It was a bit odd to see two NFL teams part ways with their coach on Sunday night, as it is normal for the teams to wait until at least the following day to make the move. The thought was possibly to get it done before the New Year's Eve holiday, but four other teams did not have that thought process on Monday. First, the Denver Broncos fired head coach Vance Joseph after two straight losing seasons since taking over. It was the Broncos' first consecutive losing seasons since the 1970s, as they finished this season at 6-10 with a loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Joseph had two years remaining on his contract, but lasted just 32 games with the team, going 11-21 with them. This next coach will be the fourth head coach in John Elway's seven-year tenure with the Broncos.
The Miami Dolphins were in the playoff race until about the final two weeks of this season, but that was not good enough for them to keep head coach Adam Gase, who was also fired on Monday. Gase lasted three seasons, going 23-25 in his tenure, including 7-9 this season following a 41-17 rout against the Buffalo Bills to end the season on Sunday. He did have one playoff appearance with Miami, which resulted in a Wild Card loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2016. The Dolphins will now be hiring their fourth coach this decade, as they also promoted general manager Chris Grier to oversee football operations. They were within a game of the New England Patriots in the AFC East up until Week 16, and they are now without a head coach.
The one coach that many have been expecting to get let go over the past five seasons is Marvin Lewis, and the Cincinnati Bengals finally did so on Monday. Lewis was fired after going 16 seasons with the Bengals without winning a playoff game, as he had one season left on a contract extension that he signed last year. Lewis stated that the decision was mutual between the two sides, as the 60-year-old finished with a record of 131-122-3, but an 0-7 playoff record and 8-26 record against the division rival Steelers did not help his cause. In fact, it was only fitting that a loss to the Steelers on Sunday is what officially put an end to his tenure there. On his way out, Lewis did talk up his good friend, Hue Jackson, who was fired as the Cleveland Browns head coach, and joined Lewis' staff this past season.
And it took just one season for the Arizona Cardinals to see that Steve Wilks was not a good fit with their team, as they parted ways with him after going 3-13 this past season. It was the Cardinals' worst record in the past 18 years, and it ended on a walk-off field goal in Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals called the move a "very tough decision," as the 49-year-old did not even last a full calendar year with them. He was hired on January 22nd after one season as their defensive coordinator, but the lack of development in rookie quarterback Josh Rosen was the key in Arizona parting ways with him. Their offense and defense both ranked last in the NFL, as they got off to an 0-4 start, with their first two wins coming against the San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers, who both finished under .500. Wilks even fired offensive coordinator Mike McCoy after a blowout loss to the Denver Broncos. Another embarrassing defeat against the Oakland Raiders sent them to 2-8, which was just the fourth time they started that bad since 1990. This whole season was one to forget in the desert, and they are doing their best to do just that with this move.
The Miami Dolphins were in the playoff race until about the final two weeks of this season, but that was not good enough for them to keep head coach Adam Gase, who was also fired on Monday. Gase lasted three seasons, going 23-25 in his tenure, including 7-9 this season following a 41-17 rout against the Buffalo Bills to end the season on Sunday. He did have one playoff appearance with Miami, which resulted in a Wild Card loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2016. The Dolphins will now be hiring their fourth coach this decade, as they also promoted general manager Chris Grier to oversee football operations. They were within a game of the New England Patriots in the AFC East up until Week 16, and they are now without a head coach.
The one coach that many have been expecting to get let go over the past five seasons is Marvin Lewis, and the Cincinnati Bengals finally did so on Monday. Lewis was fired after going 16 seasons with the Bengals without winning a playoff game, as he had one season left on a contract extension that he signed last year. Lewis stated that the decision was mutual between the two sides, as the 60-year-old finished with a record of 131-122-3, but an 0-7 playoff record and 8-26 record against the division rival Steelers did not help his cause. In fact, it was only fitting that a loss to the Steelers on Sunday is what officially put an end to his tenure there. On his way out, Lewis did talk up his good friend, Hue Jackson, who was fired as the Cleveland Browns head coach, and joined Lewis' staff this past season.
And it took just one season for the Arizona Cardinals to see that Steve Wilks was not a good fit with their team, as they parted ways with him after going 3-13 this past season. It was the Cardinals' worst record in the past 18 years, and it ended on a walk-off field goal in Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals called the move a "very tough decision," as the 49-year-old did not even last a full calendar year with them. He was hired on January 22nd after one season as their defensive coordinator, but the lack of development in rookie quarterback Josh Rosen was the key in Arizona parting ways with him. Their offense and defense both ranked last in the NFL, as they got off to an 0-4 start, with their first two wins coming against the San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers, who both finished under .500. Wilks even fired offensive coordinator Mike McCoy after a blowout loss to the Denver Broncos. Another embarrassing defeat against the Oakland Raiders sent them to 2-8, which was just the fourth time they started that bad since 1990. This whole season was one to forget in the desert, and they are doing their best to do just that with this move.
