Bill Belichick, Mike Vrabel Among NFL Coaches to Miss Out This Hiring Cycle

This year's NFL head-coaching hiring cycle appears to be over.

The Washington Commanders are hiring former Atlanta Falcons head coach and current Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn as their new leader, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Thursday. After the Seattle Seahawks hired Mike Macdonald as their coach on Wednesday, Washington was the lone NFL franchise with an opening.

With Quinn's hiring, a quarter of the league now has a new head coach, compared with the start of the 2023 season. Along with the new hires in Washington and Seattle, candidates who earned top jobs in the league over the past few weeks include Raheem Morris (Atlanta Falcons), Dave Canales (Carolina Panthers), Jim Harbaugh (Los Angeles Chargers), Brian Callahan (Tennessee Titans), Antonio Pierce (Las Vegas Raiders) and Jerod Mayo (New England Patriots).

And now that every vacancy has been filled, various high-profile coaches will have to wait at least another year for their shot at running an NFL team (or, in some cases, running one again).

Here's a look at five notable head-coaching candidates who weren't hired this offseason.

Bill Belichick

It's not every year that a six-time Super Bowl champion head coach, who has won 302 regular-season games and another 31 in the playoffs, is on the market. And perhaps even more unlikely is this coach not being hired by any of the eight (seven, taking the Patriots out of the equation) franchises seeking a new one.

But that's the situation Bill Belichick finds himself in.

On January 11, Belichick and the New England Patriots announced they were parting ways after 24 years. The 71-year-old interviewed twice for the Falcons opening in the weeks afterward and was also linked to other teams. But to no avail.

Neither of the NFL's elder head-coaching statesmen from last season—Belichick and 72-year-old Pete Carroll—will be roaming the sidelines in 2024. But the circumstances are different in each case. Carroll remains with the Seahawks as an adviser and did not interview for another head coach opening.

Belichick did, was not hired and will apparently have to wait another year if he wants to get back into the coaching game. So for the first time since 1999 he will not be an NFL head coach next season.

Mike Vrabel

One of Belichick's former players is another high-profile coaching candidate, in an offseason full of them, still seeking employment.

The Titans fired Mike Vrabel on January 9 after consecutive losing seasons. Over a six-year stretch leading Tennessee, Vrabel went 54-45, made three gritty trips to the playoffs and one AFC championship game, and earned Coach of the Year honors. Vrabel widely established himself as one of the top coaches in the game during his time with the Titans, and that reputation was expected to make him a hot commodity this offseason.

The 48-year-old had interviews scheduled with the Falcons, Panthers and Chargers this month, but as February kicks off he is still without an NFL home.

Aaron Glenn

The Detroit Lions will have both of their sought-after coordinators back in 2024.

Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson was considered one of the prizes of this cycle but opted to return to the Lions earlier this week (just as another top candidate, Texans OC Bobby Slowik, will be back in Houston next season). Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn also won't be going anywhere—but for different reasons.

Glenn, recently voted the top defensive coordinator in the league by the National Football League Players Association, was considered in the Titans, Falcons, Chargers and Commanders coaching searches. The 51-year-old was reportedly a finalist in Washington before the Commanders went with Quinn.

This may be tough news for Glenn, but the Lions can't be too upset. Detroit, fresh off a 34-31 NFC championship game loss, maintains the key components of its coaching staff as it looks to build off a 12-5, division-winning season.

Eric Bieniemy

Another year of head-coaching prospects for Eric Bieniemy came up empty.

The former Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator, who spent the 2023 campaign as Washington's OC and assistant head coach, will have to settle for an NFL assistant position of some sort again in 2024.

Bieniemy's only reported head-coaching interview was with the Commanders, who obviously passed. The 54-year-old seemingly left Kansas City to prove he could coordinate a potent offense without Patrick Mahomes, but the results last season were mixed. Washington went 4-13 with Sam Howell as the starter under-center, and the offense finished 25th in scoring, 24th in yardage, 29th in turnovers and 28th in scoring percentage.

Ejiro Evero

Despite a disastrous 2-15 season in Carolina, defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero is still clearly well regarded in NFL circles. The 43-year-old was considered for the Panthers' top job and also interviewed for the openings in Atlanta and Seattle.

Each team went in a different direction, though the longtime defensive assistant has positioned himself as a name to watch in 2025. As for 2024, Evero may be back as defensive coordinator in Carolina under Canales.