Redskins: 30 candidates who could potentially replace Jay Gruden as head coach

Jay Gruden is no longer the head coach of the Redskins. Here’s a list of candidates that could end up replacing him.

The question surrounding Jay Gruden during his sixth season with the Redskins weren’t about if he was going to be fired. They were about when.

Gruden was in his sixth season with the team and while the squad contemplated making some changes during the 2019 offseason, they ultimately decided to roll with Gruden. And so far, the results were disastrous.

The Redskins ended up going 0-5 with Gruden at the helm before firing him after their loss to the New England Patriots. Despite the team’s unwillingness to fire coaches midseason, Gruden met that fate and was far and away the first NFL coach to lose his job in 2019. And now, the Redskins will be looking for a replacement and relying on Bill Callahan as the interim until they have a full-time guy in charge.

With Gruden gone, the Redskins will have to explore all avenues for a potential replacement. Retreads will be explored but the best options for this team are young head coaches with something to prove. At the same time, those options have to be willing to stand firm with their system to avoid being swept up in the drama of the Redskins organization.

With that said, here’s a look at 25 potential candidates for the Redskins head coaching job including the good, the bad, and the ugly.

NOTE: These rankings are based on both the quality of the coaching candidate and their potential willingess to come to the Redskins. So, some more talented options may rank lower on this list because they may not be willing to actually consider coaching in Washington.

This list will be updated throughout the season and the rankings could change throughout the season.

Previously: Unranked

It seems highly unlikely that Meyer would coach in the NFL. He has only ever been a college coach and most recently, he retired from Ohio State due to health issues and returned to broadcasting.

Of course, that isn’t the first time that Meyer has retired for that reason. He did so when he was the Gators coach and then just a year later, he went to work for the Buckeyes. The same thing could happen this time around. If he’s healthy, he could come coach.

It seems likely that Meyer would return to the collegiate ranks. But if the Redskins wanted to make a splash, Meyer could qualify. He worked with Dwayne Haskins and Terry McLaurin at Ohio State, so he’s already familiar with them. And perhaps in his system, the team could find some success.

That said, it doesn’t seem very likely that Meyer would interest many NFL teams. He simply doesn’t have the experience needed to be an NFL head coach. And after a year out of college ball, it doesn’t make sense for him to make the jump to the next level.

While Meyer’s name may be mentioned in connection to Haskins, don’t expect him to actually get the job with the Redskins.

Previously: Unranked

I’m listing Quinn here in this update as a formality. After all, he did help get the Falcons to the Super Bowl just a few years ago. However, since that time, things have fallen apart in Atlanta.

Some expected that the Falcons could be a Super Bowl contender this season. And at the very least, their strong offense would give them a good chance to make the playoffs. Instead, the team is a woeful 1-7 and is lucky to have their one win, as the Eagles nearly beat them at home.

The team’s lack of success this season certainly falls on Quinn. He changed up his entire coaching staff this offseason adding a new offensive coordinator, special teams coordinator (formerly of the Redskins, Ben Kotwica), and installed himself as the defensive coordinator. Evidently, he spread himself too thin, as the defense can barely tackle and the offensive line has regressed horribly leading to the offense’s lack of success.

Quinn will almost certainly be fired by Atlanta by the end of the season, and he may get attention as a result. But in all likelihood, he will need to restore his value before taking on another head coaching job — if he ever does. He was a great defensive coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks before Atlanta hired him, so maybe he’ll become a coordinator elsewhere, especially if a guy like Kris Richard gets a head coaching position.

Quinn could make sense for the Redskins on the defensive side of the ball, but likely not as a head coach. We’ll see if they have more of an interest in him as a coordinator.

Previously: Unranked

Yes, Bill Callahan is going to be on this list. He probably shouldn’t be an option for the team, but if he can get the squad on the right track, the team will consider him.

So far, Callahan has preached bringing more discipline and accountability to the Redskins along with a better run game. The lattermost point has shown up, but the rest is still a work in progress.

The thing that the Redskins can’t do is compare Callahan to Gruden when making the hiring decision. Obviously, Callahan has been a little bit of a spark for the Redskins team, but it hasn’t manifested itself into results yet. Just because they may be more consistently competitive than they were with Gruden on the field doesn’t make Callahan the right option.

We’ll keep an eye on Callahan moving forward, but consider him a longshot to get the job. But as a courtesy, the team may give him an interview if they perform better down the stretch.

Previously: 21

Keep in mind that this list is essentially encompassing all the options that could be available for the Redskins. Not all of them are going to be good, but I can imagine a world in which they interview Rex Ryan for a job.

Ryan was once one of the NFL’s best defensive coordinators and then, one of the league’s best defensive-minded head coaches. But his time with the Buffalo Bills didn’t go as planned. Ryan was only with the team for two seasons and despite the team’s solid performance under Doug Marrone, they weren’t able to do well under Ryan. His defenses were merely mediocre and the team was never a true playoff contender.

Over the course of the past few years, Ryan has been working as a studio analyst for ESPN. But it’s possible that he could want to return to the coaching ranks if the right job comes along. Could that happen in Washington? Maybe. It’s not likely, but it’s possible.

If the Redskins front office decides that they want to focus on the defense, they could attempt to lure Ryan back to be the head coach for the job. There are plenty of other better options with more upside, but if they can’t land any of them, Ryan may be a last-ditch resort for the team.

While Ryan has talent as a defensive-minded coach and could still be a good coordinator at the NFL level. But as a head coach? That’s questionable. He got himself in trouble at times with his bold proclamations and if he were to be hired and bring that over to Washington, it could cause issues if his teams didn’t live up to expectations.

