With the 2018 regular season coming to an end, that means the infamous “Black Monday” has reared its ugly head. So far, eight teams have fired and moved on from their current head coaches. It's not easy being a head coach in the NFL and this is a sad day for the guys getting fired—especially during the holiday season.
The teams who have fired their head coaches are the Green Bay Packers, New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, Arizona Cardinals, Cincinnati Bengals, and Miami Dolphins. A few of those teams have already begun scheduling interviews with multiple candidates.
Of all of those teams, the Packers are one of the most intriguing options for anyone to walk into. You have the quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, an elite wide receiver in Davante Adams, a young running back in Aaron Jones and solid players on defense. Mike McCarthy is a great coach, but like in everything — every good thing comes to an end at some point.
The Packers last reached the Super Bowl in 2010 under McCarthy, where they defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers and Mike Tomlin. Since then, Green Bay's success in the postseason has been lackluster—actually missing the playoffs in the last two seasons. That was the tipping point for the Packers front office to part ways with McCarthy.
This move was made in hopes to turn around the franchise before Rodgers' career is over. Everyone seems to be looking at offensive-minded guys like Josh McDaniels. Adam Gase, or Eric Bieniemy. All of those guys could be the guy who ends up with the coveted job. But if I'm the Packers, I'm looking for a defensive-minded guy. The one guy that comes to mind immediately is Vic Fangio.
Fangio is currently the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears. He has them sitting as one of the best defenses in the NFL. He has been the coordinator for the Bears since 2015. This year was easily his best one with the Bears and it showed.
The Bears wreaked havoc this season, sacking the quarterback 50 times (3rd most in NFL), getting 27 interceptions (most in NFL), allowing 220 passing yards per game (7th best in NFL), and only 80 rushing yards allowed per game (best in NFL). Fangio no doubt had his fingerprints all over this defense and is a huge reason why this Bears team is sitting in the playoffs as a third seed in the NFC.
For the Packers, why wouldn't you consider Fangio for the job? He's a guy who can turn around a defense who definitely needs to improve. It also would be wise to bring in an offensive coordinator or offensive-minded head coach who won't butt heads with Rodger. That was what caused the rift between Rodgers and McCarthy.
We've also seen Josh McDaniels get a head coaching job, where he was with the Broncos for a short stint. He didn't fare well at the helm, going 11-17 in two seasons as the head coach in Denver. Although, he could now be more poised for the position after getting an opportunity before and spending more time under Bill Belichick. I'm not vouching for McDaniels to be the head coach though.
The only thing with McDaniels is, it seems like he'll be a candidate who wants to implement his system on offense and have everyone mold into it. Who knows if someone as vocal and passionate as Rodgers would be okay with that. It's been said that Rodgers won't be involved in the Packers next hiring, but it's hard to fathom they don't at least think of him during the process.
If hired, Fangio could focus solely on the defensive side of things. Thus, giving him an opportunity to bring in an offensive coordinator who can rein in Rodgers and mutually work with him. When you have a quarterback as talented as Rodgers, you don't absolutely need a bright-offensive mind to get the best out of him.
Of course, he'll need to keep control of the locker room as well if he gets the job. That is constantly overlooked but is a very important aspect of being a coach. If the locker room doesn't respect you, good luck lasting in today's NFL.
Yes, the Packers had previous success with Rodgers and McCarthy, but Rodgers was playing at a high-level. He still is, but the team around him isn't getting any better. This is the reason a change needed to happen, with McCarthy being ousted.
Fangio has also been in the division for a few years now, which can help the Packers majorly. He knows what it takes to win within a very competitive division. Fangio also understands the magnitude of winning in Green Bay and the AFC North. Green Bay has a few great pieces on this defense to turn things around.
Guys like Jaire Alexander, Mike Daniels, Blake Martinez, Josh Jackson, Kentrell Brice, and possibly Kyler Fackrell being staples of this defense going forward. Someone as bright as Fangio could get the best out of this defense, with the possibility of also adding players this off-season.
At this point, its a guessing game on who the Packers will end up hiring. Fangio has not been listed as someone who has gotten a scheduled interview with the Packers as of now. Even so, they would be wise to do so as soon as possible.
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