Eagles vs. Dolphins: Why Both Andy Reid and Tony Sparano Are on the Hot Seat

Not too many people predicted that we would be having this conversation at this time in the season. The Eagles were supposed to cruise to the postseason and it looked like the Dolphins were ready to make a playoff run. Had you asked me during the preseason to predict what these team's record would be at this time of the year, I would have probably guessed 10-2 for the Eagles and 8-4 for the Dolphins.

Well, thank God you didn't ask me.

These two teams have been some of the biggest disappointments this season and they appear to be going in different directions. The Eagles seem to be incapable of beating anybody and the Dolphins have been playing their best football of the year. This was supposed to be a game with playoff implications that could determine division champions and wild-card teams. Instead, both the Eagles and Dolphins stand at 4-8 with no chance of making the postseason.

Andy Reid wasn't supposed to be worrying about his job security when the season started, but finds himself desperately needing to reel off a couple wins to have a chance of keeping his job. Reid has been the Eagle's head coach since 1999 and has had only two losing seasons while at the helm.

His first year as head coach, he led the Eagles to a 5-11 record and in 2005 he led them to a 6-10 record. He has a winning percentage of 60 percent in his career, but as we all know, the NFL is a business and if coaches don't produce year in and year out, they are subject to being evaluated and possibly fired.

Reid has not produced this year with the talent that he has been given. Michael Vick has not lived up to his contract, their Pro Bowl-filled secondary has been torched, and the self proclaimed "dream team" has been a total failure. Is it Andy Reid's fault? I'm not sure that it is completely.

However, a coach takes all the blame for a bad record and his seat has been getting hotter as they keep losing. This is a big game for Reid as it can determine whether he keeps or loses his job. He has been one of the best coaches the Eagles have had, but we know that Philly fans want championships or they will make your life miserable.

On the other hand, Tony Sparano has been in the hot seat since his team lost four of their last five games in the 2010-2011 season. This was evident when Stephen Ross, the Dolphins owner, pursued Jim Harbaugh in the offseason while Sparano was still under contract. Then, when he failed to reel in the former Stanford coach, he decided to make it up to Sparano and give him a contract extension. Sparano came into the season feeling that he had to prove himself and his seat got burning hot when the Dolphins opened the season at 0-7.

His seat has since cooled off a little bit, but he has four more games to prove that he can handle being the head coach. His players seem to be giving their all on the football field to try to help him keep his job, but nobody really knows what Ross is willing to do when the season is over.

Sparano was the one responsible for the Dolphins' winning the division in 2008 and going to the playoffs after a 1-15 season in 2007. His team finished with an 11-5 record in 2008 but he's had two straight losing seasons (7-9) since. This year he won't have a winning record for the third consecutive time and that seems like a cause for for not keeping Sparano around for next season.

A win for either of these coaches would be imperative if they expect to be around for next year. Philadelphia hasn't publicly stated that Andy Reid is anywhere near the hot seat, but most of us can figure out on our own that his job is not safe at this time.

As for Sparano, with Stephen Ross as the owner, it would appear that his seat will always be hot. If he can reel off some quality wins at the end of the season, the team might look into retaining him for next year, let him finish out his contract and then go from there. The players sure look like they want Sparano around for next year, and that may be enough for Ross to keep him.