If considered, Ryan could be a fine option for the Redskins. But he could also quickly become an unmitigated disaster. They’d be better served to target many of the other options on this list, but Ryan’s name may be floated around nonetheless.

Previously: 23

Greg Olson has been an offensive coordinator at the NFL level in 12 of the past 15 seasons. In between stints with the Detroit Lions, St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Oakland Raiders, Olson has been an assistant head coach and a quarterbacks coach.

And his body of work speaks for itself.

Olson’s overall offensive numbers were never anything special. He has only had one top-10 offense and his other teams were all middle-of-the-pack or worse. Still, Olson has done quite a bit while lacking the personnel needed to be successful. And his work with the quarterbacks in his offenses has been terrific.

Olson has turned the likes of Marc Bulger, Josh Freeman, Derek Carr, and Blake Bortles into quality starters at the NFL level. Each passer has enjoyed his respective best season under Olson. He just knows how to connect with quarterbacks and find the minor tweaks that passers need to make to reach the next level.

Having a quarterback guru like Olson around to help Dwayne Haskins develop early on his career could pay massive dividends. For that reason, Olson should get some consideration as the only way to acquire him to work with Haskins would be to offer him a promotion.

That said, it would be a risk hiring Olson solely because his overall resume is only okay at best. He has done well with quarterbacks but his success elsewhere has been fleeting. Still, quarterback is the most important position on the field so Olson’s name could be tossed around a bit at Redskins Park.

Previously: 20

Since 2004, Dave Toub has been a special teams coordinator at the NFL level. He has coached for the Chicago Bears and Kansas City Chiefs, and he routinely has fielded some of the league’s best special teams units.

Toub simply knows how to coach kickers, punters, and returners. The Chiefs always seem to be a threat to have a return touchdown and frequently are able to make game-changing plays with their special teams.

Special teams coordinators don’t always get a lot of love, but Toub, 57, has been an assistant head coach to Andy Reid for the past two seasons. That will make him just a bit more intriguing and the disciplined play of his special teams will be encouraging to teams investigating him as a potential head coach hire.

Toub may not be the flashiest name, but his discipline and special teams prowess could intrigue the Redskins enough to take a look. Perhaps an outside-the-box hire like Toub could be just the infusion of stability that the team needs moving forward.

Previously: 17

Jim Harbaugh is a big name and many NFL fans will remember that he was able to take the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl thanks to great seasons with Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick at the helm. At the NFL level, Harbaugh was always able to get the most out of his quarterbacks and hired great defensive staffs that found success on that side of the ball.

Harbaugh brought that same formula to Michigan. And at first, that seemed to work well. Harbaugh’s defenses were good and the offenses were able to move the ball. Michigan has been in the College Football Playoff conversation year after year, but could just never reach the top.

The lattermost point there is the issue with Harbaugh. While his Michigan teams have been good, they haven’t been able to reach the pinnacle. They haven’t had much success against other top teams. And they were recently beaten badly by Wisconsin in a big game that they were supposed to have a chance at winning. Those types of losses in big moments have been a staple for Harbaugh with the Wolverines.

Additionally, Harbaugh’s development of college quarterbacks hasn’t been very good. Take Shea Patterson, for example. He was expected to have Johnny Manziel-type potential on the field without the off-the-field problems, but he hasn’t been able to put it all together and has instead struggled. Given that quarterbacks had previously been Harbaugh’s calling card, that’s definitely a red flag.

Still, if Michigan decides to move on from Harbaugh, or vice versa, the Redskins could have an interest in him. Perhaps he’s better served as an NFL coach at this point in time and he could have a chance to develop Haskins into a solid starter at the NFL level. If he’s available and the ‘Skins want to make a splash move, he’s a name that could come up. That said, they may be better served to target other options solely because of Harbaugh’s struggles in recent seasons.

Previously: 9

Matt LaFleur is going to get a lot of the credit for the Packers’ turnaround in 2019. And deservedly so. Coming into the season, the Packers had the upside of a potential No. 1 seed in the NFC, but they hadn’t played well in the previous two seasons under Mike McCarthy.

That said, the defense deserves some credit for keeping the team afloat during a slow start for the offense. And that credit goes to Mike Pettine.

In his second year as the defensive coordinator for the Packers, Pettine has been able to transform the team’s defense. They have been a top-11 scoring defense and they have been able to generate a ton of pressure with their free-agent acquisitions, including former Redskins edge rusher Preston Smith.

Pettine definitely received some help from the reinforcements the team added in the draft and free agency, but his ability to integrate these pieces and tailor his scheme to them has been a massive asset. That will get him attention on the head coaching market, especially given his success as a defensive coordinator in the earlier part of the decade for the Jets and Bills.

Pettine also does have head coaching experience, so that could make him an intriguing target. He led the Browns to a 7-9 record in 2014, and that was a massive achievement at the time. If he had better quarterbacks than Brian Hoyer and Johnny Manziel, he may have been able to lead them to a winning record. Ultimately, he didn’t last in Cleveland amid the dysfunction, but he definitely learned at least something about how to run a team during that time.

There are candidates who are better than Pettine, but his experience and defensive prowess could be enough for Washington to consider him. But after he dealt with a dysfunctional Browns franchise, it’s also fair to wonder whether or not he’d be willing to join a Redskins team that is dealing with similar issues from the top down.

Additionally, Pettine’s candidacy has lost a bit of its luster, as the team’s defense has cooled down after a hot start and is mostly employing a bend-but-don’t-break strategy on that side of the ball. If they were a bit stronger at forcing three-and-outs, he could move up, but it’s looking like he’s in the proper role as a coordinator.

