Coaching Carousel
Tue Jun 3 9:31am CT
By JEFF PAUR @jeffpaur
Sr Fantasy Writer
It was another busy offseason when it comes to coaching changes in the NFL. There were seven coaching changes. The NFL is a win-now business, so turnover at head coach has become the norm.
The big question is how do these coaching hires impact fantasy teams? Well, that is what we are here to tell you. We'll give you the lowdown on all the coaching moves and how they could impact fantasy players on those teams moving forward.
The Bears had the best fantasy hire in most eyes, naming Ben Johnson their head coach. Johnson was in charge of the Lions high-powered offense in recent seasons, taking that team to a new level offensively. He gets to work with some exciting, young pieces in Chicago this year. He should be a huge boost to the offense, helping second-year quarterback Caleb Williams take his game to a new level. And the options in the passing game are looking good after seeing how well Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta produced in Johnson’s offense. D.J. Moore, Rome Odunze and rookie Colston Loveland all have a chance for career-best seasons in this offense. Lastly, we can’t forget about the running game, which was highly successful in Detroit. D’Andre Swift is the lead back in an offense that could be very potent. The offensive line will need to improve for Swift to reach big-time success, but he can still lace a big season as the top back for the Bears. This is a home run hire for the Bears fantasy players.
Brian Schottenheimer takes over in Dallas as their head coach. He has been the offensive coordinator for the team the last two seasons, so don’t expect a whole lot to change from a fantasy perspective. This is a pretty lateral move. You can expect more of the same from the Cowboys offense this year, which is a good thing for fantasy owners. The Cowboys have enjoyed a top-notch passing game in recent years, so Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens are looking solid once again for fantasy owners.
The Jaguars are another team that made a big-time fantasy hire, getting Liam Coen to become their head coach. Coen has been navigating the Bucs offense in recent years and helped turn around the career of quarterback Baker Mayfield. The Jaguars hope he can do the same for Trevor Lawrence, getting him to become the elite quarterback they envisioned when drafting him. Coen should help Lawrence and give both starting receivers a big boost, making Brian Thomas and rookie Travis Hunter exciting fantasy options. This offense could be really potent with Coen at the helm and Lawrence taking a step forward in his development.
The Raiders went old school with their hire, making Pete Carroll their head coach. He has a long coaching history and plenty of success in the NFL. Carroll has been the head coach of some top offenses in Seattle. He is not afraid to air it out but might lean on the running game a little more. He made Chip Kelly his offensive coordinator, a coach that has enjoyed plenty of success both in the NFL and collegiately. This is a good hire for fantasy purposes. He could really be a big asset for rookie back Ashton Jeanty. He could be the focal point of Kelly’s offense.
Mike Vrabel is another former head coach getting a shot to coach once again. He heads back to the team he played most of his NFL career with, the Patriots. Vrabel has a history of being a more conservative head coach, but named Josh McDaniels his offensive coordinator. McDaniels has a long history of leading offenses and having a lot of success. He was even the offensive coordinator for many seasons in New England. He led most of their best offenses during the Tom Brady era. The Patriots are hoping he can aid in the development of second-year quarterback Drake Maye. So this could be a pretty exciting fantasy hire with McDaniels track record of success. He could really help Maye and the entire Patriots offense become a lot more explosive.
Kellen Moore finally gets his shot to be a head coach, being named the Saints coach. He takes over a team in a rebuild. Moore was one of the hottest names in coaching a few years back when he was the Cowboys offensive coordinator. He should be a plus for the Saints offense, an offense that has struggled in recent years. Unfortunately for Moore, the team lacks some top pieces offensively, which is a concern. It could be a lot of Alvin Kamara this year, getting a variety of ways to touch the ball. Moore’s biggest task will be to develop rookie quarterback Tyler Shough. He needs to hit on this draft pick if he hopes to turn the team around.
The Jets hired the other coordinator from the Lions, making defense coordinator Aaron Glenn their head coach. Glenn had a ton of success in Detroit, leading that defense. Glenn made Lions' passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand his head coach. There is not a lot known about Engstrand but he is likely to have some of the tendencies of the guy he learned from in Detroit, Ben Johnson. This should be a good thing for the Jets offense. Glenn is likely to be a conservative head coach because of his defensive background, but he also comes from a team that won a lot of games because go a high-powered offense. We wouldn't expect Glenn to be ultra conservative in New York.
