The Green Bay Packers are 4-7-1 after a devastating loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday and are likely to finish with their worst record since 2005. They will also miss the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2005 and 2006. All of these factors led to the team firing long-time head coach Mike McCarthy.
This was a huge move for the Packers to make as McCarthy has been one of the best head coaches in the NFL over the last decade, leading the team to a 125-77-2 record, six NFC North championships, nine playoff appearances, and a win in Super Bowl XLV. He will likely be the hottest coach on the free agent market.
With McCarthy having one of the most impressive resumes of any NFL coaches to date, it would not be a surprise to see some teams move on from their coaches. He should not be on the market very long and it is likely he will be picked up pretty soon. Let's take a look at three potential destinations for Mike McCarthy to end before the 2019 NFL season.
3. Cleveland Browns
Cleveland is the most obvious place for Mike McCarthy to end up this year after they became the first team to fire their head coach after parting ways with Hue Jackson earlier this year. The Browns have already shown promise on their offense with two of the hottest rookies in quarterback Baker Mayfield and running back Nick Chubb. McCarthy would bring in a high-powered offense that would work well with the two explosive players in the backfield and make them an instant threat in the AFC North.
McCarthy could even call plays for the Browns and save the team money in not hiring an offensive coordinator. This would be a huge coup for Cleveland and would likely be the biggest news going into the 2019 season.
If the Browns can snag McCarthy, you could expect to see them become a contender over the next few years. It would certainly be interesting to see how McCarthy's offense matches up with Mike Tomlin's defense twice a year.
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers are not making the playoffs and even with a late push to a winning or .500 record, Dirk Koetter could be preparing to coach his last game at Raymond James Stadium. Similar to the Browns, Tampa Bay has some explosive playmakers in veteran DeSean Jackson and one of the most reliable receivers in the league in Mike Evans.
Mike McCarthy would be able to head in and give that offense a shot in the arm and certainly work with Jameis Winston to make him the elite quarterback everyone believes he can be. The Buccaneers always seem to be so close to the edge of becoming a contender in the NFC each year, but inevitably end back up at the bottom of the barrel.
Tampa Bay has show flashes of brilliance throughout the 2018 season, including scoring 48 points against what is now a pretty stout New Orleans Saints defense. With McCarthy at the helm, you could expect them to have the ability to score that much each week.
1. New York Jets
Show me someone who would not want to see Bill Belichick and Mike McCarthy in the same division. The Jets are likely going to look to replace Todd Bowles at the end of the 2018 season after he has not been able to replicate the 10-6 record he posted with the team in his first year in 2015. McCarthy would be the perfect option for the team from the Meadowlands.
The rest of the AFC East has tried all they can to take down Tom Brady and the New England Patriots and it is pretty obvious that trying to do so defensively is next to impossible. So the Jets could probably go a different route and try to outscore them.
Like Cleveland, the Jets have a promising rookie quarterback in Sam Darnold and he has been pretty great for the team in his first year. McCarthy would be the first piece to the rebuild the Jets desperately need to make happen.
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