Previously: 25

Jim Caldwell is not the most intriguing name on this list. He has already been a head coach twice since 2009 and hasn’t won a Super Bowl during that time. The fact that he’s working with the Dolphins right now might also scare some off.

Despite those facts, Caldwell is still a solid coaching option. He holds a 62-50 record as a head coach and had a winning season in five of his seven years as the head coach.

Most recently, for the Detroit Lions, Lions was able to go 36-28 over the course of four years. His worst record was a 7-9 mark in 2015 and he got the team to the playoffs twice. The only reason that the team moved on from him was that they were very interested in Matt Patricia and decided to bring in a defensive-minded head coach to the team.

Caldwell’s resume speaks for itself and he could be a quality coaching option. The only concern for the Redskins would be that Caldwell doesn’t have a lot of upside. Could he eventually lead the team to the playoffs? Sure. But would they be anything more than above average at the very best? That remains to be seen.

Caldwell could get a call as an experienced option for an interview in Washington. But if they are looking for someone to take them to the next level, they may be better served to target a candidate with more upside. Still, Caldwell could get them back on track, much like he did with the Lions, so he deserves consideration.

Previously: 8

Remember when Ryan Fitzpatrick was playing like the second coming of Tom Brady early last season? That was partially thanks to Todd Monken. Then the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator, Monken was able to help lead the offense to be a top-five unit despite poor blocking and an unsettled quarterback situation.

His success there could be appealing to the Redskins.

Last year, I listed Monken as my second-favorite offensive coaching option for the Redskins to target if they moved on from Gruden. Here’s what I said about him in that piece.

"For the Redskins, Monken would offer an innovating, new approach to the offense… Monken’s play-calling has been very good and if he can get a legitimate quarterback at some point, he could really become one of the young coaching stars in the league. If you’re looking to find a great offensive mind with a proven track record of success, Monken is one of the guys that you will like. Washington should give him a hard look if they decide to move on from Gruden, as Monken could help to bring the offense to the next level within a couple of years of joining the team."

And that proven track record of success came at Southern Miss, with the Buccaneers, and it landed him a job with the Browns.

However, Monken’s offense, and Baker Mayfield in particular, hasn’t performed well this year. That may be a bit on head coach Freddie Kitchens as well as Monken, but the alarming inability to get anything going in the passing game causes Monken to fall in this update of the rankings. He still has been a good coordinator for multiple years and in Washington, he could help the offense out.

Monken could move up if Mayfield and the Browns offense start clicking again with an easier part of their schedule approaching. But for now, he’s downgraded significantly because of the struggles of the Browns this year.

Previously: 19

Taking a branch off the Patriots coaching tree doesn’t always work. But that won’t stop teams from trying to target their assistants for bigger roles. And the solid play of Matt Patricia’s Lions in his second year at the helm will definitely make New England’s assistants more attractive as well.

Joe Judge is not a well-known name, but not many special teams coordinators get time in the spotlight. Still, Judge has consistently done well to coach the Patriots on special teams. Under his watch, the team has continued to find immense success as a unit, and that’s one of the underrated reasons as to why the Patriots are so good.

Judge, 37, has spent the past decade as a special teams assistant or coordinator with the Patriots and with Alabama. So, he has learned under Nick Saban and Bill Belichick. That’s not bad. Not bad at all.

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Judge is also in a unique role with the Patriots this year. He is serving as their receivers coach as well as special teams coordinator, and his ability to manage both positions so far has been solid. He was able to quick reincorporate Josh Gordon into the lineup and also got Antonio Brown involved during his one week there. Now, he will need to do the same with Mohamed Sanu.

Judge has dealt well with a lot of shuffling — including parting with both Gordon and Brown — and has continued to get superior play from his special teams (save for a muffed punt by Gunner Olszewski).

If the Redskins are looking for an outside-the-box hire, Judge could be an interesting option because of his extensive special teams experience coupled with his recent role in the Patriots’ offense. Special teams coordinators don’t often get head coaching jobs, but perhaps Judge could be the next John Harbaugh. Either way, he has potential and could bring strong fundamentals to Washington, something that the team could definitely use.

Previously: 24

Allen could end up being a hot name on this list just as he was on the verge of being last year. The Saints defense had gradually improved for a third-straight season under his watch and he had overseen the development of a number of young defensive backs. His transformation of the Saints defense made him an interesting coaching candidate for a second go-round as the top dog.

Allen did have a head coaching stint with the Raiders from 2012-2014. At that point, Allen, 40, was one of the youngest coaches in the NFL and he struggled to succeed in that role. He went 8-28 over two-plus years in Oakland but has since revitalized his stock in New Orleans.

The Saints defense started the season slowly, but since that time, they have played much better. They are ranked top-10 both in yardage allowed and scoring defense, a fourth-straight year of marked improvement for the unit, and it just speaks about the impact that Allen has had on the team.

Allen has done well to develop talent at all levels of the defense. He helped quickly integrate Marshon Lattimore into the secondary and turn him into a solid player. Additionally, guys like Trey Hendrickson and Demario Davis have improved with the Saints under Allen’s watch. So, that type of development can’t be ignored.

Allen could draw some interest in Washington, but they may focus more on offensive coaching candidates. Still, if they like Allen’s body of work enough, they could give him a shot as a head coach to see if he has learned anything since his Raiders tenure ended five years ago.

Previously: 18

The Rams plucked Sean McVay from the Redskins coaching tree and so far, that has worked swimmingly for them. Perhaps Washington could consider doing the same thing.

McVay’s influence has certainly been felt across the NFL so far, and his success with the Rams has led to teams targeting young, offensive minds to serve as their head coaches. McVay has already put Matt LaFleur (Packers) and Zac Taylor (Bengals) into head coaching positions, and a guy like Shane Waldron could be next.

