NFL Week 18 Overreactions
USAT’s Prince Grimes breaks down the NFL playoff picture after closing out the regular season.
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A dreaded day on the NFL calendar has arrived.
“Black Monday” typically is the harbinger of significant upheaval throughout the league, with teams often taking swift action to shake up their coaching staffs and front offices with the season complete. Typically, about to six or seven head-coaching posts come open each year, though several recent offseasons have seen even more extensive overhauls. With three teams already having moved on, it’s a good bet that more action is still to come. And even with several reports indicating that not many coaches are distinctly on thin ice, this stage almost annually has a way of stirring up a few surprises.
USA TODAY Sports will have all the latest updates from throughout Monday, so check back for all the latest:
After the Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw their four-year reign atop the NFC South end in Week 18, Todd Bowles still has yet to meet with ownership about his future.
But the Buccaneers coach stated his case on Monday.
“I’ve earned the chance,” Bowles said in an end-of-season news conference. “I’ve won three straight division titles so that says at lot as far as I’m concerned.”
The Buccaneers won their regular-season finale with the Panthers, but Carolina won the division after the Atlanta Falcons’ victory over the New Orleans Saints created a three-way tie atop the NFC South.
The Atlanta Falcons’ decision to dismiss him might not mean that Raheem Morris is kept out of the head-coaching ranks in 2026.
The Tennessee Titans plan to interview the former Falcons coach, according to ESPN’s Peter Schrager.
The Titans are moving quickly to set up interviews with candidates, with reports indicating that Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph on the team’s list.
In a 24-hour window full of coaching news, the Miami Dolphins have been an outlier.
While other franchises moved swiftly to either dismiss their head coach or confirm that they were moving ahead, the Dolphins have not publicly addressed the status of Mike McDaniel. On Monday, the coach indicated that no news is good news.
“My understanding is I’m the head coach of the Miami Dolphins until told otherwise,” McDaniel told reporters.
McDaniel said he would be part of the process to select the Dolphins’ next general manager after the team parted ways with Chris Grier at midseason. The final decision, however, will be made by owner Stephen Ross.
Kevin Stefanski might not need to wait long for his next head-coaching opportunity to materialize.
After being let go by the Cleveland Browns on Monday, Stefanski is expected to speak with the Atlanta Falcons, New York Giants and Tennessee Titans about their coaching vacancies, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
A two-time NFL Coach of the Year, Stefanski is one of the rare proven commodities in this year’s pool of coaching candidates.
Less than 24 hours after firing Raheem Morris, the Falcons are moving on with their coaching search.
The team on Monday requested an interview with Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, according to multiple reports.
With the Seahawks on a bye, Kubiak is permitted to interview with teams this week.
The Falcons have gotten an up-close look at Kubiak’s offenses on multiple occasions. In early December, Seattle rolled to a 37-9 win over Atlanta. The Falcons also squared off against Kubiak’s offenses twice in 2024, when he was offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints.
Weaver was also on the Falcons’ interview list in 2024, when the team eventually hired Morris.
The Arizona Cardinals are moving on from coach Jonathan Gannon after three seasons, the team announced Monday.
Gannon posted a 15-36 record, with Arizona dropping 14 of its last 15 games after a 2-0 start.
The Cardinals had been a popular pick to enjoy a breakthrough season in 2025 after an 8-9 finish a year prior. Instead, Arizona posted the worst point differential (-133) of any NFC team and finished the season with 24 players on injured reserve.
The move could be the first shake-up in an offseason that could also see the team move on from quarterback Kyler Murray, who was shut down late in the season with a foot injury.
The Las Vegas Raiders are starting from scratch again.
The team on Monday fired Pete Carroll after a 3-14 season that landed it the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
“The Las Vegas Raiders have relieved Pete Carroll of his duties as head coach. We appreciate and wish him and his family all the best,” the team said in a statement. “Moving forward, General Manager John Spytek will lead all football operations in close collaboration with Tom Brady, including the search for the club’s next coach. Together, they will guide football decisions with a shared focus on leadership, culture, and alignment with the organization’s long-term vision and goals.”
Carroll, 74, had remained resolute that he wanted to remain with the team and wasn’t contemplating retirement.
“Nobody is talking to me about that,” he said. “I haven’t said a word about that.”
The New York Giants won’t be undergoing a full reset in 2026.
Joe Schoen will remain the team’s general manager, the Giants announced Monday.
The Giants fired Brian Daboll in November and kept Schoen, but the general manager’s standing seemed to be uncertain down the stretch. On Monday, however, New York reiterated its commitment to Schoen.
