Six weeks into the 2026 NFL season, a growing number of head coaches are coaching for their jobs. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers fell to 1-5 after a 26-19 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, and the Los Angeles Chargers dropped to a league-worst 0-6 following a 22-6 beating at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs.

With bye weeks approaching across the league, front offices will have time to evaluate, and for some coaches, that evaluation could be the beginning of the end.

Todd Bowles, Jim Harbaugh, and Shane Steichen All Suffered Defeats in Week 6

Todd Bowles, who carries a 36-38 record as the Bucs’ head coach, has watched his team spiral since its 5-1 start to the 2025 season. Tampa Bay, which ranks 30th on PFN’s Offense Impact Metric, hasn’t scored 20 points in four of its last five games, and with Jalon Daniels filling in for the injured Baker Mayfield, the offense has shown little sign of stabilizing.

The Buccaneers’ bye doesn’t arrive until Week 10, and upcoming games against the Panthers, Falcons, and Bears could leave them in an even deeper hole before the front office reaches the bye-week evaluation point.

Jim Harbaugh’s Chargers might be the most stunning collapse on the coaching carousel. An 0-6 start has turned a team once viewed as an ascending AFC contender into arguably the worst roster in football, with Justin Herbert looking nothing like the franchise quarterback who earned a massive extension.

Meanwhile, the Indianapolis Colts fell to 2-4 after a 26-20 loss to the Tennessee Titans, and owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon has publicly stated that “urgency has never been higher,” putting Shane Steichen squarely on notice.

The Philadelphia Eagles are mired in a four-game losing streak at 2-4, raising renewed questions about Nick Sirianni’s long-term future. In Dallas, Brian Schottenheimer enters Sunday Night Football against the Green Bay Packers at 2-3, still searching for consistency in his second season after a 7-9-1 debut. The Cowboys could easily slip to 2-4 by the time the night is over.

Analysts Make Their Picks for First HC to Get Fired in 2026

As the calendar turns toward November, the list of coaches facing genuine job pressure is longer than it has been at this point in the season in recent memory. Several of these situations feel like a matter of when, not if.

Several Pro Football Network analysts weighed in on which head coach they believe will be the first to lose his job during the 2026 season. Here’s who they picked:

He added, “If Hurts is unable to return and get things turned around, Sirianni seriously finds himself at the mercy of the Eagles’ front office that has demanded results season in and out.”

“This team has failed to score 20 points in four of their past five games, and while the backup QB is going to factor into that, it’s not as if this was a well-oiled machine with Baker Mayfield,” Soppe continued. “We are nearing a calendar year of disastrous play since the 5-1 start a year ago, and that’s reason enough to move on.”

“Bowles was a great defensive coordinator, but he’s a bad head coach,” Kennedy added. “Bowles has been coasting off the division titles he won in a weak NFC South, but his record since taking over as the Bucs’ head coach is 36-38. For comparison, Mike McDaniel posted a 35-33 record with the Miami Dolphins before getting fired. This team isn’t winning anything with Bowles at the helm, so it’s time to make a move.”

He continued, “Bowles has been the coach for a few years now, and it’s abundantly clear that the Buccaneers have already reached their ceiling with Bowles in that role. This is a team in clear need of a major reset, which means it would make sense for Tampa Bay to clean house earlier than other NFL teams.”

“Instead, many of the same issues under Moore, such as being constantly unprepared, confusing roster decisions, and an inability to make tough moves when players are underperforming, have plagued this season,” Yaccarino added. “After owner Gayle Benson’s comments about keeping the staff accountable, pressure is on Moore to lead this team, and if the Saints lose badly in Paris, it may be over for him in New Orleans.”