After an 0-5 start, the Washington Redskins would pull the trigger last week to fire their head coach Jay Gruden. With an open vacancy now needing to be filled in the Redskins organization and debates happening among fans, Las Vegas and sportsbooks across the United States have taken advantage and provided us a set odds of who could be the next man in charge.
According to online sportsbook BetOnline, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy is currently the favorite to take over the job in 2020 and is placed at +350 odds. Coming in second place is former NFL quarterback and Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, while Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine and Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles share that position with Leftwich in a tie at +600. Rounding out the top five is Oakland Raiders offensive coordinator Greg Olson at +800.
New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels takes the No. 6 position at +1000, and Washington Redskins offensive coordinator comes in seventh at +1200. In eighth place, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin makes an appearance at +1400, and then New England Patriots special teams coordinator and wide receivers coach Joe Judge takes the ninth spot at +1500. Rounding out the top 10 is Dennis Allen, defensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints,
Who do you think will be the next head coach of the Washington Redskins? After you read and get your advice from me, you can then place your bets over at one of the top football betting sites for who you think will land the job.
It’s not shocking at all to see Eric Bieniemy on top of the odds-board as the favorite to be the next in charge of the Washington Redskins. The Kansas City Chiefs arguably have the best offense in the National Football League, and Bieniemy happens to be in charge of it. Regardless of what happens with the Redskins, he’s certainly going to get plenty of attention from teams all across the league, but I’m pretty sure Washington will be in the mix as well.
What also makes Bieniemy so appealing is him being apart of the coaching tree of Andy Reid, which is one of the most successful in NFL history. Some examples from that tree are Doug Pederson, who would go on to win a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles, as well as Ron Rivera, who would take the Carolina Panthers to a Super Bowl, and also Sean McDermott and Matt Nagy. So with the championship success, why on earth wouldn’t you chase Eric Bieniemy if you’re the Washington Redskins?
With that being said, is Bieniemy the right fit for Washington? That’s something he and his team, as well as the Redskins organization, is going to have to figure out. As far as Washington is concerned, they actually have a pretty solid amount of talent on their roster, but they’re an utter catastrophe in the front office.
It happened in the 2019 NFL Draft when owner Daniel Snyder would override Jay Gruden for their first round selection. Snyder wanted quarterback Dwayne Haskins, Gruden didn’t. Well, we all know how that went. Now that’s all speculation and just a rumor, but if you’re aware of how the Redskins do things, this is a perfectly believable scenario and most likely happened with Snyder in charge. But hey, it is his team at the end of the day, he can do whatever he wants — and that’s exactly why Gruden is now gone.
Back to Bieniemy, you have the situation where he might want to hold out to find a better team to be with, especially considering talent wins in the NFL. If that does become an issue, and it most likely will, you have to look at a team like the Atlanta Falcons for where he could land. Yeah, they’re not the best defensively, but they’re loaded on the offensive side of the ball and it’s enough potency to bring wins. I mean, where would you rather be? With the Redskins in Washington DC? Or with the Falcons in Atlanta? I’d take the latter. Just keep that in mind as you place your bet.
A very fascinating name that made an appearance on the odds-board is Mike Tomlin. Yes, that Mike Tomlin, the current head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. But should we take him seriously when it comes to our hard-earned money? For the most part, you usually only see former head coaches and current coordinators in a position to take open vacancy positions. For Tomlin, he’s obviously still with the Steelers, and has been since 2007.
Yeah, it’s been over 10 years that Tomlin has been with Pittsburgh, but it seems like that his era in the Steel City is coming to an end. During his time with the Steelers, the franchise has been surrounded by constant success, including a Super Bowl championship. In total, he’s compiled a 126-70-1 (.642 winning percentage) record during his time as head coach. The worst finish that he’s ever had in his Pittsburgh career has been 8-8.
With all that being said though, the team is now sitting at 2-4 to start out the season. Not only that, but they would miss the playoffs last year, and then would go on to lose both Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown in the offseason. It sure feels like the beginning of the end of the Tomlin era, and the Pittsburgh organization may want a fresh start altogether with all of the casualties that they’ve already suffered, and you should also consider this being the case with Ben Roethlisberger approaching the end of his career.
Speaking of Roethlisberger, he’s already out for the season, and on top of that, their backup quarterback Mason Rudolph is also out after a terrifying hit against him to his head.