Waldron, 40, is serving as the Rams passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach this year. He came over to the Rams with McVay after serving as an offensive quality control coach with the Redskins in 2016. He has learned from McVay over the course of the past three years and did serve as a quality control coach with the Patriots in 2008 as well. So, he has experience under Bill Belichick which could be appealing.

Given the success of the Rams’ offense, Waldron could draw interest as a head coach. That said, he’s a bit lower on this list because of how Jared Goff has played to open the 2019 season. Goff hasn’t looked great so far in 2019, and he has only beat up on easier competition, something that was less true under Taylor’s tutelage. That doesn’t necessarily mean Waldron is the problem, but teams might be wary of the offense’s minor regression in the hiring process.

Waldron is a guy that should get consideration from Washington because of his relationship with McVay and the fact that he has ties to the organization. But there are some other more proven options that the team could target ahead of Waldron despite his upside.

Previously: 16

If Jim Harbaugh represents a proven option with recent struggles on his resume, Matt Campbell is the opposite. The Iowa State head coach has a lot of college-level experience but hasn’t yet held a role in the NFL. But the upside is certainly there.

Before the Cleveland Browns hired Freddie Kitchens, Campbell was among the candidates they were considering for a head coaching spot. Ultimately, Campbell elected to stay put and wasn’t seriously involved in the interview process for the Browns. But he could have a chance to coach in the NFL at some point.

Campbell has been a college head coach since 2011 when he took over as Toledo’s interim head coach. He coached Toledo full-time from 2012-2015 before moving onto Iowa State. Toledo posted consecutive nine-win seasons during his final two years as the head coach and made it to three bowl games overall in his four-year tenure.

Campbell moved on to Iowa State for another challenge. The team had just one winning season in the decade before Campbell was hired. In his three years with the team, he has posted two 8-5 seasons and earned them their first bowl win since 2009. He helped make the offense competitive enough to keep up with the high-powered offensive attacks of the Big 12 and was twice named the Big 12 Coach of the Year as a result.

If the Redskins investigate college candidates, Campbell is one who will stick out because of his rich history as a solid offensive player. He also did well to get the most out of his quarterbacks Kyle Kempt and Brock Purdy and was able to maximize David Montgomery’s abilities better than the Chicago Bears currently are. Those should be positives for Campbell and while he might be unproven, he could get consideration if the team wants to give a young up-and-comer a chance.

Previously: 15

The New Orleans Saints have long had one of the league’s better and more consistent offenses. A lot of that is thanks to Sean Payton, who has proven to be one of the league’s better head coaches over the course of the past decade. But his assistants deserve credit as well.

One particularly interesting assistant is Dan Campbell. The former NFL tight end is in his fourth year as a member of the Saints’ staff serving as the team’s assistant head coach and tight ends coach. He’s just 43 and the experience that he has with the Saints could make him an intriguing coaching candidate.

Campbell actually once served as the interim head coach of the Dolphins after they fired Joe Philbin in 2015. Campbell led the team to a 5-7 record after they started 1-3 under Philbin. Ryan Tannehill performed very well under Campbell and he just seemed to know how to motivate the Dolphins. They ultimately tapped Adam Gase as their next head coach, but Campbell landed on his feet in New Orleans.

With four extra years of a prominent coaching role under his belt, Campbell is now an appealing head coaching candidate. His biggest strength is that he knows how to get players to play hard, and that’s something that the Redskins have lacked under Gruden. If Campbell came in with the energy and was able to tweak the offense to make it work better under Haskins, the Redskins could quickly be set on that side of the ball. Then, it would just be about fixing the defense, which would fall more on Campbell’s coordinator.

Campbell may not be as big a name as some of the other coaches on this list, but he should get consideration for a job. He could be just the infusion of youth, offensive skills, and energy that the ‘Skins need to kick their team into a higher gear.

Previously: 13

This is a name that might get thrown around. And the reasoning behind it is obvious. Day fits the mold of the young offensive-minded head coaches that have been getting a chance in the NFL. Plus, he has ties to some of the key players on the Redskins roster.

Notably, Day coached Dwayne Haskins and Terry McLaurin at Ohio State in 2018 before they declared for the 2019 NFL Draft. Day helped lead Haskins to one of the best seasons in Big 10 history while McLaurin proved to be a solid weapon for Haskins. Day was the offensive coordinator save for three games as the interim head coach that season, but he still got the most out of the team’s offensive playmakers.

In the wake of Urban Meyer’s retirement, Day was tapped to take over for him and serve as the head coach. So far, he is an undefeated 8-0 and has helped transfer quarterback Justin Fields to look really good. Day’s offense is impressive, so that should get him consideration, especially since he spent two years in the NFL as a quarterbacks coach for Chip Kelly with the Eagles and 49ers.

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Of course, there would be some major questions with hiring Day to be the head coach despite his good-looking offensive resume. He will only have, at most, one year of head coaching experience at Ohio State if he was to be hired by any NFL team. And his experience at the NFL level was only that of a position coach. So, that could cause teams to sour on him a bit.

Additionally, there will be questions about whether or not Day happened to inherit a good program from Meyer or if he really put his stamp on this Ohio State team. If teams are wary of that, Day likely won’t be tapped for an NFL job and will choose to spend a couple more years at Ohio State. And frankly, he could choose to do that anyway to further develop his resume as a head coach.

Day could get consideration and it’s well within the realm of possibility that he could be a good NFL head coach or offensive coordinator someday. But with the concerns about his lack of top-level experience, he won’t crack the top-10 in this potential Redskins coaching search.

Previously: 4

Mike McCarthy got a bad rap at the end of his time with the Green Bay Packers. But the fact of the matter is he still can be a good NFL head coach. His time in Green Bay had just run its course.

