Ralph Vacchiano

NFL Reporter

In the three weeks since the New York Jets fired Robert Saleh they’ve gone 0-3, and in many ways look even worse than they did before. That proves two very important things:

Saleh wasn’t the Jets’ problem. 

And in-season coaching changes almost never work.

Of course, evidence isn’t necessarily something that will stop NFL owners looking for a quick fix. And to be fair, sometimes an in-season change is necessary to avert a complete and embarrassing disaster. Sometimes it’s even just a way for an embattled owner to throw fresh meat to his angry fans.

That’s why the seats remain hot under several coaches all around the NFL. Some of them could be gone within weeks. Others will surely be gone after their miserable season is over.

Here is the FOX Sports’ bi-weekly ranking of the seven hottest coaching seats in the league, heading into Week 9:

1. Dennis Allen, New Orleans Saints (Previous ranking: 2nd) 

It’s almost impossible to believe that the Saints were once 2-0 and being talked about as a surprise contender, because since then they’ve lost six straight games and Allen looks like a coach out of answers.

It’s not all his fault. Losing quarterback Derek Carr was a huge blow, but backup Spencer Rattler wasn’t the answer and he was benched on Sunday for someone named Jake Haener. The Saints unsurprisingly have scored 18 points total in the last two games. They’ve lost their past three by a combined score of 110-45.

Allen seems to have an ally in Saints general manager Mickey Loomis, but how long can that last? Allen is 18-24 as the Saints coach. Add in his miserable record with the Raiders and his head coaching record in the league is 26-52. It should be clear to everyone in New Orleans that it’s not going to get better under his leadership any time soon.

Dennis Allen and the Saints have lost six straight games heading into Week 9. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)

2. Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars (Previous ranking: 1st) 

His job was very likely saved with a 32-16 win over the awful New England Patriots in London two weeks ago. There were a lot of indications that a loss would’ve resulted in him being fired before the team plane landed back in Florida.

His cause was also helped on Sunday by a narrow loss to the Green Bay Packers, which only goes to show how low the standards have gotten in Jacksonville. But the numbers count. They are now 2-2 in their last four and franchise quarterback Trevor Lawrence finally showed signs of life on Sunday. Positive vibes could keep the reactionary instincts of Jags owner Shahid Khan at bay.

But only for so long. The Jaguars remain one of the biggest underachievers in the NFL and they are 3-11 since they entered last December with an 8-3 record. Plus, the Jags play at Philadelphia (5-2), home against the Vikings (5-2) and at Detroit (6-2) over the next three weeks, which could set the stage for Pederson to be fired one week later, during their bye.

Doug Pederson and the Jaguars sit at 2-6 on the season (Photo by Perry Knotts/Getty Images)

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3. Mike McCarthy, Dallas Cowboys (Previous ranking: 3rd) 

Yeah, Jerry Jones swears he’s not firing Mike McCarthy, and given his painful patience with previous coaches there’s no reason not to believe him.

But he’s got to have a breaking point, right?

The Cowboys lost again Sunday night in San Francisco in a game that wasn’t close until a garbage-time comeback. In fact, if you take away garbage time, they haven’t been competitive in any of their four losses. They’re also 0-3 at home, which has to sting, and they’re already 2.5 games back in the NFC East race. Oh, and their defense has given up 77 points in the last two games.

That last part is really McCarthy’s in-season security blanket, since his most likely interim replacement would be defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, and right now even Jones couldn’t sell that to players or fans. Don’t forget, though, that McCarthy is only signed through the end of the season. Jones doesn’t like firing coaches, but if this season gets much worse even he’ll see he won’t have much of a choice.

Is Mike McCarthy’s seat getting warmer following a loss to the 49ers? (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

4. Matt Eberflus, Chicago Bears (Previous ranking: NR) 

The decision not to give Eberflus a contract extension in the offseason spoke volumes about ownership’s uncertainty about him. It also says something about their lack of a plan. The smart move, as they were about to draft a new franchise quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick, would be to commit to a coach to help develop Caleb Williams for the first few years of his career.

