Sept. 30, 2026
Top 10 hottest seats after Week 3
- 1. Todd Bowles, Buccaneers (0-3)
- 2. Aaron Glenn, Jets (1-2)
- 3. Dan Quinn, Commanders (1-2)
- 4. Matt LaFleur, Packers (1-2)
- 5. Mike Vrabel, Patriots (1-2)
- 6. Brian Schottenheimer, Cowboys (1-2)
- 7. DeMeco Ryans, Texans (0-3)
- 8. Shane Steichen, Colts (1-2)
- 9. Jim Harbaugh, Chargers (0-3)
- 10. Jeff Hafley, Dolphins (0-3)
Two notes before the list. I'm a Jets fan, so take my Glenn placement for what it is: somebody who watches this team every week and isn't sold. And I've got Harbaugh lower than most people will, which I'll defend at the bottom.
1. Todd Bowles, Buccaneers (0-3)
- Lost 10 of his last 12 dating to last season, and all three losses this year were one-score games his team couldn't finish.
- Baker Mayfield dislocated his throwing thumb and is out at least three weeks, so an undrafted rookie now has the season. Insiders are already pointing at Week 5 at Dallas on Thursday night as the window.
2. Aaron Glenn, Jets (1-2)
- I watch this team every week, and this is coaching, not roster. Up 17-7 with 11 minutes left against Green Bay and lost in overtime.
- Last season his defense went the entire year without an interception. He entered this season at the top of the preseason pressure index. Year two should look different than this.
3. Dan Quinn, Commanders (1-2)
- Opened the year as the betting favorite to be the first coach fired. Took a rookie quarterback to the NFC Championship in 2024, then went 5-12 with a defense that finished last in yards allowed.
- He's betting the season on two first-time play callers, and the one win is a two-point escape over Seattle that needed a pick-six.
4. Matt LaFleur, Packers (1-2)
- Green Bay is 1-7 since Micah Parsons tore his ACL last December. That's not a slump, that's a team that stopped working.
- He called the 35-14 home loss to Atlanta a butt-whipping himself, and they ran the ball nine times all night. Week 4 against a Mayfield-less Tampa is the whole season.
5. Mike Vrabel, Patriots (1-2)
- The defense allowed 16 points through two weeks and looked like the hire was working. Then Jacksonville hung 35 on them.
- Drake Maye went 18 of 31 with two picks and no touchdowns in that one, and fixing the quarterback was the entire premise. Nobody's firing Vrabel this season. December's a question.
6. Brian Schottenheimer, Cowboys (1-2)
- He's 8-11-1 as a head coach and has held a winning record for exactly one week of his tenure.
- Called his own opening script terrible after the Giants loss, then lost 34-31 in Baltimore on a 56-yarder after a string of late decisions that didn't help.
7. DeMeco Ryans, Texans (0-3)
- Second straight 0-3 start, and the offense threw it 56 times against Cincinnati without reaching the end zone.
- Twelve wins last year buys real patience. Losing 19-17 to a Colts team that scored one touchdown spends some of it.
8. Shane Steichen, Colts (1-2)
- Ownership publicly told him to fix it after seven straight losses ended 2025, and he's 25-26 with no playoff berths in four seasons.
- The Houston win cooled this off a lot. Take Kansas City to overtime on the road, then beat a division rival, and you've bought a month.
9. Jim Harbaugh, Chargers (0-3)
- Here's where I'll lose people. Two playoff trips in two years is equity, and equity buys a year. A bye-week change is being floated and I don't buy it.
- The warning signs are real though: home losses to the Raiders and Cardinals, a quarterback going backwards, and Harbaugh publicly telling Herbert to "be better" after two years of never criticizing him. Next four are Seattle, Denver, Kansas City, the Rams.
10. Jeff Hafley, Dolphins (0-3)
- Thirty-six points in three games, with 10 of them coming while holding the ball for 34 minutes against Kansas City.
- First-year coaches on gutted rosters almost always get a second season. Almost. We've all seen one get eaten.