By the end of his 13-year tenure as the Packers’ head coach, he wasn’t on the same page as Aaron Rodgers and the team’s offense simply couldn’t get going. After two consecutive seasons that saw McCarthy’s Packers fail to make the playoffs, he was let go in favor of Matt LaFleur. And that hire seems to have rejuvenated the Packers (along with the hire of DC Mike Pettine).

During his time with the Packers, McCarthy posted a 125-77-2 record in 204 regular-season games. He led the Packers to a Super Bowl title and had nine offenses rank in the top-10 overall as well. He oversaw the transition from Brett Favre to Rodgers and helped make sure that things went smoothly there, as the Packers missed the playoffs in Rodgers’ first season as the starter before he improved and helped get the team eight straight playoff appearances.

McCarthy’s extensive experience could make him an ideal candidate to take over for the Redskins. He knows how to run an NFL team and while his final two seasons in Green Bay left a lot to be desired, it’s possible that he just needed a change of scenery. And if he buys into the potential of Dwayne Haskins, he could help the offense to reach new heights provided that he can help the team’s top-15 pick to develop.

McCarthy may not have as much upside as some of the other candidates on this list, but he would represent a safe option who might be able to sort out the current situation in Washington. It’s not a guarantee, but he could re-emerge as an above-average head coach at the NFL level.

There are reasons to doubt McCarthy and he may not ultimately be enough of an upgrade to make a difference. But if he’s interested in the job, the Redskins will certainly give him consideration for the opening. However, there are other retread candidates that may interest them more than McCarthy (more on that later).

Previously: 22

The Vikings hired John DeFilippo to be their offensive coordinator after Pat Shurmur left to serve as the head coach of the New York Giants. However, after he struggled to get the team’s offense going, the team parted ways with him and promoted Kevin Stefanski to the offensive coordinator role.

Stefanski, who had been with the Vikings in some capacity since 2004, had been serving as the team’s quarterbacks coach before seeing the promotion to offensive coordinator. He did some nice work with Case Keenum and while Kirk Cousins didn’t quite click as much in his offense, Stefanski has found a way to make the Vikings successful.

In 2019, his first full year as the Vikings’ offensive coordinator, Stefanski has turned the run game into a massive strength for the Vikings. He has been able to get the most out of Dalvin Cook and the team’s offensive line. Their strong performances have been part of the reason that the Vikings have started off the season well and appear to be true competitors in the NFC North.

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And in recent weeks, Kirk Cousins and the passing game have stepped up as well as Stefanski has figured out a way to run a truly balanced offense.

Stefanski doesn’t have a lot of experience as a coordinator. If he finishes the 2019 season as Minnesota’s OC, that will be his first full season as a chief play-caller. Despite this, he could draw interest as a head coaching candidate, as teams are looking for young, offensive-minded head coaches. And his success coordinating a run game could intrigue teams looking to build strong running games around young, unproven quarterbacks.

The Redskins would qualify as a team that could use that. Dwayne Haskins isn’t yet proven and he only had one season worth of starts at the collegiate level. It could behoove Washington to build a strong running game with Derrius Guice and Bryce Love (provided that they can get and stay healthy), so perhaps Stefanski could be hired to help out with that.

Stefanski would be a different type of candidate because his success has mostly come with the running game, but he does have experience as a quarterbacks coach and Keenum’s strong showing in Minnesota should earn him some kudos (though Pat Shurmur was a big part of that success). For that reason, his name should be on the list of potential candidates for the Redskins job, though his relative lack of experience puts him behind some other top offensive candidates on this list.

Previously: 6

If there is going to be an internal candidate to take the Redskins coaching vacancy, it’s going to be Kevin O’Connell.

O’Connell, the former third-round pick by the New England Patriots out of San Diego State, spent parts of five seasons in the NFL as a quarterback for five different organizations. He went 4-of-6 for 23 yards during his career with all of his passes coming in mop-up duty during his first season with the Patriots.

Since his departure from playing in 2012, O’Connell has turned himself into a respected coaching candidate at the NFL level despite just being 34 years old. He broke into the coaching ranks as a quarterbacks coach with the Cleveland Browns in 2015. He would switch teams twice in the next two seasons working for the San Francisco 49ers and the Washington Redskins. But for the past few seasons, O’Connell has climbed the ladder in Washington.

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After beginning as the team’s quarterbacks coach in 2017, O’Connell was promoted to be the pass-game coordinator in 2018. This was to avoid losing him to his former boss, Chip Kelly, who became a head coach at UCLA and wanted to hire O’Connell to run his offense. Then, in 2019, O’Connell was promoted to offensive coordinator as he took over for Matt Cavanaugh, who became the team’s assistant head coach.

So far, O’Connell’s offense has had its moments. It hasn’t always been good, but it’s clear that he has had some innovative ideas like using Steven Sims Jr. as a ball-carrier out of the backfield. If the front office likes O’Connell enough and thinks that he has shown enough as a head coaching option, they could elect to give the young offensive-minded coach a chance.

The reason that O’Connell isn’t higher here is that the team might prefer to fully clean house in their search for a new head coach. So, that could be an obstacle for O’Connell. Still, if the team likes him enough, they could try to keep him around as the new coach. But either way, O’Connell will be able to find work whether or not the ‘Skins target him as a head coach. And who knows? Maybe he could even stay on as the team’s offensive coordinator.

Previously: 12

In 2018, Matt Eberflus was hired by Josh McDaniels to be the defensive coordinator for the Indianapolis Colts. He signed his contract and was set to be the new right-hand man for the new Colts head coach.

