Jeff Hafley
Age 46 / Defense bias
-16 seasons as a college coach (4 as a Head Coach)
-9 seasons as an NFL coach (2 as a coordinator)
-Coaching tree: Greg Schiano, Kyle Shanahan
-Record as a coordinator: 20-13-1
PROS
Hafley was a Head Coach for four seasons at Boston College. While that is not the same demand as the NFL, it is important to know this will not be his first time in the CEO role. His stint there was very up and down but it did end on a high note, winning seven games (most by the program since 2018) following a 3-9 season the year before.
While Hafley did inherit a very capable defense when he arrived in Green Bay, the rapid improvement across the board was obvious right away. Green Bay improved from 10th in points allowed to 6th and from 17th in yards allowed to 5th.
Hafley’s first season with San Francisco in 2016 was Chip Kelly’s final year with the team where they went 2-14. Kyle Shanahan was then hired and he opted to keep Hafley around (the two worked together in Cleveland) and Hafley then had two seasons of experience under Robert Saleh as a defensive backs coach. He left for Ohio State the season San Francisco made the Super Bowl behind the number one pass defense in the NFL. While Hafley was not there for it, his fingerprints were on that secondary.
CONS
Hafley’s defenses in Green Bay have not performed well in their two postseason matchups. They blew a 21-3 lead in 2025 to the Chicago Bears and in 2024 the Philadelphia Eagles rushed for 169 yards on them. Prior to that game, they had not allowed more than 144 yards in any game and kept the opponent to under 100 yards in six of the last seven regular season games.
When Micah Parsons went down with a torn ACL in 2025, Hafley failed to come up with anything remotely close to a solution. They averaged 405 yards per game allowed (and then 445 in the first round of the playoffs).
At the end of the day, Hafley had a losing record in college as Head Coach and there were some around the program who called him a sellout for not finishing the job he promised. He left, he did not get fired. He did not bring a culture to that program nor did he set them up for a future. It is possible he got in over his head and in the NFL, it is only more competitive.
In Conclusion:
Hafley is a smooth talker who clearly understands the game and demands of being a Head Coach; this won’t be his first rodeo and he has some experience to fall back on. But there is fear he is not the defensive architect some make him out to be because he has always been blessed with a lot of talent and he has not proven he can be an elite playcaller with his high-end weapons.
Klint Kubiak
Age 38 / Offense bias
-4 seasons as a college coach
-12 seasons as an NFL coach (3 seasons as a coordinator)
-Coaching tree: Gary Kubiak
-Record as coordinator: 27-16
PROS
Kubiak’s father, Gary, was a Super Bowl winning Head Coach with the Denver Broncos in 2015. While Klay was working for Kansas that season, he grew up in that household under a father who happened to come from one of the best coaching trees in NFL history (Mike Shanahan). His brother, Klay Kubiak, is currently on the Kyle Shanahan staff in San Francisco. Simply put, this is a lifer who has ties to an offensive coaching tree everyone wants to get their hands on.
Kubiak was the quarterbacks coach in Minnesota during Kirk Cousins’ first three seasons there (and the offensive coordinator in that third year). It was the best stretch of Cousins’ career and Minnesota had a top six passing offense in 2019-2020 and a top ten red zone offense all three seasons.
Besides the one-season stint in Denver which was a dumpster fire under Head Coach Nathanial Hackett, Kubiak put a strong stamp on every stop he’s been at. His first two games in New Orleans in 2024, the team led the NFL with 91 points before injuries derailed their season. In Seattle this season, they rank second in the league in pass yards per attempt and third in points scored under his leadership and playcalling. Results have been almost-always positive following his arrival everywhere he’s been.
CONS
Kubiak’s best work has been with experienced quarterbacks, Kirk Cousins was seven years into his career when Kubiak began working with him. Derek Carr was ten years into his career when Kubiak began working with him. And Sam Darnold was seven years into his career when Kubiak began working with him. The rookies he has worked with right away in the league? Teddy Bridgewater, Paxton Lynch, Kellen Mond, and Spencer Rattler.
As was the case in New Orleans in 2024, the Seattle offense did start to stall a bit down the stretch. This could be a trend worth following that opposing defenses find the holes in his offense as the season goes and Kubiak fails to come up with the answers. Three of their lowest 2025 yardage outputs came over the last six games. Over the last six games in 2024, the Saints did not break 20 points once.
Depending on how Seattle does this postseason, gunning for him could be a lengthy wait without any sort of guarantee. The longer Seattle lasts, the less time a 39-year old first-time Head Coach has to get acclimated to his new surroundings and role. And if he does not accept the offer? Who are you left with?
In Conclusion:
There is little-to-no question Kubiak will get a Head Coaching gig in his near future. He knows what offensive success looks like and considering his upbringing, he’s known it his entire life. How well he can do on his own and how much of a leader of the entire team he can be are two significant question marks that make him a risky hire.
Ejiro Evero
Age 45 / Defense bias
-3 seasons as a college coach
-18 seasons as an NFL coach (4 as a coordinator)
-Coaching tree: Jim Harbaugh, Sean McVay
-Record as coordinator: 20-48
PROS
Evero got his start with Tampa Bay under Jon Gruden for a top five defense in the NFL. Four years later, Jim Harbaugh hired him on to his staff in San Francisco to coach a defense that was a top five unit for four straight seasons. Two years after that stint, Sean McVay hired him on to his staff in Los Angeles (N) which eventually became the number one defense in the NFL, a two-time NFC Champion, and a Super Bowl winner. Evero was a sought after coach by some of the best winners the NFL has seen over a two-decade period.
