Four head coaches fired, plus 2026 NFL playoff schedule and ranking all 14 postseason teams

Here's everything you need to know about the NFL for Jan. 5

Welcome to the Monday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

The end of the NFL season is always crazy and this year has been no different. Here's a short list of what we've seen go down over the past 24 hours: 

• The Bears nearly choked away the two-seed, but then got it anyway after the Eagles lost
• The Ravens choked away a playoff berth with a missed field goal on the final play against the Steelers
• The AFC West combined for exactly zero offensive touchdowns on Sunday
• The Falcons fired Raheem Morris
• The Browns dumped Kevin Stefanski
• The Raiders gave up on Pete Carroll after just one season
• The Cardinals decided to part ways with Jonathan Gannon
• The playoff schedule came out and I have already cleared my entire weekend so I can watch every game

We'll be covering all of those things, plus plenty more in today's newsletter, so let's get to the rundown. 

As always, here's your reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. Let's get to the rundown. 

1. Coaching carousel: Falcons, Raiders, Browns and Cardinals dump their head coaches

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There's a reason the day after the regular season is known as "Black Monday" around the NFL, and that's because it's the one day every year where at least one head coach gets fired. This year is no exception. 

The NFL season ended less than 24 hours ago and there have already been four firings with Kevin Stefanski getting canned by the Browns, Pete Carroll getting a pink slip from the Raiders, Jonathan Gannon getting ousted by the Cardinals and Raheem Morris getting the axe in Atlanta. The Falcons won on Sunday in a game that earned a playoff berth for the Panthers, which means Morris earned more playoff trips for Carolina than he did for Atlanta. 

With those four guys getting fired, now seems like a good time to check out what other things have happened or might happen to coaches around the league: 

• Falcons. The Falcons decided to clean house on Sunday night. Not only did they fire Raheem Morris, but they also got rid of general manager Terry Fontenot. On Morris' end, he spent two seasons in Atlanta and went 8-9 in each seasons, which simply wasn't good enough for owner Arthur Blank (Morris also went 4-7 as Atlanta's interim coach in 2022). As for Fontenot, he made the decision to give Kirk Cousins $100 million in guaranteed money while also using a first-round pick on a QB during the same offseason and he just never quite recovered from that bizarre decision. 
• Browns. After six seasons in Cleveland, Kevin Stefanski has been fired. You can certainly argue that Stefanski wasn't the problem in Cleveland, but the Browns got rid of him anyway. The two-time NFL coach of the year led the Browns to the playoffs twice, including a 2020 season when led them to their first playoff win in 26 years. Now that he's on the market, it won't be surprising at all if Stefanski lands an interview or two for one of the open coaching jobs around the league.  Although Stefanski is out, the Browns will be holding on to general manager Andrew Berry. 
• Raiders. The Raiders have decided to move on from Pete Carroll after just one season. CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones had reported over the weekend that Carroll would likely be one-and-done in Las Vegas. The 74-year-old was hired to turn the team around, but the hiring ended up being a disaster from the start. He fired his offensive coordinator (Chip Kelly) and his special teams coordinator (Tom McMahon) just weeks apart back in November. The 3-14 Raiders did earn the No. 1 overall pick under Carroll, but that's not something to brag about. With Carroll out, that means Tom Brady will be back in the spotlight. The NFL legend is a minority owner of the Raiders and he's expected to have a say in who the next coach will be. 
• Bengals. Zac Taylor will be sticking around for at least another season. Bengals owner Mike Brown announced on Monday that he has full confidence in both Taylor and de facto general manager Duke Tobin. The Bengals just missed the playoffs for the third straight season, so 2026 is definitely going to be a big year for Taylor. If the Bengals miss the postseason again, he might not survive. Taylor is under contract with the team through 2027, which matters in Cincinnati, because Brown has never fired a coach that has more than a year left on his contract. 
• Colts. The Colts also won't be making any big changes this offseason. The team's ownership group announced on Sunday that coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard will both be returning in 2026. The bigger surprise is probably Ballard. The Colts haven't won an AFC South title in 11 years while the three other teams in the division have all won at least two in that span.
• Cardinals. Jonathan Gannon has been let go by the Cardinals after three seasons with the team. After starting the season 2-0, the Cardinals went 1-14 over their final 15 games to finish 3-14. Gannon went 15-36 during his three years on the job and because of that, owner Michael Bidwill decided not to give him another year to prove himself. Not only do the Cardinals now have to hire a new head coach, but they also have a huge decision to make this offseason regarding Kyler Murray and whether they should keep him as their franchise QB. Basically, it's a big offseason in Arizona. 
• Jets. Aaron Glenn had a disastrous first season in New York that saw him lead the Jets to a 3-14 record. The Jets became the first team in NFL history to finish an entire season without recording a single interception, which isn't a a great look for a defensive-minded head coach. The Jets haven't indicated what they're planning to do and it's certainly possible that Glenn returns for a second season, but it won't be surprising if they move on. 
• Giants. In general manager news, the Giants will be holding on to Joe Schoen, which is definitely an interesting decision. Schoen has been the GM since 2022 and in that time, the Giants have gone 22-45-1. By keeping him, the Giants are allowing Schoen to hire a new coach and make the call on who the team should take with the fifth overall pick. That's a lot of responsibility for a guy who hasn't been great at his job for the past three years. 

