While some NFL teams will wait until Black Monday — the day after the end of the regular season — to fire their head coaches, other clubs have gotten a headstart during the campaign. Which NFL head coaches have been fired in 2024?
Note: This article is accurate as of Black Monday, January 6, 2025.
Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars
After going 22-29 in three seasons with the Jaguars, Jacksonville decided to move on from Doug Pederson as their head coach. In his first season in 2022, he led the Jaguars to the playoffs, rallying to beat the Chargers before losing to the Chiefs in the Divisional Round.
In this era of football, if you can’t make your opponent uncomfortable, you’re in trouble. The Jaguars ranked 29th in sack rate during Pederson’s tenure, a statistic that has been tied to struggles over that stretch. The bottom four teams in this regard since 2022:
29. Jaguars
30. Panthers
31. Bears
32. Falcons
Sports betting is a billion-dollar business, and it has gotten that way because the lines set are ultra-efficient. They aren’t an end-all-be-all, but they are a pretty good snapshot of where the expectations sit at any given moment, and in that regard, Pederson’s Jaguars are underwhelmed.
During his time in Jacksonville, he won just 11 of 20 games when favored (55%; the NFL average hovers around 69% in such games). Over those three seasons, the Vikings, Chiefs, and Bills all have won north of 80% of their games when favored – take care of business when you’re expected to and you’ll put yourself in a position to play meaningful games in December (and keep your job).
Winning in the NFL is difficult, so when you have the chance to do so, you have to take advantage. The tail ends of the league are extreme, but the meat of the bell curve is as tightly packed as ever, and that results in a spike when it comes to games decided by a single possession.
Percentage of games decided by one-score
2022-24: 55.7%
2017-21: 50.3%
During his time with the Jags, Pederson went 10-20 in these contests, a 33.3% win percentage that ranks 30th. Of course, these coin-flip games can go either way for a variety of reasons, but the same teams have a way of winning them, and their coaches are viewed as true assets (Andy Reid, Mike Tomlin, and Kevin O’Connell have all won at least two-thirds of such games over the past three seasons).
Entering the season, Jaguars owner Shad Khan described this as “the best team assembled by the Jacksonville Jaguars ever” after making some key offseason additions (Brian Thomas Jr., Gabe Davis, Arik Armstead, etc.) and signing Trevor Lawrence to a five-year, $275 million deal that made him one of the NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks.
Jerod Mayo, New England Patriots
Jerod Mayo went 4-13 in his first (and final) season as the New England Patriots’ head coach, and his final win over the Buffalo Bills was costly, dropping New England from the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to the No. 4 selection.
In recent weeks, many fans and analysts called for a coaching change. Well, Robert Kraft and Co. listened, parting ways with Mayo shortly after the team’s final game.
A rookie quarterback can skew some of the offensive numbers, but scheming is magnified in tight windows, and the Patriots failed that test at every turn in 2024. This season, New England ranked 29th in third down conversion rate (34.9%) and 30th in red zone efficiency (46.8%).
The elite offenses are going to produce, but the ranking of the middle tier will be separated on the margins. Even in the scope of the teams working in a franchise QB, the Patriots’ inability to finish off drives was alarming:
Red Zone TD% (Ranks)
- Washington Commanders: 63.4% (6th)
- Denver Broncos: 62.3% (7th)
- Chicago Bears: 62.2% (8th)
- New England Patriots: 46.8% (30th)
The Patriots allowed pressure at the second-highest (30.5%) rate this season. New England was slightly above average in this respect in 2023 prior to Mayo, a ranking that needed to be sustained with rookie Drake Maye under center rather than tanking. Of course, some of that blame falls on Maye, but the head coach is responsible for developing a plan, and the plan to keep the rookie quarterback comfortable failed.
Matt Eberflus, Chicago Bears
On Black Friday, just a few hours after presiding over the disastrous ending to the Thanksgiving Day loss to the Lions, Matt Eberflus was fired as Bears coach.
Eberflus ends his Chicago tenure with a 14-32 regular-season record and no playoff appearances. His .326 winning percentage ranks third-worst in franchise history, ahead of only Abe Gibron (.275, 1972-74) and John Fox (.292, 2015-17).
Eberflus becomes the first coach in the century-plus existence of the Bears to be fired in-season. Thomas Brown takes over as interim coach. Brown was the passing game coordinator until promoted to OC a few weeks ago after the Bears fired Shane Waldron.
Chicago started off the season a promising 4-2 before losing on a Jayden Daniels Hail Mary pass. Nothing has gone right since, as they dropped six straight. No loss hurt as much as Thanksgiving Day as the Bears rallied from a 16-0 deficit and were in FG range to send the game to OT before a series of penalties, a sack, and mismanagement of the last 33 seconds led to a three-point loss and the end of Eberflus’ tenure in Chi-town.
Dennis Allen, New Orleans Saints
After starting the season 2-0 and scoring 91 points in their first two games, the Saints lost seven straight games and Dennis Allen was relieved of his duties.
In Week 9, the Saints suffered their worst loss of the season. Despite quarterback Derek Carr returning from an oblique injury, New Orleans still couldn’t defeat the lowly Carolina Panthers.
Allen’s defense allowed 23 points to Carolina, including two rushing touchdowns to Chuba Hubbard and a passing score to rookie Xavier Legette. The Panthers and Saints now have the same record (2-7), and Bryce Young picked up his third career win.
According to @AdamSchefter, Saints HC Dennis Allen has been fired.
Allen finishes with the 3rd-worst winning percentage amongst head coaches all-time with .329 (min. 75 games). pic.twitter.com/7ovlAMxlgK
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) November 4, 2024
Since outscoring opponents 91-29 (+62) during their 2-0 start, the Saints have been outscored 200-116 (-84) during their seven-game losing streak.
Allen finished 18-25 during his three-plus seasons in New Orleans.
Robert Saleh, New York Jets
Robert Saleh became the first NFL head coach to be fired in 2024 when he was let go by the New York Jets on Oct. 8.
Saleh finished his tenure in New York with a 20-36 mark, having failed to achieve a winning record in any of his 3+ seasons in the AFC East.
Hired in 2021 after a successful stint as the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator, Saleh was strapped to No. 2 overall pick Zach Wilson for his first two seasons in New York. Despite boasting excellent defenses, the Jets couldn’t overcome their struggles under center.
The Jets ranked dead last in the NFL in offensive EPA during Robert Saleh's tenure, per @TruMediaSports. 😬
The defense, on the other hand, ranked 7th in defensive EPA … pic.twitter.com/LOGWnDxh5a
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) October 8, 2024
Acquiring future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers was supposed to change that.
New York traded for Rodgers during the summer of 2023, hoping his addition — combined with a still-elite unit on the defensive side of the ball — would result in wins.
However, Rodgers infamously tore his Achilles on the fourth play of the 2023 campaign, ending the Jets’ season before it started. Rodgers’ 2024 return made this year a make-or-break campaign for New York, and things haven’t gone according to plan.
After firing Saleh, the Jets installed defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich as their interim head coach.
A 75-game starter at linebacker for the 49ers from 2000 to 2009, Ulbrich coached with the Seattle Seahawks, Atlanta Falcons, and UCLA, overlapping with Saleh in Seattle in 2011.