Then, a small problem came up. McDaniels didn’t come. Eberflus was still on the staff, but they had no head coach. Thankfully for Eberflus, the Colts decided to keep their top assistants when they brought in Frank Reich to officially take over as the head coach. And the move paid off.

During his first season in Indianapolis, Eberflus turned the Colts’ defense into a surprisingly strong unit. He incorporated rookie second-round draft pick Darius Leonard into the team well and turned him into one of the NFL’s best tacklers. He also helped to coach up countless other players including Kenny Moore, Malik Hooker, Kemoko Turay, and many others.

The Colts defense in ’18 was a top-12 unit and while they haven’t been quite as strong this season, they have been solid and have helped the Colts to stay afloat despite being much less powerful on offense in the wake of Andrew Luck’s surprising retirement.

Eberflus is a solid defensive mind and he could work wonders with the ‘Skins and find ways to tap into the top-level potential of their defensive squad. He should certainly get some consideration for the head coaching role and could be viewed as one of the best defensive options to take over and lead the squad.

Previously: 10

Byron Leftwich is considered an up-and-comer in the coaching ranks. The former first-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars had a decent nine-year NFL career but since becoming a coach, he has been even better.

Leftwich first joined the staff of the Arizona Cardinals as an intern under Bruce Arians. Following his retirement, Leftwich remained with the team as a quarterbacks coach and took over for offensive coordinator Mike McCoy early in Steve Wilks’ lone season as the team’s head coach. While Leftwich didn’t get the team to new heights, he did what he could with a limited arsenal of offensive weaponry and showed some innovative play design at times as well.

With Arians becoming the head coach in Tampa Bay during the 2019 offseason, Leftwich joined on as his offensive coordinator. And in that role, he has done well.

Despite losing Todd Monken and DeSean Jackson, the Bucs offense has largely been great. They still ebb and flow a little bit with Jameis Winston, but Leftwich has ensured that they were able to stay a top-10 unit even with Monken’s departure. And notably, Leftwich helped the team to score 55 points on the road against a solid Los Angeles Rams defense.

Leftwich is still young and could potentially work well with Dwayne Haskins. He should get consideration for a coaching vacancy in Washington and really could continue to climb these rankings if the Bucs offense continues to succeed.

Also, it’s worth noting that Leftwich played for the Buccaneers in 2009 giving him ties to, you guessed it, Bruce Allen. That could have an influence on the team’s willingness to give him a shot despite his relatively thin body of work as a coach.

Previously: 5

Any time there is a head coaching vacancy across the NFL, Josh McDaniels is going to be mentioned. Yes, his spurning of the Indianapolis Colts wasn’t a good look for him, but the fact of the matter is that he is still an extremely talented offensive-minded coach. And that’s something that could benefit the Redskins.

McDaniels has long been one of the NFL’s best play-callers, and his ability to adapt to the personnel he has is incredible. Since rejoining the Patriots in 2012, McDaniel has seen his offense rank as a top-10 unit in seven consecutive seasons and is en route to repeating that once again in 2019.

The Patriots lost Rob Gronkowski and a lot of the talent they had at the tight end position during the offseason, but McDaniels was able to adjust to using more of a receiver-heavy offense that also involves using James White and Rex Burkhead more as receivers out of the backfield. So far, that approach has been decent for the Patriots though injuries and constant shuffling of personnel have made it difficult for the Patriots offense to really get going. Still, it shows that McDaniels is willing to adapt his scheme to fit his personnel. And that’s what successful coaches in the NFL do.

Additionally, McDaniels has two years of experience as an NFL head coach. Granted, they came over a decade ago, but he knows what it’s like to run a team. And though his time with the Denver Broncos didn’t go as planned, he definitely learned from it and with 10 more years of experience under his belt, he second act as a coach could be much smoother overall.

The big question for the Redskins would be, is McDaniels willing to come to Washington? It would be a major question mark. He ultimately wasn’t willing to go to the Colts, but perhaps if he likes Dwayne Haskins enough, he could be convinced to go to Washington. But he has deep ties to New England and the only way he would likely leave there is if he got the vibe that Bill Belichick wanted to coach for another decade.

Will that happen? It’s possible but extremely unlikely. McDaniels is in a situation where he’s comfortable picking and choosing when he might want to leave. And at the moment, coming to the Redskins may not appeal to him. Still, that shouldn’t discourage Washington from at least trying to lure McDaniels to the team and include him in their interview pool for 2019. But the unlikelihood of him coming here will move him to the bottom portion of the top-10.

Previously: 11

Last offseason, John DeFilippo was hired as the offensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings after serving as the Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterbacks coach for two seasons. At that time, it seemed that he wasn’t too far off from being a head coaching candidate thanks to the work he had done with Carson Wentz and Nick Foles in Philly.

However, DeFilippo’s time with the Vikings didn’t go as planned. He clashed with Mike Zimmer and ended up being ousted before the end of the season. Zimmer wanted to run the ball more while DeFilippo wanted to continue to pass with Kirk Cousins more frequently.

Still, despite how things ended in Minnesota, DeFilippo landed on his feet. He got the coordinator job with the Jacksonville Jaguars to reunite him with Foles, but Foles suffered an injury in the first game of the season. Gardner Minshew has done well for the Jaguars in Foles’ place — he’s 4-3 so far and is maintaining an excellent 13-2 TD:INT ratio — so DeFilippo should get some credit for his performance early in the season.

DeFilippo’s overall numbers aren’t anything too impressive. He hasn’t coordinated a top-10 offense or anything. But his ability to work with quarterbacks and improve them is intriguing. The Redskins could use someone with his coaching skills to help develop Haskins, so he will be in play. And if Minshew keeps playing well, that will be a big talking point for him as he looks to earn a head coaching job.

