It's that time of the year again, when the seat begins to get quite warm under a few NFL head coaches. So as a handful of team executives prepare to replace their coaches, there's no better time to look back at how interim coaches have fared during the past five seasons.
Of the 12 mid-season changes since 2007, half of the new coaches have finished the season with a winning percentage of at least .500 (although that includes one coach, Jim Tomsula of the San Francisco 49ers, who went 1-0). Overall, interim coaches have gone 31-42 in that span.
At least three coaches have been replaced each year for the past four seasons, with the notable exception of 2009, when Dick Jauron was the only coach to get fired during the season.
Take note, Eagles fans.
What Recent History Tells Us About Mid-Season Coaching Changes In The NFL Slideshow
2011: Todd Haley (5-8) and Romeo Crennel (2-1)
Haley got the ax in his third season at the helm of the Kansas City Chiefs. Crennel took over with three games left and performed admirably, even leading his team to an upset of the then-undefeated Green Bay Packers.
2011: Tony Sparano (4-9) and Todd Bowles (2-1)
After a promising first year under Sparano, Miami sputtered to a pair of nine-loss seasons. Once the 2011 Dolphins lost their ninth game, Sparano was fired and Bowles took over. Like Crennel, Bowles pulled out an impressive victory in his first game as interim coach, when Miami went on the road and topped the Buffalo Bills.
2011: Jack Del Rio (3-8) and Mel Tucker (2-3)
Del Rio had a turbulent nine-year tenure in Jacksonville, during which he took the Jaguars to the playoffs twice but also saw the team finish in last place in the AFC South in two of his final four years. Tucker went 2-3 in the last five games of the season.
2010: Mike Singletary (5-10) and Jim Tomsula (1-0)
The 49ers got off to an 0-5 start in Singletary's third season. Even though he managed to right the ship and lead the team to wins in five of their next nine games, he was fired after San Francisco lost to the St. Louis Rams and fell out of playoff contention. The next week, Tomsula presided over the 49ers' 38-7 win over Arizona.
2010: Josh McDaniels (3-9) and Eric Studesville (1-3)
McDaniels' tenure in Denver got off to a rocky start and never fully recovered following a flubbed trade with the Bears involving quarterback Jay Cutler. After winning his first six games with the Broncos, McDaniels finished with a 5-17 record over the next 22 games. A videotaping scandal essentially ended McDaniels tenure in December 2010. Studesville, who was in his first year with the Broncos and had never held a coordinator position, stumbled to a 1-3 record in the final four games of the season.
2010: Wade Phillips (1-7) and Jason Garrett (5-3)
After guiding the Cowboys to an 11-5 record and their first playoff win in 12 years, Phillips signed a contract extension that went through the 2011 season. But owner Jerry Jones wasn't happy with the Cowboys' 1-7 start to the 2010 campaign, and he fired Phillips in favor of offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. A former Dallas quarterback himself, Garrett managed an impressive turnaround that included a road victory against the Giants.
2010: Brad Childress (3-7) and Leslie Frazier (3-3)
Despite leading the Vikings to two straight division titles and nearly taking Minnesota to the Super Bowl, Childress was fired in 2010 after a 3-7 start and his botched handling of Randy Moss. The star receiver was waived one month after the Vikings traded a third-round pick for him. A few weeks after that, Childress was let go and Frazier was promoted to interim head coach.
2009: Dick Jauron (3-6) and Perry Fewell (3-4)
Jauron's tenure in Buffalo never took off, as he finished 7-9 in each of his first three years. Once the Bills got off to a 3-6 start in 2009, Jauron was presented with a pink slip. Fewell led Buffalo to a 3-4 record over its final seven games.
2008: Mike Nolan (2-5) and Mike Singletary (5-4)
Nolan disappointed 49ers fans in his first three years, never producing a winning record and not getting the most out of No. 1 pick Alex Smith. Nolan was replaced by Singletary after San Francisco's 2-5 start to the 2008 season. Despite some controversy in his first game as head coach, during which he dropped his pants during a halftime speech and sent star tight end Vernon Davis to the locker room with 10 minutes left in the game, Singletary guided the 49ers to a 5-4 record in their final nine games.
2008: Lane Kiffin (1-3) and Tom Cable (4-8)
Kiffin's tenure as the youngest head coach in NFL history ended in a messy firing. He was nearly axed by owner Al Davis after going 4-12 in his first season, and after four games of the 2008 season Davis had enough. Cable had some success in his first season, but he could never get Oakland on the right track. He was fired after the 2011 campaign.
2008: Scott Linehan (0-4) and Jim Haslett (2-10)
Reports out of St. Louis indicated that Linehan never had full control of his locker room, and after a promising first year, he went 3-17 in his final 20 games. Haslett too got off to a good start, winning his first two games as interim head coach, but the Rams dropped the final 10 games of the season and Haslett was not considered for the position.
2007: Bobby Petrino (3-10) and Emmitt Thomas (1-2)
Praised as an offensive genius during his time in Jacksonville, Petrino had high hopes for the Falcons. But a few months after Atlanta hired Petrino, star quarterback Michael Vick was charged with operating an illegal dog ring. Without Vick, the Falcons were a lifeless team in 2007 and Petrino didn't even last the entire year. Thomas took over with three games left and recorded his first victory in the team's final contest of the season.
