately opted to stick in Detroit.
MORE: NFL Head Coach Rankings 2023
Johnson has helped revitalize Jared Goff’s career and developed a juggernaut of a Lions offense that doesn’t feature a classic WR1 on the outside. By deploying Amon-Ra St. Brown and rookie TE Sam LaPorta in the right ways and coordinating one of the NFL’s most diverse run games, Johnson has created an offensive attack with few rivals in the league.
Detroit Lions DC Aaron Glenn
Johnson’s colleague on the other side of the ball — Lions DC Aaron Glenn — should also be at the top of the Raiders’ candidate list. Glenn’s ability to adapt has allowed a Detroit defense that finished 31st in efficiency and dead last in yards per play allowed in 2022 to rank eighth in EPA and 16th in yards per play this season.
Glenn blitzed at the league’s seventh-highest rate last year (31.2%). In 2023, he’s only calling a blitz on 21.5% of dropbacks (NFL’s fifth-lowest rate), instead allowing his front four to get pressure while playing more zone coverage behind them.
Flexibility is an admirable trait in coaches, and Glenn has shown he’s willing to change his approach this year.
Carolina Panthers DC Ejiro Evero
Ejiro Evero will be an intriguing test case as an NFL head coaching candidate in 2024. He nearly landed a job last offseason. Evero declined an opportunity to replace his friend Nathaniel Hackett and become the Denver Broncos’ interim head coach, then interviewed with all five teams that had vacancies.
Denver’s 2022 defense was elite under Evero’s leadership. The Panthers defense isn’t elite by any stretch, but Evero has them in the middle of the pack by most metrics. Given the talent level, injury issues, and offensive woes in Carolina, Evero has done a respectable job.
Dallas Cowboys DC Dan Quinn
Dan Quinn met with the Broncos, Colts, and Arizona Cardinals last season but eventually decided to take his name out of head coaching searches and stay with the Cowboys. But Quinn will be involved in next year’s HC process, presuming he wants to leave his cushy DC role in Dallas.
MORE: Where Do the Cowboys Sit in PFN’s NFL Defense Rankings?
It’s been another year of dominance for Quinn’s defense. Even with injuries to CB Trevon Diggs and LB Leighton Vander Esch, the Cowboys rank second in defensive efficiency and fourth in points allowed per game.
Los Angeles Rams DC Raheem Morris
Raheem Morris has done it all in the football world. He became one of the youngest head coaches in NFL history when he took over the Buccaneers at 32. He coached on the offensive side of the ball as the Falcons’ passing game coordinator from 2015-19 and spent five seasons at the collegiate level.
You might not be able to name a Rams defensive player aside from Aaron Donald, but Los Angeles ranks in the middle third of most defensive performance metrics. That’s beyond impressive for a defensive roster that’s almost entirely anonymous, and the Raiders should take notice.
Miami Dolphins OC Frank Smith
Frank Smith doesn’t call plays for the Dolphins, but it seems like every NFL team with a head coaching vacancy will want to get a piece of the Miami brain trust.
Who wouldn’t want to hire a coach who helped lead an offense to 70 points?
Even if Mike McDaniel is considered the Dolphins’ offensive guru, Smith has been a critical voice in overhauling Tua Tagovailoa’s career and turning Miami into the highest-scoring club in the league. Smith, 42, has already worked with the Raiders, serving as their tight ends coach from 2018-20.
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