Since we could see several firing happen after the newsletter comes out, we've decided to track everything. We're keeping tabs on all firings, hirings and rumors and if you want to stay up to date on that stuff, you can follow along here. 

2. NFL playoff schedule is out: Rams and Panthers to kick off the postseason

The NFL playoffs are finally here and things will be kicking off on Saturday with the Rams heading to Carolina for a revenge game against the Panthers.  

With that in mind, here's a look at the schedule for the wild card round:

Saturday, Jan. 10

• (5) Rams at (4) Panthers, 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox). On paper, this might seem like a mismatch, but let's not forget, the Panthers actually beat the Rams earlier this season. Back in Week 13, Carolina pulled off one the biggest upsets of the year with a 31-28 win over L.A. This will mark the first time the Panthers have hosted a playoff game since the NFC Championship in January 2016. 
• (7) Packers at (2) Bears, 8 p.m. ET (Prime Video). These two teams will be meeting for the third time this season after splitting their first two games. The Packers beat the Bears 28-21 back in Week 14, but then Chicago got revenge with a 22-16 overtime win in Week 16. Even though the Packers have lost four straight going into the playoffs, they might have some confidence going into this game since they'll be fully healthy after resting their starters in Week 18. 

Sunday, Jan. 11

• (6) Bills at (3) Jaguars, 1 p.m. ET (CBS). Josh Allen has accomplished a lot during his career, but one thing he hasn't done is win a playoff game on the road. Allen is 0-4 on the road in his postseason career for a Bills team that hasn't won a road playoff game in 31 years.
• (6) 49ers at (3) Eagles, 4:30 p.m. ET (Fox). The Eagles will be looking to become the first NFC team in 31 years to repeat as Super Bowl champion and their road starts against a 49ers team that will be looking to become just the third team ever to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium. 
• (7) Chargers at (2) Patriots, 8 p.m. ET (NBC). The Chargers will be heading across the country to face the Patriots, which could be a bad thing for them. During the regular season, the Chargers went just 1-2 in the eastern time zone with losses to the Giants and Jaguars. As for the Patriots, Tom Brady's final home playoff win with New England came against the Chargers, and now, Drake Maye will have a chance to pick up his first career playoff win against the same team. 

Monday, Jan. 12

• (5) Texans at (4) Steelers, 8 p.m. ET (ABC/ESPN). To advance to the next round, the Texans are going to have to do something they've never done: Win a playoff game on the road. Since their expansion year in 2002, the Texans have played on the road six times in the postseason and they've gone 0-6. However, Houston will be bringing the NFL's No. 1 defense to Pittsburgh, so the Texans will likely be confident. On the Steelers' end, they're probably thrilled to be playing on Monday night because they've won 23 straight Monday home games dating to 1991.  

The Seahawks and Broncos also made the playoffs, but they both got a first-round bye, so they won't be on the field until the divisional round. 

3. Ranking the playoff teams: Seahawks not the top NFC team, Broncos not on top in AFC

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As you've probably noticed, we love to rank things here at CBS Sports so in news that probably won't come as a huge surprise, we decided to rank this year's playoff field. There are a total of 14 teams, and based on Zach Pereles' rankings, we could be headed for a Rams-Jaguars showdown in Super Bowl LX.

Here's how Zach's rankings broke down:

1. Rams (12-5)
2. Seahawks (14-3)
3. Jaguars (13-4)
4. Broncos (14-3) 
5. Eagles (11-6) 
6. Patriots (14-3)
7. Bills (12-5) 

That's right: The NFC's No. 1 seed isn't the top NFC team in these rankings and the AFC's No. 1 seed isn't the top AFC team. Zach loves chaos. 