Previously: 14

Last offseason, Matt Rhule was one of the rumored candidates for the New York Jets’ coaching job. Ultimately, he would withdraw his name from consideration given that the Jets weren’t necessarily going to let him choose his own assistants.

But during the 2020 offseason, Rhule could get renewed interest from teams looking for a potential-packed head coach. After all, he has rapidly turned the Baylor football program around despite scandals that derailed them. After a 1-11 mark in his first season with the Bears, Rhule was able to get the team to a bowl game last season. And this year, he has the squad off to an 8-0 start and a No. 12 ranking as of this writing.

Rhule came to Baylor after serving as the head coach at Temple and finding a lot of success. He coached countless professional prospects at Temple and got them back-to-back 10 win seasons. That’s what afforded him the opportunity to coach at Baylor.

Rhule has experience playing at the collegiate level as he played linebacker at Penn State during the mid-90s. He doesn’t have much NFL experience as a coach — he spent one season as the Giants’ assistant offensive line coach in 2012 — but he is an intriguing coaching candidate. He has a lot of experience as a top assistant or head coach, as he was the Temple offensive coordinator for four years before moving onto the Giants and then becoming Temple’s head coach.

For Washington, Rhule would be a candidate with a lot of proven college-level experience and a solid amount of success. He is still just 44 so he would have a chance to grow if given a chance to be an NFL head coach. There are other options with more NFL experience than Rhule, but he could end up earning an interview, especially if Baylor continues to play so well as the season goes along.

As the Jets showed us last season, Rhule does have some fans in the NFL. And his high-level college coaching experience could make a jump to the next level the next logical move for Rhule.

Previously: Unranked

One of two Colts assistants on this list, Nick Sirianni is a name that is starting to gain steam ahead of the offseason. And it’s easy to see why.

Despite losing Andrew Luck to an unexpected retirement this offseason, the Colts haven’t missed a beat. They’re currently 5-2 and lead the AFC South thanks to their well-balanced team play.

Sirianni, 38, has done excellent work with Jacoby Brissett this season and has turned him into a very efficient quarterback. So far this season, Brissett has completed 64.5 percent of his passes for 1,590 yards, 14 touchdowns, and three interceptions. He doesn’t make many mistakes and keeps the offense moving.

Sirianni deserves a lot of credit for the growth in this area. He also deserves some credit for rapidly turning the team’s offensive line into one of the best in the league. He simply knows how to coach and has shown an ability to adapt his offense, especially at receiver in the wake of a few T.Y. Hilton injuries.

In his first year as offensive coordinator, 2018, the Colts were a pass-heavy attack and threw the ball the second-most amount of times league-wide. This year, they’ve relied far more on the run, ranking top-five in rushing attempts and still moving the ball. Sirianni and Frank Reich were willing to change their offensive game plan to fit their personnel. And that’s how coaches win in the modern NFL.

It’s exciting to imagine what Sirianni could do with Dwayne Haskins and a young Redskins offense. He has plenty of experience coaching up quarterbacks (two years as a QB coach with the Chargers, Luck and Brissett in Indy) so that could make him an ideal fit. He’s definitely someone the Redskins should talk to in the offseason and could end up being among the top candidates.

Previously: Unranked

It seems that Tomlin would be Dan Snyder’s guy if the Steelers are to move onto him. He is a big name and Snyder tends to like those types of splashy acquisitions.

That said, Tomlin may not be the best man for the Redskins job. While he was once one of the stronger coaches in the NFL, he has regressed in recent seasons to become more average. His coaching decisions can be curious and sometimes, his teams just don’t look prepared to play.

The Steelers themselves have a 128-70-1 record under Tomlin, but they have struggled to convert in high-leverage situations since their Super Bowl run in 2010. Since the 2012 postseason, Tomlin is 3-5 in the playoffs and hasn’t been able to get past the juggernaut Patriots in the AFC.

The other question for Tomlin is, how will he deal with uncertainty at quarterback? The Steelers have always had Ben Roethlisberger during his time and while he has occasionally been banged-up, he always came back. If Tomlin and his staff can’t develop Dwayne Haskins, that could really put a damper on the ‘Skins’ future.

Despite Tomlin’s shortcomings, he could still be a solid coach and he does have positives. After all, he was able to mostly hold together a locker room featuring Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell, and Antonio Brown amid all of their respective drama. So, in a workplace like the Redskins have, it could be good to have someone who can silence the drama.

Tomlin’s availability will depend on how the Steelers finish the season. Currently, they’re 3-4 and are entering a crucial game against the Indianapolis Colts. But if they miss the postseason with Tomlin, perhaps the Redskins could lure him to the nation’s capital, though they may have to surrender compensation to do so, which would be far from ideal.

Overall, Tomlin is a decent candidate who the front office is a lot higher on than most. If the Redskins do bring him aboard, they should make sure they don’t overpay for his services.

Previously: 7

Robert Saleh wasn’t the best-known candidate on this list when it was first created. But after the 49ers started the season an undefeated 8-0, he is getting more attention. And rightfully so.

Saleh has a pretty impressive resume and at just age 40, he could be the next, great, young defensive coach. He has spent the past three seasons as the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. Each year, the team has drastically improved under his watch in so far in 2019, they are playing at a high level. He simply knows how to get the best out of his players and that will make him an appealing head coaching candidate.

Since coming into the NFL coaching ranks in 2005, Saleh has learned under some strong coaches including Gary Kubiak, Pete Carroll, and Kyle Shanahan. He worked with the Seahawks as a defensive quality control assistant when their defense emerged as the league’s best and also got a chance to coach linebackers with Gus Bradley for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He has worked on some solid staffs and for a 40-year-old coaching candidate, he has a lot of excellent defensive experience.

