There's a chance — a small one, but still a chance — that all four AFC North teams could be in search of a new head coach this offseason. More than likely, only Cleveland will be, but there have been whispers about John Harbaugh and Mike Tomlin's tenures running their course, plus the Bengals have been a major disappointment this season.
Let's make a big, big assumption here: that all four positions in the AFC North open up. Will it realistically happen? Probably not, but this is the time of year when playing the "what if" game can be a lot of fun. And hey — you never know what might happen. Let's say the Steelers dominate the Ravens in Week 18 to win the division, and then suffer their own bad defeat in the Wild Card round. Both teams could open up at that point. And let's say the Bengals wise up and realize they'll never win a championship with Zac Taylor. We could get to four!
Pittsburgh Steelers: Brian Flores
You could argue that the Steelers need to hire an offensive-minded head coach and that Mike Tomlin's failed search for a quarterback after Ben Roethlisberger's retirement is proof of that. I'm not against that argument, but at the same time, the Steelers are a team that's historically won behind its defense, and Brian Flores is the best defensive-minded head coaching candidate on the market.
Flores got the raw end of the deal in Miami. I remain convinced that he was decidedly not the issue there. He's one of the best defensive minds in the game and could be a long-term fixture on the Steelers' sidelines, just like Tomlin has been. Sure, he'll have to nail his offensive coordinator hire, but maybe he could bring along Vikings run game coordinator Curtis Modkins? (I don't know if that particular hire would be a good one or not, but the point is, Flores can figure the offensive hire part out somehow.)
Baltimore Ravens: Klint Kubiak
Should the Ravens move on from John Harbaugh? It's a hard question to answer. Personally, I think the Lamar Jackson injury issues this year mean you should give him another year at least, but for the purposes of this exercise, let's go ahead and fire him.
Baltimore could just go out and bring former offensive coordinator Greg Roman back or promote current offensive coordinator Todd Monken, but neither accomplishes the task of revamping this team. That's where Klint Kubiak comes in. He's helped turn the Seahawks into one of the best offenses in the league this season and has extensive experience in the league, working with five different franchises.
Cincinnati Bengals: Kevin Stefanski
I remain a believer that Kevin Stefanski is a good head coach who has been held back by circumstances. Those circumstances? Coaching the Cleveland Browns.
Stefanski has done his best with what he's been given, but the lack of consistent and competent quarterback play has been a major issue. Taking the Bengals job fixes that, assuming Joe Burrow can stay healthy.
And you might think 'isn't Cincinnati's issue the defense?' Yes, it's true that Stefanski — an offensive-minded coach — won't fix those issues on his own, but his defenses have been good in Cleveland since hiring Jim Schwartz as the defensive coordinator. In this scenario, I'm assuming he brings Schwartz along with him to Cincinnati.
Cleveland Browns: Mike McDaniel
We're also assuming here that the Dolphins move on from Mike McDaniel. If that happens, he'll have a few suitors, but Cleveland might be appealing because he could have a chance to really shape the team in his image. There's no incumbent quarterback that he would have to stick with. Cleveland could try to land Dante Moore in the draft, grab a free agent like Malik Willis, make a trade for a bridge guy like Mac Jones or even stick with Shedeur Sanders. There are options, and with just one year left on Deshaun Watson's onerous contract, McDaniel would have more flexibility in 2027.
Cleveland is a franchise that needs some stability. The last Cleveland head coach who had more than one year of NFL head coaching experience before taking the Browns job was Eric Mangini, who coached the team in 2009 and 2010. McDaniel can provide this team with experience, which might help turn this entire franchise around.