Jay Gruden is gone, but who will replace him in Washington?

1. Josh McDaniels

McDaniels notably spurned the Indianapolis Colts at the proverbial last minute a couple years ago, as he’s surely hesitant to leave New England for anything other than the perfect fit if he were to take a head coaching job again. Being made the highest-paid coordinator in the NFL also helps.

McDaniels had a failed less than two-season stint as head coach of the Denver Broncos, with an 11-17 record in 2009 and 2010. He could eventually succeed Bill Belichick as Patriots’ head coach, which may be what owner Robert Kraft has in mind, but how long it will before that happens is a question. Will Belichick leave his post when Tom Brady does? It’s possible, but also impossible for anyone outside the building (and probably in the building too) to know until it happens. Frankly, McDaniels can’t be blamed if he doesn’t want to wait indefinitely for a hypothetical second chance to be a head coach in New England.

The appeal of the Redskins’ head coaching job is a huge question, that seems to have an obvious answer (not much. Owner Daniel Snyder aspires to be Jerry Jones but can’t pull it off, team president in Bruce Allen seems to be made of Teflon and general manager in Doug Williams may carry the least power of anyone in his post across the entire league. The dysfunctional upper management structure is easily reflected by Gruden being the only head coach to get to a second contract under Snyder’s ownership.

But if the Redskins are going to aim high in their head coaching search, and they should until further notice, McDaniels has to be prominent on the list to permanently replace Gruden.