Evero’s first Defensive Coordinator job was in Denver in the Nathaniel Hackett dumpster fire-season in 2022. The irony was that defense actually finished seventh in yards allowed. In Carolina, the 2024 defense was the worst in the league by nearly every metric. He helped turn them around to a mid-level group as they went on to win the NFC South for the first time in a decade.
Evero is known for being a tone-setting coach who sets and maintains a culture. The proper blend of both a player’s coach and a disciplinarian who the team both respects and plays hard for. His reputation was discussed during the Super Bowl runs with the Rams years ago and has only been enhanced as he’s been through the ups and downs (more up, than down).
CONS
When it comes to being the shot caller for an entire defense, it can be argued Evero remains unproven when it comes to building a top-tier unit. In Denver, he was able to work with a defense Vic Fangio built for years prior. And in Carolina, two of his defenses were bottom shelf with the peak coming in 2025, a group that was improved but still mid-level.
The weaknesses to Evero’s schemes have consistently revolved around the pass rush. He is a defensive back specialist with development-success there specifically but the pressure rates as a coordinator of the defenses he led? 31st in 2025. 32nd in 2024. 30th in 2023. 26th in 2022.
Evero’s decision making late in games while protecting one-score leads has often been criticized due to a lack of aggression and variety. Veteran quarterbacks were easily picking apart soft zone coverages and rarely dealt with any sort of creative pass rush schemes. Evero had a hard time protecting leads late.
In Conclusion:
Evero’s resume and list of coaches he has worked under is as impressive as anyone in the league. He has been around different winning cultures and has proven he can play a part in creating a sound defense but there are a couple of missing pieces to his schemes that remain unknown.
Joe Brady
Age 36 / Offense Bias
-5 seasons as a college coach
-8 seasons as an NFL coach (4 as a coordinator, half as a interim)
Coaching tree: Sean Payton
Record as coordinator: 35-32
PROS
Brady’s first job in the NFL was under one of the top names in NFL history when it comes to the offensive side of the ball, Sean Payton. The Saints were two-time NFC South champions with top-five scoring offenses the two years Brady was there.
In 2019, Brady’s one season with LSU was the Joe Burrow National Championship season where their offense was setting records left and right. Brady won the Broyles Award, given to the nation’s top assistant coach. Burrow himself has noted how much he played a part in his historic production that nobody saw coming.
Once back in the NFL, Brady has been with the lows (Carolina) and the highs (Buffalo). His “everybody eats” philosophy focuses on spreading the ball out and not being overly reliant on one player. The Buffalo offense in 2025 was the number one rushing game in the NFL and while Josh Allen can make anyone look good, this was the best the running game looked like since he entered the league.
CONS
Brady may have been given his first Offensive Coordinator job too soon. He was a 31-year old with barely any NFL experience working with a first-time NFL Head Coach and Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback. He did have Sam Darnold in year two, however, and the team finished 24th and 29th in scoring, respectively. The results were poor. Darnold took off two years after he left.
When Brady has been involved in the success of an offense, he’s had mega-stars at quarterback. Drew Brees in New Orleans. Joe Burrow at LSU. And Josh Allen in Buffalo. There are credible questions around his ability to create via his own coaching and scheme rather than simply having more talent than the opposition.
The lack of a coaching network for such a young coach can be a death sentence. Brady will be very reliant on a defensive staff to get the entire operation on the same level as his offense. This is always a risk of hiring a young coach but he lacks experience in the NFL on a different level than others in this age bracket.
In Conclusion:
Brady’s name has long been in the conversation as a young offensive whiz kid but he has not yet shown he can be a part of a winner without a piece of gold at quarterback. The lack of experience strikes fear into his ability to build a staff but he does have production to lean on in addition to youth.
Darren Rizzi
Age 55 / Special Teams bias
-16 seasons as a college coach (4 as a Head Coach)
-17 seasons as an NFL coach (15 as a coordinator)
Coaching Tree: Sean Payton
PROS
Unlike many long-time NFL assistants vying for a lead role, Rizzi does have experience as a Head Coach. While they were at lower levels of college football from 1999-2001 and in 2008), it won’t be his first rodeo. He was also an interim Head Coach in New Orleans after Dennis Allen was fired for half of the season.
Rizzi was not connected to a specific coach that he simply followed around in the NFL. In his 17-year career as a special teams coach, he worked for five different Head Coaches including three in Miami and two in New Orleans. Payton did re-hire him in Denver this past season. This is a sign of respect he has around the league rather than just relationships.
Rizzi’s special teams units have ranked top ten in 13 of his 15 seasons as a coordinator. The Bill Parcells adage of fixing special teams first as the lowest hanging fruit to turn teams around is a simple way of fixing a losing franchise. It worked for John Harbaugh in Baltimore and there are more than enough reasons that will take place if Rizzi gets hired.
CONS
In an era where the contrast between coaching and schemes across the league appears to be wider than ever, Rizzi does not bring an offensive or defensive advantage to the table. He will be overly reliant on coordinators who, if they have success, will be hired elsewhere which can hurt continuity long-term.
Rizzi has been interviewing for Head Coach jobs since 2019. Through all the opportunities, nobody has felt strongly enough about him to give him the keys to the bus. For a 55-year old, it would be uncommon to be hired as a first-time Head Coach in the NFL with the experience he has had in the league.
Rizzi has never had a need to work with or develop quarterbacks on any sort of serious level. Even some defensive coaches will work with one during the season to trade ideas and concepts. The Head Coach-quarterback relationship is a must in today’s NFL and that is a big question mark on his resume.
In Conclusion:
Rizzi is not and will never be a household name when it comes to Head Coach candidates in the NFL. However, he has proven over multiple years in multiple cities under multiple coaches that he gets the job done at a high level no matter what. That can be a trait that is inside of him and will carry to whatever role he possesse