Which NFL Head Coaches Will Be Fired After the 2014 Season?

We're headed into what could be the most fascinating final month of the regular season in NFL history in terms of playoff races. 

After all, look at the playoff standings. An incredible 11 teams in the 16-team American Football Conference have at least seven wins, including six with exactly seven wins. Expect a wild final month with both wild-card spots completely up in the air. 

In the NFC, seven teams have at least seven victories. Then there's the NFC South, which will likely feature a team with a losing record earning a home playoff game in the wild-card round of the playoffs. 

But for all of the teams in the playoff hunt, there's about 10 or 12 that realistically have no chance at securing a berth in the postseason. Some of those teams are rebuilding teams, like the Jacksonville Jaguars, while others are in need of a complete overhaul, like the New York Jets. 

By my list, there are 18 head coaches in the NFL who are at least mildly on the hot seat heading into the season's final stretch. Below I will highlight the 10 whose seats should be the hottest, with the teams listed in alphabetical order and my opinion of whether the coach will retain his job for the 2015 season. 

Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons

One of the most successful coaches in the league from 2008 to 2012, Mike Smith posted five straight winning seasons and four postseason berths before the Falcons' struggles in the trenches caught up with the team in 2013. They've won just nine games in the past two seasons, and even though they are actually winning the NFC South with a 5-7 record, the New Orleans Saints are the heavy favorites to capture the division title, per Football Outsiders. The Falcons are trending in the wrong direction, and Smith has come under lots of scrutiny for his poor clock management. 

Prediction: Fired 

Doug Marrone, Buffalo Bills

The Bills are one of the surprising teams in the NFL this season, winning seven games and staying in the AFC playoff race despite benching first-round quarterback E.J. Manuel in the season's first month. They're ranked second in defense, boasting one of the best defensive lines in the league.

Their remaining schedule is brutal, as they still have to face Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, the game's three best quarterbacks, so forget about a postseason appearance in 2014. But they're a playoff sleeper in 2015 if they can figure out who will be their quarterback. 

Prediction: Not Fired 

Ron Rivera, Carolina Panthers

Riverboat Ron could become the first head coach in NFL history to be fired the season after he was named Coach of the Year. The 2013 Panthers shocked the football world by winning 12 games behind an efficient season from Cam Newton and one of the league's top defenses. But they've taken a major step backwards in 2014, winning just three of their first 12 games despite playing in a historically bad division. Rivera is nearing the end of his fourth season, but with zero playoff wins and just one winning record, he doesn't deserve to return in 2015. 

Prediction: Fired 

Marc Trestman, Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears might be the biggest trainwreck in the NFL this season when compared to preseason expectations. Although the Bears collapsed late in 2013, their 8-8 record and No. 2 ranking in points scored behind both Jay Cutler and Josh McCown gave Marc Trestman the well-deserved reputation as the "quarterback whisperer."

But they've been largely uncompetitive in 2014, winning just five of their first 13 games and clinching a second straight non-winning season. Cutler hasn't taken the step forward that the Bears hoped for, and there's growing speculation that Trestman is losing the Bears' locker room. 

Prediction: Fired 

Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals

Marvin Lewis has coached the Cincinnati Bengals for 11 full seasons and he's never won a playoff game. I repeat, he's never won a single playoff game. He's led the Bengals into the playoffs five times (2005, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013), with the Bengals losing those five games by an average of 13.6 points. Andy Dalton hasn't developed as expected since he entered the league in 2011 and there's no sign that the Bengals are going to embark on a surprise playoff run this year. But they'll likely win their division, and that should be enough for Lewis to return, even if they suffer a sixth first-round playoff exit without a loss. 

Prediction: Not Fired 

Jason Garrett, Dallas Cowboys

You could actually make a pretty compelling case for Jason Garrett as an underrated head coach. He's led the Cowboys to at least a .500 record in his four-and-a-half seasons as coach, officially clinching his first winning record Thursday night. But he's also never reached the playoffs, and he's an embarrassing 0-3 in season-finale NFC East championship games.

Even if Garrett misses the playoffs this season, and I think he will, he's having easily his best season. It'll be a tough call for owner Jerry Jones with Garrett in the final year of his contract, but expect him to return. 

Prediction: Not Fired 

Gus Bradley, Jacksonville Jaguars

The defensive coordinator for the top-ranked Seattle Seahawks in 2012, Gus Bradley has been a total disaster since he took over as Jacksonville's head coach in 2013. He's started both seasons 0-8, and he's won just six of 28 games. In 2013, all three head coaches he defeated were fired after the season (Gary Kubiak, Mike Mularkey and Rob Chudzinski), a list that should also include Tom Coughlin from this year.

Although Bradley is considered a defensive genius, he's overseen a Jaguars defense that has ranked 28th in points scored in both seasons. He's brought over players from Seattle that have failed (Chris Clemons). He hasn't developed his draft picks on either side of the ball (Blake Bortles, Luke Joeckel, Jonathan Cyprien). His team can't score, they can't stop anyone, and they're not even competitive in most of their losses. Why Bradley's name doesn't surface more often among coaches who should be fired is a complete mystery to me. He's been a total disaster, but I expect him to be given at least one more season.

Prediction: Not Fired 

Tom Coughlin, New York Giants

One of the most interesting coaching tenures in NFL history belongs to Tom Coughlin. He's in his 11th season with the New York Giants. After a losing record in 2004, he posted eight straight non-losing seasons, reaching the postseason four times and twice winning the Super Bowl in dramatic fashion against Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.

But he's now missed the playoffs in five of the past six seasons, and the 2014 season marks easily his worst as Giants coach. Things will get worse before they get better, as the Giants have a 33-year-old turnover-prone quarterback in the decline of his career, plus a bottom-10 defense. At 68 years old, Coughlin may be allowed to "walk away" at the end of the season, but don't expect him to return for a 12th season in New York. 

Prediction: Allowed to retire 

Rex Ryan, New York Jets

Brash and outspoken, Rex Ryan was the talk of the football world when he led the New York Jets to consecutive AFC Championship Games in his first two seasons as the team's head coach. But the past four seasons have been a nightmare, and it's a surprise he wasn't fired after 2013. His defense, although hampered by injuries, has allowed a ridiculous 28 touchdowns against just four interceptions this year, and he's now failed to develop Geno Smith into a legitimate NFL starter after also failing to develop Mark Sanchez into a legitimate NFL starter.

You can't go four straight seasons without a winning record and keep your job, especially in the media capital of the world. Rex Ryan will be a terrific defensive coordinator next season, but as a head coach, he's finished. 

Prediction: Fired

Jeff Fisher, St. Louis Rams

I've always thought that Jeff Fisher was one of the league's most overrated coaches during his 17 seasons in Tennessee. He never won a Super Bowl and was the master of the .500 season, winning exactly eight games six times. He's been largely mediocre during his three seasons in St. Louis too, posting back-to-back-to-back losing seasons and failing to develop Sam Bradford into even an adequate NFL starter.

But the fight his Rams have shown in 2014, highlighted by victories over both Super Bowl teams from 2013, should be enough to earn him one more year. Let's give Fisher a first-round pick to use on a quarterback (unless they swing a trade for a player like RGIII or Brian Hoyer) and see if he can finally get the Rams into the playoffs. It should help when Jim Harbaugh isn't coaching in the NFC West in 2015, too. 

Prediction: Not Fired