Inside: Mike McDaniel and Brian Daboll lead our list of coaches with plenty to prove this season, Stefon Diggs joins our namesake podcast for an exclusive interview and we share valuation rankings for all 32 teams.
This article is from Scoop City, The Athletic’s NFL newsletter. Sign up here to receive it directly in your inbox.
Four coaches with something to prove
At this time last year, prove-it seasons were underway for Mike McCarthy, Robert Saleh, Matt Eberflus, Dennis Allen and Doug Pederson … and to an extent, Nick Sirianni.
Sirianni won the Super Bowl, the safest way to guarantee job security. The other five have become former head coaches, as Saleh (now with the 49ers), Eberflus (Cowboys) and Allen (Bears) stepped back into defensive coordinator roles, while McCarthy and Pederson remain unemployed.
We shouldn’t see that level of turnover this season, but four coaches enter on the proverbial hot seat. That list includes Mike McDaniel, whose vision for fixing the Dolphins was profiled today by The Athletic’s Jeff Howe. His seat isn’t the hottest, however.
1. Brian Daboll, Giants. I doubt he keeps his job if the Giants start 1-8, a realistic possibility, considering they are expected underdogs in eight of their first nine games (six of the Giants’ first eight opponents made the playoffs last year).
Co-owner John Mara has already said his patience was running thin with this regime, but the continued growth of rookie QB Jaxson Dart could buy Daboll time (considering he was hired due to his success with Josh Allen), as could a Week 1 upset over the Commanders.
2. McDaniel. His status as an offensive guru is valid thanks to his creativity, but McDaniel sure needs his quarterback.
- Since 2022, whenever Tua Tagovailoa starts, Miami averages 376.9 yards and 26.6 points per game (which would be the NFL’s fourth-best offense) and wins 61 percent of games (seventh-best percentage).
- But when Tagovailoa misses time, a significant risk given his frightening concussion history, the Dolphins win just 30 percent of their games, and are 32nd in points per game (14.5).
Yet McDaniel enters his third season in Miami with only Zach Wilson and rookie Quinn Ewers as his backup QBs. Yikes. A playoff appearance should spare him, but otherwise, he’s likely the league’s most coveted offensive coordinator next offseason.
3. Shane Steichen, Colts. Before we knew Indianapolis would draft Anthony Richardson in 2023, Zak Keefer wrote that drafting any quarterback would largely be a bet on Steichen’s ability to develop. At the time, Steichen had just been the offensive coordinator in Philadelphia during Jalen Hurts’ ascent from second-round backup to franchise passer.
Zak also shared Steichen’s belief that coaches are responsible for improving a quarterback’s accuracy:
“I think you can help accuracy, I definitely do, with mechanics. And I think part of it is the scheme you put them in, you know what I mean? Don’t make them think too much, sometimes, and simplify the offense and build it around the quarterback,” said Steichen, prior to that year’s draft.
Since then, Richardson has been the league’s least accurate passer; in 15 starts, his completion percentage above expected is minus-11.3 percent, the NFL’s worst mark, and his 50.6 completion percentage also ranks last. Unless Richardson takes a step or Daniel Jones has a Sam Darnold-like season, change feels inevitable here.
4. Zac Taylor, Bengals. The blame for Cincinnati’s absence in last year’s playoffs was obvious, so the Bengals made the necessary changes. They replaced both their defensive coordinator and offensive line coach, and are now emphasizing preseason reps to avoid another slow start.
If the Bengals again disappoint, there will be no one left to blame but Taylor. Despite his offensive success and strong relationship with Joe Burrow, Taylor just needs his defense and offensive line to be average for the Bengals to build on their second half of 2024 (6-3). If not, questions over his future will be justified.
Not worried about: The Browns should be thanking Kevin Stefanski for sticking it out in Cleveland, given their uncertainty at quarterback and low expectations, and Brian Callahan should at least get two seasons with Cam Ward in Tennessee. In Arizona, Jonathan Gannon’s job security should be stronger than Kyler Murray’s, and Mike Tomlin’s contract should keep him there until at least 2027, which would be his 21st season as Pittsburgh’s head coach.
Next: Dianna’s takeaways from her exclusive with Stefon Diggs.
What Dianna’s Hearing: Diggs on Week 1 status: ‘We’ll see’
The look said it all. When I sat down with the new Patriots receiver yesterday — less than 10 months after he tore his ACL — he didn’t commit to being on the field in Week 1, when his new team hosts the Raiders. But the look he gave me made his plans clear.
“I’m pushing the needle, always,” he said. “We’ll see about Week 1. I don’t know how I feel about it. We’ll see.”
Beyond the injury, Diggs had plenty to say about the perception that he brings drama along with his undeniable talent.
“The many teams that I have been on, the players on your team and the coaches will tell you that I’m a professional, I work hard,” he told me. “They’ve never doubted that, you know what I’m saying? They’ve never doubted was I a good player or was I a professional, did I work hard, did I approach the game the right way. … If they called me a diva because I wanted the ball, I’m literally willing to take that.”
Will his skills elevate second-year passer Drake Maye in New England? As Diggs might say, “We’ll see.”
🎧 Listen to our full conversation on today’s episode of the “Scoop City” Podcast, where Diggs explains how he’s embracing his role with the Patriots.
Back to you, Jacob.
What’s your team worth?
The key to business success in pro football? Disappoint your fan base and anger your star players.
That’s where the Cowboys and Bengals bear a striking resemblance. Both fan bases, irked by longtime ownership, always expect the worst. In both cities, star pass rushers are holding-in due to seemingly unreasonable negotiations, and both organizations place enormous expectations on their quarterbacks.
But the similarities end quickly, as these teams sit on either end of the league’s valuations. In Sportico’s 2025 NFL Franchise Valuations Ranking, the Cowboys are worth nearly triple the Bengals, the league’s least-valued franchise. Both have held those spots in all six years of Sportico’s rankings.
Jerry Jones saw his franchise double in value from 2020’s $6.4 billion to today’s $12.8 billion, and plenty of others followed suit:
The Raiders jumped from 19th in the 2020 list ($2.8 billion) to the ninth-most valuable franchise, at $7.9 billion. Tom Brady’s purchase surely helped. Here’s how that happened.
The Lions were the league’s highest riser from 2024, with their 19 percent leap placing them 25th among teams. Sheila Ford deserves much of the credit for keeping Dan Campbell and GM Brad Holmes around, despite their sluggish start. The Lions were 31st in 2020.
Even the fallers are winners. The Saints (23rd in 2020, 30th today) and Panthers (21st in 2020, 27th today) have both dropped in the rankings, yet their ownership gained about $6 billion in value. Imagine!
Extra Points
What’s stopping Dak Prescott? Mike Sando and Jon Machota examine why the Cowboys’ quarterback is a Tier 2 passer and how the 32-year-old can bounce-back with Brian Schottenheimer, the fifth play caller of his career.
🧤 Cooper Kupp fits in Seattle. Michael-Shawn Dugar explains how offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak plans to maximize the talent of his two slot receivers — Kupp and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the league’s most productive slot receiver last season — in a dynamic Seahawks’ offense.
🥊 Falcons fight club. Atlanta’s sophomore quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was at the bottom of the pile after a fight broke out during a joint practice with the Titans. He started it, but his teammates finished it.
▶️ Yesterday’s most-clicked: How a stalker left Aaron Donald living in fear.
📫 Enjoyed this read? Sign up here to receive The Athletic’s free NFL newsletter in your inbox.
Also, check out our other newsletters.
(Photo: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)