Football News - The Hotseat

New Orleans Saints' Head Coach Jim Haslett

It's getting to be that time of the year in the NFL. The time coaches dred, and the time owners love. Yes, it's the time of the year when coaches are fired. With that said, I will run down the coaches on the NFL's hotseat, and who is most likely to be fired first.

First up is, Jim Haslett:

He has boat loads of talent to work with yet he his team gets blown by former laughingstocks Arizona and San Diego. He has a top tier QB in Aaron Brooks, as well as a top tier RB in Deuce McAllister. He even went out and got Mike McKenzie from the Packers for practically nothing, and still, they aren't winning many games. Expect big changes in the not-so Big Easy in the offseason.

Next up is, Butch Davis:

Ever since he took over for the dreadful Chris Palmer in 2000, his team has floundered below .500. That said, he does not have a ton of talent, but he still has a playoff calibur team that he can't quite seem to compete with. Now he hasn't had a real QB since Otto Graham. Management has seemingly passed on players such as Donovan McNabb, Clinton Portis, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Ben Roethlisberger for guys like Tim Couch and Courtney Brown. With his cherised TE out for the season, Kellen Winslow Jr., there are not many options on offense for new QB Jeff Garcia to throw to. With his Browns off to an ugly 3-7 start, Davis is expected to gone at season's end.

Mike Tice is next on the list, and here's why:

After starting 6-0 last season, the Minnesota Vikings finished a dismal 9-7, blowing their chance at the division to the Arizona Cardinals in the final week. If Tice doesn't get the job done this year and get Minnesota in the playoffs, Tice's job could be in serious jeopardy. At 6-4, tied for the division lead with the Green Bay Packers, the Vikes are in a dogfight once again. Now, with an easier schedule than the Packers, the division should be a lock in 2004, but we said that last year, and look where it got us. Apparently guys like Daunte Culpepper, Jim Kleinsasser, Randy Moss, and a Pro Bowl calibur offensive line wasn't enough to win the division last season, so what does it take this year? Vikings fans hope it doesn't take much, otherwise they're in for a long couple of years.

4th is Mike Martz:

He went to the Super Bowl in only his second year at the helm as head coach of the 'Greatest Show on Turf', but now, 3 years later, the Rams can barely stay above .500. Some week, St. Louis will look great and dominate great teams like the Seahawks, then, the next week, they come out flat against a team like the Bills. It also doesn't help the fact that you have two outstanding RBs in Marshall Faulk and Steven Jackson, and you hardly ever hand the ball off to either of them. That said though, Marc Bulger does have Torry 'Big Game' Holt to throw to, along with long-time Ram Isaac Bruce, but you can't throw the ball all the time. He has a solid o-line and d-line, as well as one of the game's most consistent kickers in Jeff Wilkins, but even that isn't enough for the Rams to run away with the NFC West.

And 5th and finally, we have, Dennis Erickson:

Already in his sophomore season with the Niners, Erickson hasn't really led San Francisco anywhere. Of course, losing Pro Bowlers like Jeff Garcia, Garrison Hearst, Terrell Owens, and Tai Streets doesn't help your cause, but at 1-9, you would at least expect San Francisco to have more than 1 win. His team lacks a veteran presence on offense, and even though the 49ers have good offensive and defensive lines, they simply don't have enough tools on offense to go anywhere. Erickson is suppose to great with young guys, and was suppose to help Tim Rattay and Kevan Barlow get better, but all he has really done, is take them backwards. The second season usually isn't your last season with a team, but it looks as if that will be the case with Dennis Erickson.

With all these coaches on the hotseat, it won't be long until more guys join him on that list, like Norv Turner in Oakland and Packers coach Mike Sherman. Now we know that all the coaches mentioned here won't be axed all at the same time, or in the same season, but we do know that they don't have much longer to last with their respective clubs.




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