Saleh’s overall talent could intrigue the Redskins, a team that has a lot of talent on the defensive side of the ball that it hasn’t been able to tap into. He would be a sure-fire upgrade over the last two defensive leaders they’ve had in Joe Barry and Greg Manusky, so from that standpoint, bringing Saleh aboard would make sense.

If the 49ers defense keeps playing well, Saleh could move up quite a bit on this list. For now, he definitely is a top-10 option in this coaching search and there are few defensive coaching candidates that have more upside than Saleh.

Previously: 3

Kris Richard is one of the more intriguing defensive-minded coaches on the market. And his unique skill set could get him a chance to land a head coaching job at some point in the future.

Richard got his start in the NFL under Pete Carroll with the Seattle Seahawks. He played collegiately for Carroll at USC and spent four years in the NFL before eventually joining Carroll’s USC staff as a graduate assistant. Upon Carroll’s promotion to the NFL, Richard became a defensive backs coach and remained in that role for five years before he was tapped as the replacement to Dan Quinn following the coach’s departure to join the Atlanta Falcons.

In three years as the Seahawks’ defensive coordinator, Richard twice led a top-five defense before regressing to unit that ranked just outside the top 10 in 2017. The Seahawks elected to part with Richard after that in a surprising move that would eventually lead to the end of the “Legion of Boom” days in Seattle.

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Richard was scooped up by the Cowboys as a defensive backs coach and has developed a lot of the players in their secondary including Xavier Woods, Chidobe Awuzie, and Jourdan Lewis into quality starters while also helping Byron Jones to greatly improve. Richard’s impact had a big effect on the Cowboys’ defense and that’s why he became the unit’s passing game coordinator in 2018.

Richard’s presence could help the Redskins to tap into some of the potential they have in their secondary. And given that the team needs some reinforcements at corner, perhaps Richard could convince the free-agent-to-be Jones to join him while drafting and developing another guy on Day 2 of the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Redskins haven’t had a defensive-centric head coach since Marty Schottenheimer was in charge of the team in 2001. Perhaps Richard could be the change they need to find success on that side of the ball. And nabbing a 41-year-old talent from their divisional rival Cowboys surely wouldn’t hurt as the team looks to take a new approach in the post-Jay Gruden era.

Previously: 2

Of all the candidates that realistically could jump to the NFL from the college level, Lincoln Riley would be the top one for the Redskins.

Riley has a reputation as a quarterback guru. He coached Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray to back-to-back Heisman Trophies and No. 1 overall selections. This year, he has turned Jalen Hurts into a very good passer after he looked more like a primary runner at Alabama. Whatever quarterback Riley gets, he simply makes them better.

The prospect of combining Haskins with Riley is more than intriguing. At the college level, Haskins threw for 50 touchdowns at Ohio State and has a great skill set. Riley could bring out the most in him and fine-tune some of the issues that Haskins had with ball placement to turn him into a great NFL quarterback. If Riley can do that while bringing in a defensive coordinator who could turn things around on defense, that would give the ‘Skins a chance to turn around quickly.

Of course, there are concerns with bringing in Riley, and that’s why he doesn’t quite top this list. He has plenty of college football experience, but he has never played nor worked in the NFL. Could he handle that type of transition? It’s possible, but it would be a big unknown. And that could give the Redskins a bit of pause, though hiring a flashy name would likely make them brush that concern aside.

The other big question would be, does Riley want to jump to the NFL? And if he did, would he consider going to a team like the Redskins? He may, but it may take a massive contract to get him to do that. And paying a coach who is not proven at the NFL level that much money could be a non-starter.

Additionally, it’s possible that Riley could want his own quarterback if he’s not as big a fan of Haskins. That could make the Redskins have to move on from Haskins to draft Riley’s choice much like what the Arizona Cardinals did with Josh Rosen. That’s not too appealing as they may get pennies on the dollar in exchange for Haskins.

Still, these questions are answerable and Riley has a lot of talent and upside as a coach. If he’s willing to come to Washington and the NFL, they would have to consider adding him to the fold. He could be the next Sean McVay as an offensive wunderkind that could quickly transform an offense into a contender. And that could pique Dan Snyder’s interest.

Previously: 1

The Kansas City Chiefs offense has been spectacular over the course of the past two seasons. That’s partially due to Andy Reid. It’s also due to the other-worldly talent of Patrick Mahomes.

But let’s not take away credit from the team’s offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy. He has done a great job of seamlessly taking over for the team’s former coordinator turner Bears head coach, Matt Nagy, and has done well to create a well-balanced offense.

Despite having turnover at receiver and running back (especially after the release of Kareem Hunt), Bieniemy has been able to find ways to keep the Chiefs offense clicking. He has integrated a number of different pieces into the unit including Sammy Watkins, Mecole Hardman, Damien Williams, LeSean McCoy, and Demarcus Robinson and deserves credit for being able to get the most out of them.

Bieniemy has nearly a year and a half of offensive coordinator experience under his belt. That may not seem like a lot, but he played at the NFL level as a running back and has a lot of upside. He could unleash the potential of Dwayne Haskins and create a strong running game with Derrius Guice and Bryce Love, provided that both can get healthy.

It doesn’t hurt his cause that former Reid assistants like Nagy and Doug Pederson have found success in the NFL, so Bieniemy should be well-prepared for that.

Bieniemy was my top potential replacement candidate for Jay Gruden last year. Nine months later, that hasn’t changed. If they can get him to come to Washington, it could end up being a good fit. And his lack of experience could end up being a blessing, as he will be hungry to prove himself early in his career.