Miller: It's scapegoat season in the NFL

Nov 22, 2017 - 2:39 PM The arrival of Thanksgiving each year used to be notable mostly as the unofficial kickoff to the NFL's stretch drive, but recently, it has come to signify something else, too: The unofficial start of the drive toward the following season.

Mark down Denver as the first team to see the green flag. Followed within a day by Oakland. Probably just a coincidence, but the Broncos and Raiders play each other on Sunday.

First, the Broncos fired offensive coordinator Mike McCoy and replaced him with Bill Musgrave. Next, the Raiders fired defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. and replaced him with John Pagano.

And those moves, for anyone paying attention, should serve as a reminder to everyone about what really matters in the NFL.

We'll give you a hint. We'll even give you the answer, in fact.

It's the players, stupid.

In the weeks to come, to the end of the season and for several weeks afterward, you will hear and read about a bunch of teams making coaching changes, and you will hear and read the obligatory, laudatory comments about what a difference the new guy will make.

But as someone who has seen a lot of it will tell you, the late Bill Walsh was a better coach when he had Joe Montana at quarterback rather than Steve DeBerg. And Bill Parcells coached a lot better when he had Lawrence Taylor on his team. Even among today's top head coaches, did Mike McCarthy suddenly become an idiot after Aaron Rodgers got hurt?

Let's face it.

There haven't been many coaches like Joe Gibbs, who won Super Bowls with three different quarterbacks.

Which brings us back, full circle, to what went down in Denver and Oakland.

With the Broncos mired in a six-game losing streak and 24th in the league in scoring, first-year head coach Vance Joseph fired McCoy and promoted Musgrave, the quarterbacks coach, to offensive coordinator.

Next, the Raiders, ranked 26th in the league on defense - the exact same ranking as last year when they had a 12-4 record - fired Norton and promoted Pagano.

You can look up the word in your dictionary: scapegoat.

Definition: A person who is blamed for the wrongdoings, mistakes, or faults of others, especially for reasons of expediency. Chew on that last phrase for a moment. It's another way of saying someone who is fired to cover the boss' rear end.

Just a few years ago, McCoy was a hot commodity as a potential head coach (San Diego hired him) after coordinating a Denver offense when the quarterback was Peyton Manning. San Diego did not work out (although the Chargers were 9-7 in his first two seasons), and McCoy found himself back with the Broncos. But now that the quarterbacks are Trevor Siemian and Brock Osweiler, not Manning or Philip Rivers, McCoy became a dummy, and he was fired.

Musgrave's history? He previously had been an offensive coordinator with five other NFL teams. His quarterbacks in the first four of those jobs were Bobby Hoying, Steve Beuerlein, Byron Leftwich and Christian Ponder. Musgrave hardly looked like a genius designing plays for those guys. Vince Lombardi would not have, either.

Last season, he was the coordinator in Oakland, but despite the Raiders ranking sixth in yards and points, Musgrave was fired after the season and this season, the Raiders are 21st in yards and tied for 20th in points. How did that change work out?

And Norton's defense? The Raiders tried to improve that No. 26 defense by using their first two draft picks on defensive backs. But both players have been injured and hardly played, and the Raiders are allowing opponents to complete passes at a near-record pace (72.3 percent).

So, what's the takeout from all that? Yeah. Coaches need players.

That essential truth, however, will not stop the carnage about to come in the NFL's head coaching ranks. Joseph could be one of the first to go, but the Raiders' Jack Del Rio, off last year's 12-4 record, figures to have a longer leash.

What other head coaches are in serious jeopardy of losing their jobs?

-John Fox, Chicago. He took two franchises to the Super Bowl, but his record with the Bears is 12-30, and he had the unpardonable sin (in the Windy City) of losing to the Packers' backup quarterback in large measure because of a foolish replay challenge that cost his own team a chance at a touchdown.

-Ben McAdoo, Giants. That victory over Kansas City last Sunday would look more impressive if the Chiefs were not already in free fall.

-Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati. The league's second-longest tenured coach, behind Bill Belichick, he still has not won a single playoff game in 14 previous seasons, and is unlikely even to qualify for the playoffs this year. How long can even Mike Brown wait?

-Hue Jackson, Cleveland. Someone must pay the price for the Browns avoiding quarterbacks in the draft like the plague. Not to mention Jackson's 1-25 record.

-Jay Gruden, Washington. This is his fourth season, still looking for an initial playoff victory. None of Gruden's six immediate predecessors got a fifth year from owner Dan Snyder.

-Dirk Koetter, Tampa Bay. Management can't be thrilled about the fall from his 9-7 first season to last place now. This is the same ownership group that once fired Tony Dungy.

-Chuck Pagano, Indianapolis. Not his fault general manager Chris Ballard failed to provide players around quarterback Andrew Luck, and Luck hasn't played this year because of an injury. But someone must pay.

-Bill O'Brien, Houston. He had the team on an upward trajectory until the loss of injured quarterback Deshaun Watson. Three straight winning seasons, two division titles and a playoff victory ought to be enough for a mulligan.

-Todd Bowles, N.Y. Jets. Here's a real tough one. Team is devoid of talent, but he has made them competitive. He'd probably be getting a lot more heat if the Giants weren't so bad.



Ira Miller is an award-winning sportswriter who has covered the National Football League for more than five decades and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee. He is a national columnist for The Sports Xchange.