NFL coaches on the hot seat: Winless Tom Coughlin makes debut, along with Mike Tomlin after Week 5

Even more names are added to the NFL hot seat watch following Week 5 and Thursday Night Football.

By James Brady@jamesbradyisme Oct 11, 2013, 10:00am EDT

We added a pair of new names to the hot seat list last week with Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano and Leslie Frazier, head of the Minnesota Vikings. Both coaches have led their teams to poor records and both could soon be putting "former NFL head coach" on their resumes.

This is the hot seat watch, and we're here to talk about coaches that could possibly be on the lookout for new jobs next season, or even later this season.

The original hot seat consisted of the following:

Rex Ryan (New York Jets), Jason Garrett (Dallas Cowboys), Jim Schwartz (Detroit Lions), Dennis Allen (Oakland Raiders), Mike Munchak (Tennessee Titans) and Ron Rivera (Carolina Panthers).

We have more to add this week, too, so let's get to it:

New Entries

Seniority and past success is a real determining factor in whether or not a coach will keep his job. A Super Bowl-winning coach is often afforded multiple seasons of mediocrity until his job is in question and that's why a couple coaches haven't made it onto this list.

But after leading their teams to 0-5 records, Tom Coughlin and Mike Tomlin are officially on the hot seat. Coughlin's New York Giants have been abysmal this season after falling short of expectations last season as well. Tomlin's Pittsburgh Steelers have looked as unprepared as any team. Both coaches could be on the way out if things continue on the path they have been. We'll talk more about them later.

I still can't help but feel Gus Bradley was always expected to get more time with the Jacksonville Jaguars, but they are just so bad. He's gotta be on watch at this point, if not specifically on the hot seat.

Out of the Hot Seat?

For two consecutive weeks, we've added coaches to the hot seat based on losing records. What about removing coaches with winning records? Well, that's not going to happen until later in the season because it's much easier to get on the hot seat than get off it. Some of our coaches looked pretty good for a couple weeks there, they have a long way to go.

We may spend less time on these coaches in the interest of covering the true train wrecks, however.

After Week 5

Losers: Coughlin, Schwartz, Munchak, Rivera, Garrett

Schwartz had himself in a good place there with his Lions. They were 3-1 and taking the NFC North by storm, but they stumbled in that quest in Week 5 by falling to the rival Green Bay Packers. Schwartz is still in a good place at 3-2, but only managing nine points against a bad Green Bay secondary needs to be an anomaly for an offense like Detroit's.

Munchak and his Titans are getting closer to .500 after falling to the Kansas City Chiefs, who seem to be plugging through this season with the mindset "haha screw all of you, we're going to win anyway."

Coughlin failed to best the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles and made his team 0-5. There was nothing pretty about that game.

Ron Rivera once again failed to get his offense even remotely close to looking like they belong in the league, managing six points against the Arizona Cardinals. His team is 1-3 and not exactly delivering on its promise of a strong defense, either. Garrett's Cowboys got something of a morale victory, despite losing and falling to 2-3 on the season. Tony Romo and Co. played amazingly, matching Peyton Manning stride-for-stride, but they ultimately fell in a three-point heart breaker.

Victorious: Ryan, Allen

Allen and his Raiders got Terrelle Pryor back and he had a great game. The hopes of Allen, and the Raiders in general, ride on Pryor -- a statement that many considered ludicrous before the season began. Pryor completed 18 of 23 passes with two touchdowns to down the Chargers. They're now 2-3.

Rex Ryan and hit Jets were the most impressive. After a questionable call from the referees gave the Atlanta Falcons the lead late, rookie quarterback Geno Smith led the Jets on a comeback drive that ended with a touchdown to give them the 30-28 victory. Ryan isn't in the clear, but there are some definite positive signs.

Bye Week: Schiano, Tomlin, Frazier

Looking Ahead

Seeing as how this post goes up following Thursday Night Football, it's also worth noting that Coughlin is now 0-6 after the Giants fell to the Chicago Bears in prime time. What a mess that is.

The Lions will face another 3-2 team this week when they travel to take on the Cleveland Browns. Fans likely marked that game as a win before the season, but Cleveland has been surprisingly competent this season. Allen and his Raiders will take on the undefeated Chiefs. It's a rivalry game, though, so it wouldn't be shocking if they emerged victorious.

Rivera and his Panthers face a winnable matchup against Frazier's Vikings and the latter is coming off a bye week to reflect on its position. Frazier could well end up with his second win of the season. Tomlin and Ryan's teams will face off in New York, but the Jets have certainly been the better team this season. Or perhaps the Steelers will make Smith hit that rookie wall and pick up their first win of the season.

Schiano's Buccaneers return from a bye week to take on the 2-2 Philadelphia Eagles. It's a home game and is certainly winnable, but the Bucs have shown a tendency to lose winnable games these past few seasons. Munchak's Titans face a daunting matchup against an angry Seattle Seahawks team at home. Garret's Cowboys will take on the NFC East rival Washington Redskins, a team led by Mike Shanahan -- another coach that could easily find his way onto this list by season's end.

Status

Most In Danger: Schiano (0-4)
In Danger: Allen (2-3), Coughlin (0-6), Rivera (1-3), Frazier (1-3)
Less Danger: Schwartz (3-2), Munchak (3-2), Garrett (2-3), Tomlin (0-4)
Least Danger: Ryan (3-2)