5 NFL head coaches who won't survive Black Monday

The 2023 NFL regular season will officially end once the game clock ticks all the way to zero during the Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills matchup on Sunday night. With that, the playoff field will be set, and the road to Super Bowl 58 officially opens up. While 14 teams battle for a chance to win the Lombardi Trophy, the remaining 18 will evaluate their organizations.

Every year, the Monday after the conclusion of the NFL season sees teams make changes at the head coaching position. As in, teams opt to fire their current head coaches to go in a different direction and hope for better results. In the NFL, this is known as "Black Monday."

Before the season ended, three teams opted to fire their head coaches -- the Las Vegas Raiders, Carolina Panthers, and Los Angeles Chargers. But the list of coaching vacancies are bound to grow on Monday.

Here are five head coaches who will likely be handed their walking papers on Monday.

Ron Rivera will reportedly be let go on Monday

Prior to kickoff on Sunday, a report dropped about one head coach who will likely be fired on Monday, and that's Ron Rivera of the Washington Commanders.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported that the Commanders were expected to move on from Rivera on Monday. This would bring an end to his four-year tenure with the organization and his second head coaching gig.

The Commanders hired Rivera in 2020 to help turn the team's luck around on the field. The Commanders won the NFC East in his first season on the job, but lose in the Wild Card Round. Since, the Commanders haven't made it back to the playoffs. Not just that, but Washington has never had a winning record in all four seasons with Rivera leading on the sidelines. Overall, Rivera holds a 26-39-1 record entering the season-finale.

In 2023, the Commanders are 4-12 entering their season-finale against the Dallas Cowboys. They were eliminated from playoff contention, and are set to pick in the Top 5 in the 2024 NFL Draft. Rivera won't be part of the team entering the 2024 league year.

Chris Tabor's interim tag with Panthers will run out after season

The Carolina Panthers have had their own coaching carousel in recent years. After the team fired Ron Rivera in 2019, the team brought in former Baylor University head coach Matt Rhule. But midway through the 2022 season, Rhule was fired. The carousel was supposed to come to a stop when they brought in former Indianapolis Colts head coach Frank Reich to help develop the quarterback they were selecting with the first-overall pick in this past year's NFL Draft.

But after 11 games and a 1-10 record, Reich was fired by team owner David Tepper. The offense was a mess and rookie quarterback Bryce Young failed to develop early on. It certainly stung after watching fellow rookie C.J. Stroud shine with the Houston Texans. With that, special teams coordinator Chris Tabor took over on an interim basis.

Tabor did make some changes to the offensive coaching staff immediately upon receiving the promotion, including moving on from quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and assistant head coach Duce Staley. Even so, the offense didn't show much improvement and the team went 1-5 since.

The Panthers are hiring a new head coach, and will go about their search differently. Joe Person of The Athletic reported that Tepper is hiring consulting firm, Sportsology, to help in the coaching search.

We'll see who the Panthers ultimately end up hiring as their head coach to lad the team in the right direction and get the most out of Young as the team's quarterback.

Chargers will need a new head coach, and it won't be Giff Smith

Much like the Panthers, the Los Angeles Chargers moved on from their head coach in the middle of the season. Brandon Staley was on the hot seat entering the season after blowing a Wild Card Round lead against the Jacksonville Jaguars and getting eliminated. The Chargers never showed they were playoff contenders and it felt like a matter of when, not if, Staley would get fired.

In Week 15, the Chargers were embarrassed by the Las Vegas Raiders, losing 63-21. The following day, Staley was fired, along with general manager Tom Telesco. The Chargers promoted outside linebackers coach Giff Smith as the interim head coach.

Entering Week 18, Smith has a 0-2 record since taking over for Staley. The team lost 24-22 to the Buffalo Bills in Week 16 and 16-9 to the Denver Broncos in Week 17. Granted, the team didn't have star quarterback Justin Herbert, who was ruled out for the season in Week 14 with a broken right index finger.

Smith will not factor into the Chargers' head coaching search. They are going to look for a big name to coach the team and lead them to success with Herbert as the quarterback. The Chargers have already been linked to Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Arthur Smith may be on the way out of Atlanta

The Atlanta Falcons brought in Arhtur Smith, the former offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans, to be their head coach in 2021. The move was viewed as a home run, considering the success he had in Tennessee and for his reputation as an innovative mind on offense. Over the years, the team had star-caliber players in tight end Kyle Pitts, wide receiver Drake London, and running back Bijan Robinson.

What has done Smith in is the question mark at the quarterback position. Smith brought in Marcus Mariota to start in 2022, which didn't pan out. The team pivoted to Desmond Ridder, their third-round pick in 2022 out of Cincinnati. Entering the 2023 league year, the Falcons stuck with Ridder and pulled themselves out of the running for Lamar Jackson after he requested a trade off the Baltimore Ravens. After that, Ridder was benched for Taylor Heinicke before getting the job back again.

This season, the Falcons finished with a 7-10 record. In Week 18, Atlanta was embarrassed 48-17 by the New Orleans Saints.

Smith's job status became much murkier as this season went on, especially after team owner Arthur Blank didn't give him a vote of confidence. FOX Sports insider Jay Glazer said on Sunday before kickoff that if the Falcons lost to the Saints, he thinks Smith won't return in 2024. Bleacher Report insider Jordan Schultz reported after the game that it's believed the Falcons and Smith are heading towards a breakup.

Given the lack of success in Atlanta, the Falcons may go big-name hunting on the coaching market to get the most out of this talented roster. It would not be surprising if Smith is handed his walking papers on Monday.

Bill Belichick if Robert Kraft agrees to mutual parting of ways on Monday

This will be a bit of a tricky situation for the New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick. The 2023 season has been an abject disaster for the Patriots, as they have gone another season without making it into the playoffs. But never had the Patriots had as bad of a record under Belichick since 2000, his first year, when they went 5-11.

With the lack of success since the departure of quarterback Tom Brady in 2020, reports came out throughout this season that hinted owner Robert Kraft was leaning towards moving on from Belichick.

After their Week 18 loss to the New York Jets, the Patriots are 4-13 on the year. With that, questions arose about Belichick's status in the coming days. Belichick revealed after the game that he will meet with Kraft on Monday.

Belichick's situation is unique. If he were to become available, he will obviously be coveted by every team in need of a head coach. Sure, his assistant coaches haven't panned out and he hasn't had success in recent years, but he has still led the Patriots to six Super Bowl titles during his tenure. In that case, the Patriots could look to trade Belichick for a return. After all, the New Orleans Saints got a 2023 first-round pick and a 2024 second-rounder from the Denver Broncos for Sean Payton just last offseason.

Or, could Kraft decide to let Belichick enter the open market as a favor? That's the main caveat we would put here. There's a possibility that the Patriots and Belichick agree to a mutual parting of ways on Monday. But don't be surprised if this does drag on a bit if the Patriots go for the trade route.