Ranking the NFL coaches most likely to be fired this year

The NFL is reaching the homestretch of its season. At one end of the spectrum, contenders are separating themselves from the pack. On the other end, the league’s bottom feeders are starting to be officially eliminated from the postseason picture. With five weeks to go in the regular season, the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers are left to play out the string.

When organizations are forced to start focusing on next season, tough decisions must be made. Suddenly, player evaluation takes more of a long-term view. Underperforming veterans are benched (ahem, Eli Manning) so the team can see what its younger guys can do.

The same approach is often taken when assessing the coaching staff. Almost every NFL season features at least one midseason head coach firing. Last season, the Rams kicked Jeff Fisher to the curb when Los Angeles was 4-9. In 2015, it only took the Dolphins four games for them to move on from Joe Philbin.

It’s only a matter of time before we see the first coaching casualty of the 2017 NFL campaign. The gallery below lists 10 coaches who might not return to their teams next year, ranked from the least likely to be fired to the man with the hottest seat in the league.