With their QB1 and QB2 out, they’ll have to depend on Devlin Hodges until Rudolph gets back — it should be pointed out that Hodges is undrafted. Yeah, they might have pulled out a win over the highly-inconsistent Los Angeles Chargers over the weekend, but that’s the thing, the Chargers are highly-inconsistent. You never know what you’re going to get with Los Angeles. Regardless, this is going to end up being a disaster season for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and I wouldn’t be shocked to see them want a fresh start, especially if Roethlisberger does retire.
Going back to the Washington Redskins, they’ve been known to make big moves and trade draft picks to pull them, so I wouldn’t be shocked to see them send a pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers to make this happen. Mike Tomlin to the DMV? It could happen.
When you analyze history, particularly under Dan Snyder, the Washington Redskins have made some very questionable (that’s being nice) moves. With this being the case, I would not be surprised at all to see them make a risky play like hiring Byron Leftwich as the head coach. The oddsmakers agree too. A couple of weeks ago, he was actually the favorite to land the job in DC, and he’s now second place at +600.
Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I believe that Leftwich is a bad coach or anything, but he hasn’t done anything special or served enough time for that matter to deserve a head coaching job at this point. He would drift into the offensive coordinator position for the Arizona Cardinals last season before filling the same role with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this year.
For Washington, they’ll be looking all across the National Football League for their next head coach, particularly among offensive minds and coaches with brand names. However, the top coaches are most likely to reject the situation with the franchise in a mess. That would then lead them to Byron Leftwich, a former quarterback in the league and a household name with most NFL fans, and also someone who was just a coaching intern only three years ago. With him being a former QB and having the ego of an athlete, you know he would pounce at an opportunity this early in his career to be a head coach. And Washington would be crazy enough to hire him as their leader.
If the Redskins did hire Leftwich, it wouldn’t necessarily be the best move to make, but that’s what Washington has been known for over the years: Bad moves.
At this point though with their history, you may not be able to blame them completely in 2019, and what I mean is they might not be able to woo someone like Eric Bieniemy to Washington — Bieniemy is sure to have much better options across the league, so Washington will have to settle for a lesser quality head coach. With their options being limited and the front office being what it is, I expect the Redskins to pull yet another risky move, this time with hiring someone like Byron Leftwich.
Mike Pettine is currently the defensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers and has been in that role since the 2018 season, and also has prior head coaching experience with the Cleveland Browns in 2014 and 2015. However, things wouldn’t go so well in Cleveland, recording a 10-22 record in two seasons. In his first season, they would go 7-9, and then would drastically decline to 3-13. In his defense though, it is the Cleveland Browns he was coaching, not the most ideal situation. I’m sure Washington will give Pettine a call, but I don’t see him leaving Green Bay, not just yet — too soon.
Not only is Todd Bowles currently the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he’s also in his first year. With that being the case, I’d personally keep my money away from him, especially considering he just got out of a disastrous head coaching situation with the New York Jets. In his first season with the Jets in 2015, he would have a solid year with a double-digit win season at 10-6. After that, however, things would fall off dramatically. He would pull in two consecutive 5-11 seasons for New York in 2016 and 2017, and then drop off even more to 4-12 last season. I don’t think Bowles has any interest in being a head coach any time soon after those dismal four years.
Greg Olson would be another solid betting option, though I still lean in the direction of the Washington Redskins making a more off-the-wall move. With that being said, I could still see Washington giving Olson a look. He’s been in the NFL since 2001, but has never been a head coach before, and seems overdue for the position. He’s been all around the league too, coaching for all of the San Francisco 49ers, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Oakland Raiders. He obviously has the experience, now he just needs the opportunity. Well, here’s Washington.
I’m just going to keep it completely real with you: Josh McDaniels to the Washington Redskins is absolutely laughable. He’s been spoiled as both the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the New England Patriots since the 2012 season, and has the luxury of Tom Brady. If McDaniels does eventually leave the Patriots, it won’t be until after Brady retires. So when it comes to this bet with McDaniels heading to the Redskins, just save your money. There’s no way in hell he’s leaving Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, let alone leaving to take a head coaching job with the Washington Redskins.
Who knows? Maybe the Washington Redskins will change their ways this offseason and start making moves with some sense. If so, Kevin Stefanski would be a great betting long shot option for profitability. First, he’s an Ivy League guy, achieving First Team All-Ivy League in 2002 as a student-athlete and would then become the assistant director of football after his playing days at Penn. After that, he would then go on to land an assistant coach job with the Minnesota Vikings, and working his way through the ranks in seven different roles before ultimately becoming the offensive coordinator. The next stepping stone is a head coaching job, all the Redskins have to do is pick up the phone. But would Mr. Ivy League be willing to accept an offer? Well, that’s whole another discussion. Solid long shot pick though.
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