“As previously stated, Joe Schoen will remain our General Manager and continue to lead our football operations and the search for our next head coach,” co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch said in a statement. “Continuity and stability in the front office is important to our progress.
“We believe in our young core of talent, which we can build around for future success.”
The Cincinnati Bengals missed out on the postseason for the third consecutive year, but Zac Taylor is sticking around as head coach.
Taylor and Duke Tobin will both remain with the team in 2026, the team announced Monday.
“Our focus is on building a team that can consistently compete at the highest level, with the goal of winning championships,” Bengals owner Mike Brown said in a statement. “After thoughtful consideration, I am confident that Duke Tobin and Zac Taylor are the right leaders to guide us forward. They have proven theycan build and lead teams that compete for championships. We trust their plans expect to return to our desired level of success.”
With an extensive jump on the field in their coaching search, the Tennessee Titans are now taking the first steps toward identifying Brian Callahan’s full-time replacement.
The Titans have requested interviews with Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, according to multiple reports.
The firs two moves come as no surprise given the link between the Kansas City coordinators and Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi, who rose through the ranks with the Chiefs from 2009-24 before taking the top job in Tennessee last year.
Nagy is seeking his second chance as an NFL head coach after going 34-31 in four seasons with the Chicago Bears.
Joseph is also trying to break back into the head-coaching ranks after serving as the Broncos’ leader from 2017-18. With Denver having secured the top seed and a bye, Joseph will be able to interview with teams this week.
The first split of Black Monday is here.
Kevin Stefanski has been fired by the Cleveland Browns, the team announced.
“We have tremendous gratitude for Kevin’s leadership of the Cleveland Browns over the last six seasons,” Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam said in a statement. “He is a good football coach and an even better person. We appreciate all his hard work and dedication to our organization but our results over the last two seasons have not been satisfactory, and we believe a change at the head coaching position is necessary. We wish Kevin, Michelle and the Stefanski family all the best in the future.”
Andrew Berry will remain in place as general manager and oversee the search for the next head coach.
Speculation had mounted entering the Browns’ season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals that the two-time NFL Coach of the Year would not return for 2026. Stefanski has a career record of 45-56, but he twice took Cleveland to the postseason.
“After six seasons as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, I leave with an immense sense of gratitude,” Stefanski said in a statement. “When I arrived in January of 2020, this organization, this community and Browns fans embraced me and my family with open arms. I cannot express properly in words how good we have been treated. A sincere ‘Thank You’ to everyone who I have been so blessed to work for and with over these six seasons.”
Stefanski could become one of the more enticing candidates on the open market for other teams with a vacancy.
The Atlanta Falcons continue to shake up their setup just one day after firing Raheem Morris and Terry Fontenot.
Rich McKay will no longer serve as the team’s CEO, the Falcons announced Monday. Team president Greg Beadles will add that role to his title.
Additionally, owner Arthur Blank confirmed that the organization “will be adding a new president of football from outside the organization.” Former Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan has widely been reported as a leading candidate for that role.
“We plan to move quickly on this hire so the new president of football can be fully involved in the selection of our new leaders in the head coach and general manager roles,” Blank said in a statement.
A crushing loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers not only ended the Baltimore Ravens but opened the door to questions about coach John Harbaugh’s future with the franchise.
Harbaugh, however, was clear after the game about his wishes.
“Yeah, I love these guys,” Harbaugh said when asked if he hoped to return next year.
Two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson couldn’t process questions about the future in the immediate aftermath of the loss.
“You’re asking me about next year,” Jackson said. “I’m so caught up in what just happened tonight, I can’t focus on that right now. I just told you. I’m stunned right now. I’m still trying to process what’s going on.”
The Indianapolis Colts didn’t provide much of a runway for speculation to linger.
Shortly after their season concluded with a 38-30 loss to the Houston Texans, the Colts announced that both coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard would return for 2026.
Indianapolis became the first team in 30 years to start 8-2 and miss the playoffs, as the team dropped its final seven games. Daniel Jones’ torn Achilles in Week 14 loomed large over the franchise’s spiral, with the Colts signing 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers – who had been retired for five years – in a last-ditch attempt to revive its postseason hopes. But the Colts would still miss the playoffs for the fifth straight year.
Indianapolis now enters a challenging offseason with at least some stability. The Colts must decide on the future of Jones, who is set to become a free agent, while also fortifying a roster that will be without a first-round draft pick for the next two years after the midseason trade to acquire cornerback Sauce Gardner.
Ahead of a day that’s typically heavy on action, USA TODAY Sports’ Nate Davis provided four predictions for Black Monday.
At least one of them – regarding a playoff team joining those embracing change – won’t be clear until later. But count Davis among the group expecting a quieter Monday than we’ve seen in years past.