The day following the end of the NFL regular season is traditionally known as “Black Monday” for coaches on the chopping block. But this year, only two teams made major firings. The Buffalo Bills canned their entire coaching staff. The other casualty of Black Monday was, of course, Redskins coach Jim Zorn.
Meanwhile, three coaches on the hot seat — Tampa Bay’s Raheem Morris, Chicago’s Lovie Smith and Carolina’s John Fox — either received endorsements from ownership or have been guaranteed another year with their respective organizations.
So what happened to Black Monday? A few things, actually. Last offseason, nine teams changed head coaches — including four with a Super Bowl winner on the sideline. Unless you finish 1-15 or tick off an owner, you’re going to be given more than one year to run a team.
Then there’s the pending battle over the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. Is an owner going to shell out big-time bucks for a coach with an uncapped year — and later, a lockout — looming? Not likely. Owners would rather spend money on players.
Unless, of course, you’re Dan Snyder, in which case, you go out and get both.
