As the regular season comes to a close, many teams end up getting cleaning house in preparation for a fresh start. The season, which only ended last, has already seen the firing of many coaches and GMs who once made up the identity and fabric of quite a few NFL teams. The action was pretty furious this morning, beginning in New York as the Jets announced they were releasing head coach Rex Ryan and second year general manager John Idzik.
Jet's owner Woody Johnson stated "We're in the the win business and we're not winning, so I thought this was something I had to do". The Jets have been a laughing stock for quite some time, however there is hope for the franchise as the defensive line was a solid performer this year and Geno Smith's huge week 17 game demostrated his potential that fans have been waiting for over these last two seasons.
In Atlanta, Mike Smith was released after the Falcons were clobbered at home by the Panthers, failing to both win the NFC South and make the playoffs. Mike Smith is the winningest coach in Falcon's history with a record of 66-46. But a large reason for this decision can be attributed to his 1-4 career playoff record.
The abysmal season of the Chicago Bears lead to the firing of second year coach Mark Trestman and team GM Phil Emery. Trestman was 13-19 as a head coach.
Lastly, over in the Bay Area, the Raiders fired head coach Dennis Allen and the 49ers have parted ways with head coach Jim Harbaugh as the former Michigan Wolverine makes plans to become the next coach for Big Blue. Harbaugh is slated to become the highest paid college coach earning up to $9 million a year.
While the changes weren't all that surprising, the real surprises have yet to be revealed, which will be when the new head coaches and GMs are announced.