Eberflus is still signed through 2025, but he could be on shaky ground if Williams doesn’t have the kind of rookie season everyone is expecting. There have been a lot of positive signs, but he’s been very up and down. Two strong weeks collapsed in an awful effort by him against Washington on Sunday in a showdown against No. 2 pick Jayden Daniels.

Eberflus also didn’t help himself with some odd coaching decisions (A handoff to an offensive lineman on 4th-and-goal from the 1 while trailing in the fourth quarter?). And it was a real bad look that one of his players was too busy trash-talking fans to defend the Hail Mary play that lost them the game. Stuff like that is hard to forget.

Will being on the losing end of a Hail Mary lead to Matt Eberflus’ demise in Chicago? (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)

5. Antonio Pierce, Las Vegas Raiders (Previous ranking: NR) 

The Raiders were right to take the interim tag off him after the Raiders’ strong 5-4 finish last year and the way all his players endorsed him. He seemed to have given the franchise a much-needed jolt of energy.

But good vibes don’t last forever, especially when you don’t have a franchise quarterback and your best receiver basically forced a trade. Right now, Pierce is struggling to hold things together with the Raiders riding a four-game losing streak. They’ve been competitive the last two weeks in close losses to the Rams and Chiefs, but how long will close be enough?

They’ve got a new minority owner in Tom Brady, who almost certainly will have some thoughts to share with majority owner Marc Davis. And they’re heading towards their fourth non-winning season in five years in Las Vegas, which isn’t good.

There’s a bye looming in two weeks, though Pierce likely will survive that. But if he can’t recapture the good vibes — and a few wins along the way — the Raiders may end up starting over in 2025 with a new quarterback and a new head coach. 

Antonio Pierce and the Raiders are 2-6 on the season. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images)

6. Zac Taylor, Cincinnati Bengals (Previous ranking: 5th) 

Their 37-17 loss at home to the Eagles on Sunday shows how far this team has fallen. They should be much closer to contender status with some of the talent they have. But they keep getting farther away.

He’s still very unlikely to be fired in-season for a bunch of reasons. One is that the Bengals are notably cheap and they don’t want to eat the $4.5 million per year he’s making through 2026. The other is that they are 3-2 over their last five and one of those losses was in overtime to the Baltimore Ravens.

But — and this is a bad “but” — in their last three games, this offense has averaged 18.3 points and 269 yards. That’s inexcusable for a team with Joe Burrow at quarterback and a receiver like Ja’Marr Chase. At some point, the Bengals will have to realize they can’t waste the prime of those two players.

Will the Bengals need a late-season run to save Zac Taylor’s job? (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)

7. Brian Daboll, New York Giants (Previous ranking: 4th) 

Why is he still on this list after co-owner John Mara promised that he and general manager Joe Schoen would be back in 2025? Mostly because what Mara actually said was that he won’t make any in-season changes and “I do not anticipate making any changes in the offseason.”

The phrasing of these votes of confidence is always key.

Mara’s not lying or playing games. But he also knows that things can fall apart late to an embarrassing degree (just ask Joe Judge), and sometimes things happen that he just can’t accept (ask Ben McAdoo). So yeah, there’s a little wiggle room in his promise.

But it really would take something drastic to change his mind, according to sources inside the organization. Maybe if they don’t win another game, or players start revolting, or Daboll’s press conferences just go off the rails — something like that. His team is feisty, though, so the odds are good he’s not going anywhere. But stranger things have happened to this organization in the last 13 years.

Is there enough time for Brian Daboll and the Giants to get on track in 2024? (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

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Dropped from the list:

Kevin Stefanski, Cleveland Browns (Previous ranking: 7th) — A big win over the Baltimore Ravens showed he can still coach, especially when he has a quarterback. Deshaun Watson being out for the season will only help his cause.

Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles (Previous ranking: 6th) — The Eagles are 5-2 now after three straight wins and their offense is clicking for the first time, really, since the 2022 season. But a playoff run may still be needed to save him.