So why are the Rams on top? I'll let Zach explain. "The Rams are the NFL's best team, and if they'd just behaved like it on one or two more plays, it wouldn't really more obvious. Matthew Stafford has played at an MVP level, even if he doesn't actually win the award. Puka Nacua is nearly unstoppable, and the return of Davante Adams should only make the NFL's best offense even more dangerous. ... The Rams led the Eagles by 19 in the third quarter and the Seahawks by 16 in the fourth quarter and somehow lost both games. A big reason was special teams miscues, but the Rams have since replaced their kicker and their coordinator."

Anyway, I just unveiled the top half of Zach's rankings and if you want to check out the bottom half, you'll have to read his full story here.

4. Ranking the best games on Wild Card Weekend

If you don't have time to watch every wild card game this weekend and you're trying to figure out which ones you should watch, don't worry, because we now have you covered in that department. Garrett Podell ranked all six games from best to worst, and based on what Garrett has to say, there is one game you definitely don't want to miss. 

With that in mind, here are his top three games on the schedule in the wild card round:

1. (7) Packers at (2) Bears, 8 p.m. ET, Saturday (Amazon Prime). "A Packers-Bears rubber match at Soldier Field in the playoffs after two thrilling, one-possession wins for each team this regular season? This is the best matchup of the wild card round. ... Each team won at home in the regular season with both games ending in a one-score win."

2. (6) Bills at (3) Jaguars, 1 p.m. ET, Sunday (CBS/Paramount+). "Josh Allen's Bills are 0-4 on the road in the postseason, so it will be interesting to see if that's a trend Buffalo can flip this time around. ... Allen enters the 2025 postseason with seven playoff wins, the most without a Super Bowl appearance in NFL history. ... This could be an incredibly fun duel between two of the NFL's top dual-threat quarterbacks."

3. (6) 49ers at (3) Eagles, 4:30 p.m. ET, Sunday (Fox). "This playoff matchup features the NFC representative in four of the last six Super Bowls with the Eagles entering the 2025 postseason as the defending champion. ... Two of the best running backs in the league, and the last two NFL Offensive Player of the Year winners, will oppose each other with the 49ers Christian McCaffrey and the Eagles' Saquon Barkley leading the way for their respective offenses."

If you want to check out Garrett's entire rankings, be sure to click here.  

5. 2026 schedule: NFL finalizes home-and-away opponents for all 32 teams

The 2026 NFL schedule won't be released until May, but you don't have to wait that long to find out who your favorite team is going to play. Thanks to the NFL scheduling formula, we know who the home and away opponents will be for all 32 teams, which means we can take a sneak peak at the 272 games that will be on the schedule in 2026.

Here are 10 of the biggest games that will be on the 2026 schedule:

• Chiefs at Bills
• Bills at Rams
• Chiefs at Seahawks
• Seahawks at Cowboys
• 49ers at Chiefs
• Eagles at 49ers
• Patriots at Bears
• Jaguars at Broncos
• Chargers at Rams
• Packers at Patriots

If you want to see the home-and away opponents for all 32 teams, then be sure to click here. The dates and times of each game will be released at some point during the spring. 

6. NFL Draft order: Raiders clinch top pick

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Heading into Week 18, the Raiders were the front-runner to land the No. 1 overall pick and they ended up clinching the top pick. 

This will mark just the second time since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 that the Raiders have held the top pick. The only other time it happened came in 2007 when they used the pick on JaMarcus Russell. Don't be surprised if the Raiders once again use the top pick on a QB. In Ryan Wilson's latest mock draft, he has the Raiders taking Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza with the top pick (You can check out Wilson's full mock here). 

The No. 1 pick could have gone to the Giants, but they decided not to tank. Going into Week 17, the Giants had the inside track to landing the top pick, but then they went out and beat the Raiders, and then they followed that up with a Week 18 win over the Cowboys, knocking them all the way down to the fifth overall pick. 

With that in mind, here is the official order for the top 18 spots in the draft: 

1. Raiders (3-14)
2. Jets (3-14)
3. Cardinals (3-14)
4. Titans (3-14)
5. Giants (4-13)
6. Browns (5-12)
7. Commanders (5-12)
8. Saints (6-11)
9. Chiefs (6-11) 
10. Bengals (6-11)
11. Dolphins (7-10) 
12. Cowboys (7-9-1)
13. Rams (via Falcons -- 8-9)
14. Ravens (8-9) 
15. Buccaneers (8-9) 
16. Jets (via Colts -- 8-9) 
17. Lions (9-8)
18. Vikings (9-8)

As for the rest of the draft order, we won't know where the other 14 teams will be picking until they get eliminated from the postseason. You can check out more details on the draft order here.