Black Monday Hits NFL Hard

As NFL Coach Firings Continue, The Athletic Looks at the Hiring Process

January 7, 2025

NFL Head Coach Interview Process: What to Know About League Policies, Rooney Rule
As the staff at The Athletic write, “The New York Jets, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars all have openings and a few other teams could be in the market for a new coach as well.

“Several coordinators like Detroit’s Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn are expected to begin the interview process with the hope of landing one of the few coveted openings. But what exactly does the interview process entail and what are the league’s rules?”
^{Front Office Sports}

Jets Make Requests to Speak to Five Big-Name Coordinators for HC Job
SI’s Madison Williams writes, “The New York Jets are wasting no time to find a new head coach. Already on Monday morning, which is called ‘Black Monday’ in the NFL, the Jets have requested interviews from five big name coordinators, per multiple reports. They include Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, Kansas City Chiefs OC Matt Nagy, Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, Houston Texans OC Bobby Slowik and Buffalo Bills OC Joe Brady.
^{Sports Illustrated}

UFC Chief Dana White to Join Mark Zuckerberg on Meta Board of Directors
The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin writes, “In a surprise move, UFC chief Dana White will join the board of directors of Meta Platforms Inc, the tech giant that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg — an avid mixed martial arts fan — announced the addition of White and two other board members…”
^{The Hollywood Reporter}

Coco Gauff Becomes Latest Investor in Unrivaled
SBJ’s Austin Karp writes, “Gauff called basketball one of her ‘favorite sports’ and looks forward to seeing the new league “help elevate women’s sports.” Last month, Unrivaled closed a Series A investment round, led by the Berman Family. The group secured $28 million in funding, receiving investments from Bucks F Giannis Antetokounmpo, Fenway Sports Group partner Linda Henry, Avenue Sports Fund CEO Marc Lasry, Gold Medal-winning U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps, South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley and USC women’s G JuJu Watkins, among others.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Disney to Merge Hulu + Live TV With Fubo, Taking on YouTube TV and Ending Venu Lawsuit
The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin reports: The Walt Disney Co. will merge its streaming multichannel video service Hulu with Live TV with its competitor Fubo in a surprise deal that will shake up the streaming TV business, the companies said Monday.

“Notably, the deal will also end Fubo’s legal action against the Venu sports streaming service, potentially allowing it to proceed. Venu is the skinny streaming bundle that includes Disney’s ESPN channels and ABC, Fox and Fox Sports 1, and the sports channels from Warner Bros. Discovery.”
^{The Hollywood Reporter}

WWE's Levesque Talks Debut of "Raw" on Netflix
WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque said the debut of “Raw” on Netflix tonight feels “like a shift to another era, the Netflix era, or whatever that we're gonna call that, of our business.” Levesque, appearing on “The Pat McAfee Show” today, said, “To see that evolution from cable television to close circuit to pay per view to our own network, to broadcast television, to now on the biggest streaming service in the world ... that's where young people are.”
^{ESPN via Sports Business Journal}

Fox Sports, Skip Bayless, Charlie Dixon, Joy Taylor Named in Lawsuit Including Sexual Battery
First reported by Front Office Sports Sunday afternoon, the 42-page lawsuit alleges 14 counts against the plaintiffs. The suit claims that over [ former Fox Sports hairstylist Noushin] Faraji’s decade at Fox, she dealt with a “misogynistic, racist and ableist” workplace that allowed for executives and talent to “physically and verbally abuse workers with impunity.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Jaguars Fire Coach Doug Pederson, Keep GM Trent Baalke After ‘Best Team Assembled’ Wins Just 4 Games
AP News’ Mark Long writes, “Doug Pederson is out as Jacksonville’s head coach after the franchise’s ‘best team assembled’ won just four games.

“Jaguars owner Shad Khan fired Pederson on Monday, a day after a 26-23 loss at Indianapolis in overtime. It was the team’s 18th loss in its last 23 games. But Khan kept general manager Trent Baalke, a questionable decision that surely will affect who will become Jacksonville’s next coach.”
^{AP News}

Patriots Eye Organizational Reset With Firing of Mayo
The organization now must conduct a search for its third head coach in three years and 16th in franchise history, with former Patriots LB and former Titans coach Mike Vrabel "a prime candidate" to take over. Mayo’s tenure will be remembered "not only for the team’s poor play on the field, but also for his poor decisions at the podium." The "substandard play, combined with the missteps at the podium, prompted Kraft to make a change that not many thought would not even be on the table this soon"
^{Boston Globe via Sports Business Journal}

Clemson Fires Defensive Coordinator Wes Goodwin After 3 Seasons on the Job
The Cincinnati Bengals have fired defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, offensive line coach Frank Pollack, linebackers coach James Bettcher and defensive line coach Marion Hobby on Monday, according to league sources via The Athletic. Cincinnati hired Anarumo as defensive coordinator alongside head coach Zac Taylor in 2019. Anarumo’s prior coordinator experience was as the interim DC for the Miami Dolphins in 2015.
^{The Athletic}

Ohio Promotes Brian Smith to Head Coach After Tim Albin’s Departure
Wes Goodwin will not return as Clemson’s defensive coordinator in 2025, head coach Dabo Swinney announced Monday morning. Goodwin had been the Tigers defensive coordinator since December 2021 after being promoted from his role as an analyst to one of the biggest jobs in college football after Brent Venables’ departure for Oklahoma.
^{The Athletic}

President Biden Signs RFK Stadium Bill Into Law, a Boon for D.C.
The Washington Post’s Meagan Flynn reports: “The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act was the final bill to pass Congress in the last session, in striking fashion with a surprise late-night Senate action. While the federal government will continue to own the land surrounding RFK Stadium, the law gives D.C. administrative control of the property for 99 years, allowing the city to redevelop the more than 170 acres for a slate of purposes including retail, housing, recreation — and a sports stadium.”
^{The Washington Post}

Family Dispute Erupts Over Control of Padres
“This Petition arises from the fiduciary breaches of trust, fraud, conversion, and egregious acts of self-dealing by Bob and Matt in their capacities as executors of Peter Seidler’s Estate and trustees of the Seidler Trusts,” the complaint alleges. “Bob and Matt have misappropriated and misused the assets that their deceased brother, Peter, expressly bequeathed in trust to Sheel, his first and only wife and the mother of their three children.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

CFB Transfer Portal Highlighted by Record NIL Deals, SEC Dominance
FOS’ Colin Salao writes, “The transfer portal has essentially created free agency at the collegiate level. The initial window closed days before the start of the College Football Playoff—and it came with record-breaking NIL (name, image, and likeness) deals.

“Freshman Darian Mensah, the former Tulane signal-caller ranked as the No. 7 transfer quarterback by 247Sports, received a two-year, $8 million deal from Duke. His reported $4 million average annual salary makes him the unofficial highest-paid player in the history of college football, according to CBS Sports.”
^Newsweek

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