Ralph Vacchiano is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. He spent the previous six years covering the Giants and Jets for SNY TV in New York, and before that, 16 years covering the Giants and the NFL for the New York Daily News. Follow him Twitter at @RalphVacchiano.

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League One side Wrexham say the investment, made through Red Dragon Ventures LLC, “will help fuel the club’s lofty ambitions, as well as those of the broader Wrexham community”.

Eric Allyn, manager and chief investment officer of the Allyn’s family office, said: “For more than a century, our family has focused on building great companies, while also uplifting wonderful communities.

“Our decades-long efforts in the Syracuse region are similar to what Rob and Ryan have started in Wrexham.

“We view Red Dragon Ventures as a vehicle to invest in a world-class football club, and, importantly, in the welcoming community of Wrexham.”

Manager Phil Parkinson has guided the Red Dragons from the National League to League One under the ownership of Reynolds and McElhenney.

Wrexham currently sit third in League One having collected 25 points from their opening 13 matches of the campaign.

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NEW YORK — The Yankees finally broke through for their first win of the World Series in front of a rocking Bronx crowd and, in doing so, reminded everyone that they’re not going down without a fight. Whether it was the pressure of competing in an elimination game and playing with urgency, or seeing multiple relief arms and capitalizing on the Dodgers‘ bullpen game, the Yankees’ 11-4 win on Tuesday night was just what they needed to get their confidence back in the Fall Classic. 

They are, after all, the best team in the American League for a reason.

Here are our four biggest takeaways from Game 4 in the Bronx. 

[RELATED: Full coverage of the World Series] 

1. Volpe’s signature Yankees moment

It was sweet, sweet redemption for Anthony Volpe. One inning after he didn’t score from second base on an Austin Wells double, the opportunity to atone for his mistake was his to take when the Yankees, trailing 2-1, loaded the bases for him in the third. The Yankees were finding ways to get on base, but they still needed that big hit, and it appeared unlikely that they would actually capitalize after Anthony Rizzo popped out with the bases juiced for the second out. But it was also pretty clear that Daniel Hudson, who was the second man out of the bullpen in the Dodgers’ bullpen game, didn’t have it.

Volpe pounced on the first pitch Hudson offered him, an 89 mph slider that nicked the bottom of the zone before the Yankees shortstop barreled it to left field. Fans couldn’t believe it as the ball kept sailing over left fielder Teoscar Hernández’s head and into the seats. Only when it safely landed beyond the left-field wall did an anxious and restless home crowd of 49,354 finally erupt for the first time in this World Series. 

Volpe’s grand slam gave the Yankees a lead it wouldn’t relinquish. The first home run of his postseason career was just his second overall since Aug. 4. — Deesha Thosar

2. Freeman does it again

No, that wasn’t a replay. Freddie Freeman had no extra-base hits, just one run scored and one RBI in the first two rounds of the postseason. He was too hobbled from his ankle sprain to play in the Dodgers’ deciding Game 6 of the NLCS, and there were questions whether his valiant effort to be in the lineup — despite his obvious pain, and despite how much it seemed to be a galvanizing force for his teammates, who admired the daily efforts it took for him to get on the field — was doing more harm than good.

The Yankees haven’t seen that version of the All-Star first baseman. A week off transformed Freeman from a singles hitter into a slugging juggernaut. His teammates thought he had started to find his stroke again watching him take batting practice a couple of days before the start of the World Series, watching him line baseballs over shortstop the way he typically does when he’s swinging right.

The Yankees didn’t get that version of Freeman, either. Instead, they’ve seen the one who’s on a historic postseason home run pace. Freeman hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history in Game 1, added a solo shot in Game 2, quieted the opposing crowd at Yankee Stadium in the first inning of Game 3 with a two-run shot, then did so again in Game 4. In the process, Freeman — who also homered in the final two games of the Braves‘ 2021 title run — has set a major-league record by hitting a home run in six straight World Series games.

