2024 NFL Coaching Changes
2024 NFL Coaching Changes
Coaching in the NFL is an underrated aspect of handicapping. This season, there are eight new head coaches, but there are 29 new coordinators out of 32 teams. Let’s take a look at each chance and how they may impact the team.
(new coaches listed next to team)
Atlanta: HC Raheem Morris, OC Zac Robinson, DC Jimmy Lake
Morris was the defensive coordinator with the LA Rams when they won the Super Bowl and interim head coach with the Falcons in 2020. He’s a defensive guy, though he has experience as a wide receivers coach with Atlanta. Robinson has never called plays but comes from the Sean McVay tree and should work well with Kirk Cousins. Lake is another former Rams coach, but he’ll be running Morris’ defense.
Baltimore: DC Zach Orr
Orr takes over for Mike McDonald, who took over in Seattle for Pete Carroll. Orr is just 31 and had to retire in 2016 due to injuries and became an assistant coach with Baltimore and Jacksonville.
Buffalo: OC Joe Brady, DC Bobby Babich
Brady started calling plays last season as a quarterbacks coach when the Bills fired Ken Dorsey. He was offensive coordinator with Carolina from 2020-21. The 40-year-old Babich was Buffalo’s linebacker coach in the last two seasons.
Carolina: HC Dave Canales, OC Brad Idzik.
Canales takes over for Frank Reich, who coached just 11 games with the Panthers. The 43-year-old was the OC at Tampa Bay last season and it was the only season where he was the chief play-caller under Todd Bowles. Idzik will run is offense, which will emphasize the run. Idzik, who is just 32, was Tampa Bay’s wide receiver coach last season.
Chicago: OC Shane Waldron, DC Eric Washington
The Bears add QB Caleb Williams and they add former Seattle OC Shane Waldron. He was a pass-game coordinator under Sean McVay before that so expect the Beras to throw more. Eric Washington was defensive coordinator with the Panthers in 2018-19 and spent eight seasons there as an assistant. His last job was with Buffalo as their assistant head coach/defensive line coach.
Dallas: DC Mike Zimmer
Zimmer is one of the more experienced coordinators in the league. He was last defensive coordinator at Cincinnati from 2008-13. He also worked for Jerry Jones from 1994-2006 as a defensive assistant and coordinator. He moved to head coach at Minnesota from 2014-21 and then followed Deion Sanders around as a consultant at Jackson State and Colorado.
Green Bay: DC Jeff Hafley
The 45-year-old Hafley was head coach at Boston College from 2020-23. He was a defensive assistant in college and the NFL before landing a co-defensive coordinator job with Ohio State in 2019.
Jacksonville: DC Ryan Nielsen
Neilsen was a former DC at Atlanta in 2023 and spent six seasons at Atlanta as a defensive assistant.
Las Vegas: HC Antonio Pierce, OC Luke Getsy.
Pierce took over for Josh McDaniels on Oct. 31 and earned the full-time gig with a competitive showing. He was a linebackers coach from 2022 and before that was coaching at Arizona State as a defensive coordinator. The new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy spent about a decade in Green Bay and was the coordinator in Chicago in 2022, before getting fired. He wasn’t that successful, but had an ineffective passing QB in Justin Fields.
LA Chargers: HC Jim Harbaugh, OC Greg Roman, DC Jesse Minter.
Harbaugh takes over after winning a title at Michigan. He was also with the 49ers from 2011-14 and running the football was his forte’. That’s why he hired Roman, who last coached in Baltimore from 2019-22 where the Ravens ranked first or second in first down rush rate each year. Inter was a defensive coordinator under Harbaugh in Michigan and has bounced back from the NFL and college since 2006. His only NFL stint came with Baltimore from 2017-20.
LA Rams: DC Chris Shula
The grandson of the late Don Shula and son of Dave Shula has been with the Rams since 2019 as a linebackers coach and defensive back coach. He was also a pass game coordinator and pass rush coordinator. This is his first time calling plays on defense in the NFL.
Miami: DC Anthony Weaver
The 43-year-old former defensive lineman was an assistant head coach and defensive line coach with Baltimore the previous two seasons. He was also a coordinator in Houston in 2020.
New England: HC Jerod Mayo, OC Alex Van Pelt, DC DeMarcus Covington
Mayo has huge shoes to fill taking over for legendary Bill Belichick. Mayo has spent 16 seasons with the Pats as a player and an assistant. He was an inside linebackers coach from 2019-23. Van Pelt was a OC/QB coach in Buffalo, Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Cincinnati and Cleveland. His offense was usually a strong rushing squad. Covington hasn’t called plays in the NFL, where he’s been a OLB coach and defensive line coach with the Patriots. Mayo will likely have a say in the defense, just like Belichick.
New Orleans: OC Klint Kubiak
The son of Gary Kubiak was passing game coordinator with San Francisco last season and the OC at Minnesota in 2021. His father was one of the premier OC’s in the game before becoming a head coach in Houston and Denver.
NY Giants: DC Shane Bowen
Bowen was the DC at Tennessee from 2021-23. Despite being just 37, he’s had eight seasons as an assistant in the NFL.
Philadelphia: OC Kellen Moore, DC Vic Fangio
The Eagles signed OC Brian Johnson after just one season. Moore was the OC with the Chargers last season, who struggled offensively, but had numerous injuries to key starters including Justin Herbert, who missed four games. Fangio was last the DC at Miami, before spending three seasons as the head coach in Denver. Before that, he was the DC at Carolina, Indianapolis, Houston, San Francisco and Chicago.
Pittsburgh: OC Arthur Smith
Former Atlanta head coach Arthur Smith takes over the offense. He had mixed results as a head coach in Atlanta. He go the job due to his success as an OC at Tennessee, where Ryan Tannehill averaged 9.0 yards per pass attempt in 2019.
Seattle: HC Mike McDonald, OC Ryan Grubb, DC Aden Durde
McDonald was the DC in Baltimore, where they had one of the best units in the game. He gives the keys on offense to Ryan Grubb, who had an outstanding offense at the University of Washington. This will be his first NFL job. Durde was the DL coach for Dallas from 2021-23. He was from England originally.
Tampa Bay: OC Liam Coen
Coen was the OC at Kentucky last season and the OC with the LA Rams in 2022. The 38-year-old will run the offense this season in Tampa Bay. He’ll look to improve on a running game that was atrocious. Expect a lot of zone-run schemes.
Tennessee: HC Brian Callahan, DC Dennard Wilson
Callahan will call the plays on offense for the first time in his career. He takes over for Mike Vrabel as head coach. The son of long time NFL coach Bill Callahan was the Bengals’ OC from 2019-23. Tyler Boyd joins him from Cincy to play WR. Wilson was the DB coach with Baltimore last season and the DB coach with the Eagles in 2022.
Wahington: HC Dan Quinn, OC Kliff Kingsbury, DC Joe Whitt
Quinn comes to Washington after serving as the DC for Dallas for three seasons and head coach in Atlanta from 2015-20. Kingsbury bring an Air Raid past though his Arizona team in 2022 as head coach ranked 29th in yards per play. Whitt comes from Dallas as the secondary coach to run the Commanders’ and Quinn’s defense.
