Coaching Carousel: End of Season Re-Ranking, Part One

Back in April, I put together a series of eight articles that evaluated and ranked each new head coach going into the 2019 season. After all, if we can guess how a new coach will fit with his players, we might have an edge on identifying good situations for fantasy success.

Now that the season is wrapping up, I thought it was high time to take another look and re-rank the coaches now that we’ve seen a nearly a season’s worth of work.

We’ll take a look at the bottom four performers in this part, and get to the rest in part two.

The Original Ranking

8 – Zac Taylor, Cincinnati Bengals

7 – Kliff Kingsbury, Arizona Cardinals

6 – Vic Fangio, Denver Broncos

5 – Brian Flores, Miami Dolphins

4 – Freddie Kitchens, Cleveland Browns

3 – Matt LaFleur, Green Bay Packers

2 – Adam Gase, New York Jets

1 – Bruce Arians, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The New Ranking

8. Freddie Kitchens, Cleveland Browns (6-9)

I expected more from new coach Kitchens in Cleveland, and I was not alone. The Browns looked like a team breaking out over the final eight games of 2018, with Kitchens leading Baker Mayfield and company to a great finish. It netted Kitchens a shot at the top job, but he’s done nothing but fumble the head coaching football ever since.

The off-season darling Cleveland Browns, landing the best receiver in the game in Odell Beckham Jr, have been a train wreck almost from the first snap. Sure, they were in playoff contention with that middling record, but with as much talent as there was on the roster fans and analysts expected so much more.

Kitchens has made bone-headed decisions all season, from odd play calls to bad usage of timeouts to questionable comments and behavior after the Myles Garrett incident. I just don’t see him making it to 2020.

Old Rank: 4

7. Zac Taylor, Cincinnati Bengals (1-14)

In my original assessment, I did not have high hopes for Taylor and his staff in Cincinnati. My problem with the hire didn’t center around Taylor so much as his staff as a whole. Taylor had little experience himself as a coordinator, and the team then surrounded him with inexperience at both coordinator spots.

Coaching experience aside, Taylor had to deal with a rash of key injuries which kept AJ Green out for the entire season and devastated what was already a poor offensive line. Now the team stares at a 1-14 record, but at least it now has the first pick in 2020 wrapped up. If this were any other team than the Bengals, I might think Taylor could be looking for a new job in the off-season. But given the long, long leash Marvin Lewis had, I imagine Taylor will get at least a little more time to turn this team around.

All that being said, I’m actually moving this hire UP in the rankings. I’d still steer clear of most Bengals until further notice.

Old Rank: 8

6. Vic Fangio, Denver Broncos (6-9)

Fangio was neither young nor a dynamic, offensive coach. In that regard, he was the exception in this particular field. Where most teams went with the young offensive mind, the Broncos went with the wily old defensive coach. I just wasn’t sure how it would all work out.

The defense has managed to stay a top 15 unit, but the offense has been up and down all year. It should be expected if you start the year with a green offensive coordinator in Rick Scangarello and Joe Flacco at quarterback. The Broncos could easily have a couple more wins than six with more than their share of close defeats, as Fangio’s decision making in close games has often been questionable.

Thankfully, the defense is still there and new QB Drew Lock is showing promising signs. I’m sure Fangio will at least get another year or two at the helm, but he must improve his game management if he wants to stick around much longer.

Old Rank: 6

5. Adam Gase, New York Jets (6-9)

If I was wrong in the right way with LaFleur, I was just flat old wrong with Gase. That doesn’t mean I’m ready to bury Gase, as many are, but I do have to shift him down a bit based on the performances this year and as other coaches have performed better than expected. The Jets only managed to win one game in the first eight, but since have gone 5-2.

Sam Darnold continues to develop but still makes the occasional bad decisions of young player. Robby Anderson is on his annual late year tear, and the Jets will have to decide if they want to keep him in the off-season. The Jets have a lot of work to do to get better, but it looks like they will do it with Gase still running the show.

Old Rank: 2