He has now homered in four straight games to start this World Series. At the time of his Game 4 blast, Freeman had knocked in more runs this series than the entire Yankees team. His 10 RBIs are the most by a Dodgers player in a World Series. This time, though, it wasn’t the dagger that it was in Game 3, as the Yankees’ lineup battled back. — Rowan Kavner

3. With a little help from Judge’s friends

It was hard to imagine the Yankees getting a single win in this World Series without one of two things happening: Either Aaron Judge wakes up, or the guys that he’s carried all year finally give him some of that support back. It was mostly the latter Tuesday, as the bottom of the Yankees order finally put together quality at-bats for the first time in this Series. Austin Wells, one of the Yankees’ best hitters in July and August and who played his way into the American League Rookie of the Year conversation, cranked a solo shot to right field in the sixth inning for a much-needed insurance run after the Dodgers had cut their deficit to one. For the rookie catcher, the homer followed an excellent at-bat in the second inning, when he skied a double off the padding in center field that led to New York’s first run. 

No lead is safe with the Dodgers in the other dugout, as the Yankees learned the hard way in Game 1. That might explain New York’s five-run outburst in the eighth inning, with Volpe and Wells reaching safely again to set the table for a Gleyber Torres three-run home run. Amazingly, the Yankees scored their first 10 runs of this game without Juan Soto or Judge being prominently involved. — Thosar

4. Dodgers’ bullpen game goes south quickly

Tuesday was the fourth bullpen game of the postseason for the Dodgers. The first, in an elimination Game 4 in the NLDS, was a clinic, with eight different pitchers combining to hold the Padres scoreless in an 8-0 shutout that came in the midst of a record-tying 33 consecutive scoreless innings for the Dodgers’ pitching staff.

The last three haven’t gone so smoothly, including the first of the World Series on Tuesday in the Bronx. With four chances to win one game, manager Dave Roberts decided against deploying all of his best high-leverage pieces the way he needed to in that first do-or-die matchup in San Diego. It looked a little more like Game 2 of the NLCS, when, after the Mets tagged Landon Knack for five runs, the Dodgers essentially punted. Roberts didn’t want to tire his best arms out in a long series, and he didn’t want the Mets to get another look at those arms in a minus situation. The move ultimately paid off.

It was a similar situation Tuesday against the Yankees. While Roberts said everyone was available, it was clear he would need some length from rookies Ben Casparius and Knack and would decide who to use based on the game situation from there. “Every guy will be with a cost going forward,” Roberts said. Michael Kopech had pitched in each of the first three games. Blake Treinen, Anthony Banda, Alex Vesia and Brusdar Graterol had pitched in two apiece. None of them saw the field after Volpe’s grand slam off Daniel Hudson put the Yankees in the driver’s seat. 

Roberts has pushed a lot of the right buttons so far this October, so we’ll see if saving his best guys for Game 5 and beyond was the right call again. — Rowan Kavner

Deesha Thosar is an MLB reporter for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.

Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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NEW YORK — Before a do-or-die Game 4 at Yankee Stadium, Jazz Chisholm thought about wearing Timberlands on the field for batting practice. They were gifted to the team by outfielder Alex Verdugo, who “just wanted to do something cool for the boys.” 

For three games to start the World Series, a Yankees offense that had launched more homers and taken more free passes than any team in baseball looked like a shell of itself. At the time Freddie Freeman launched another go-ahead first-inning blast in Game 4, he had knocked in more runs during the series than the entire New York lineup.

The Yankees entered Tuesday night with a total of seven runs through three games and only four hits with runners in scoring position. They looked tight. Verdugo, whose ninth-inning homer the night before provided their only runs in Game 3, sought to loosen things up. Well, that, plus he “felt like Timberlands just feel like New York” and he “wanted to get the boys some steppin’ shoes.” 

“Mine was more just give them that, give them something to lighten it up,” Verdugo said. 

Whether the gift helped at all, or the Yankees offense simply enjoyed seeing a Dodgers bullpen game featuring a parade of their lower-leverage arms, the group finally ignited in an 11-4 rout. 

A mindset change was part of the equation. 

[RELATED: Full coverage of the World Series] 

“The situation we were in, I think that we just kind of needed to say, ‘Screw it,’ and go after it and have fun because some guys may never come back to the World Series again,” catcher Austin Wells said. “So, enjoying the game, I think that allowed us to play a lot looser tonight.”

Anthony Volpe’s go-ahead grand slam, which finally gave Yankee Stadium a reason to erupt, didn’t hurt, either. Wells said he thought that hit allowed the rest of the lineup to take a deep breath. 

It also forced Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to think long term. He essentially punted the rest of the way, the same way he did in Game 2 of the NLCS when the Mets jumped ahead early in a bullpen game, so as not to overwork the relievers he trusts the most or allow the opposition to see them in a game they were unlikely to take anyway. It worked then. 

The danger of that decision on Tuesday is it helped a group of scuffling Yankees hitters to break out and gain confidence. 

Wells, who was 4-for-43 to begin the postseason and was given the previous game off, followed three innings after Volpe’s blast with a home run. Then came a five-run barrage in the eighth, when Gleyber Torres put the game away with the Yankees’ third home run of the night. 

A Yankees offense that had not scored more than three runs in a game during the series broke out with nine hits and six free passes against a medley of Dodgers relievers. The bottom of the lineup provided a spark, but eight of the nine players in the lineup reached base. Perhaps most encouragingly for the Yankees, Aaron Judge demonstrated some promising signs, reaching base four times and knocking in a run in his final at-bat of the game. 

“Once he’s on base, I feel like everybody gets going,” Chisholm said. 

The World Series had gone 11 straight years without a sweep. The Yankees awoke from their slumber to run that streak to 12. The 11-run fusillade was tied for the second-most ever by a club facing elimination in the World Series. 

The offensive approach that got them to the World Series finally showed up to help them keep their season alive.

“Knowing that this was the last guaranteed day of baseball for the season, definitely didn’t want to take it for granted and wanted to enjoy the moment,” Wells said. “I think if you put too much pressure on it at this point, like, it’s just going to … you’re going to fail yourself, and you’re not going to enjoy the journey.”

That journey will now continue on Thursday, when the Yankees have to feel good about their chances of sending the series back to Los Angeles. 

If they’re able to do that, they’ll make history in the process. The Yankees are the 25th team to face a 3-0 deficit in the World Series. Twenty-one of the previous 24 teams to face that margin were swept. The other three lost in Game 5. 

But the other three didn’t have Gerrit Cole on the mound. 

“Every time G goes out there, we feel we’re in a great spot,” Chisholm said. “He’s like the best pitcher in the world. You see him out there, you see confidence.”

Cole allowed just one run and only four baserunners in six innings to start the series. He departed with the lead in a game that ended with a walk-off grand slam off the bat of Freeman, who has made his mark in every game this series. Freeman followed those late-game heroics with a solo homer in Game 2, then quieted the Yankees’ crowd with a two-run shot that sapped the energy from the stadium in Game 3. 

When Freeman did the exact same thing again in Game 4, setting a major-league record with a home run in his sixth straight World Series game, it looked like he might have delivered the dagger to the Yankees’ season. 

This time, though, they answered back. 

The 2004 Red Sox are the only MLB team to dig its way out of a 3-0 hole in a best-of-seven series, when it did so against the Yankees in the American League Championship Series. 

But the Yankees, with three more games to play for their lives, aren’t thinking that far ahead. Anthony Rizzo, whose 2016 World Series champion Cubs emerged victorious from a 3-1 deficit in the World Series — where the Yankees find themselves now — knows the danger of that. 

“It was all about just getting to Game 6,” Rizzo said. “We knew Game 5 was going to be really hard.”

If the offense that showed up Wednesday reveals itself again, especially with Cole on the mound, the Yankees have a real chance of extending the series. Even if they can’t wear Timberlands to batting practice. 

“We’ve got to focus on, ‘Win another game,’” Judge said. “We’ll look up at the end of it and see what happens.”

Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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