Predicting NFL head coach hires: Who will lead top 2021 NFL Draft picks?

With now seven NFL head coaching vacancies, we try to predict who will be (and who should) be hired to lead top 2021 NFL Draft prospects as rookies.

As we work our way through the NFL playoffs towards the offseason and the 2021 NFL Draft, there are now seven NFL teams that find themselves in need of a new head coach.

With nearly all of these teams (at least the ones that own their first-round pick) picking towards the top of the 2021 NFL Draft, finding a head coach that will pair well with their new, young stars should be a top priority for these franchises.

With the exception of the Houston Texans who traded away their third overall selection to the Miami Dolphins and the Los Angeles Chargers whose couple victories down the stretch were enough to drop their 2021 NFL Draft selection outside the top 12 but not enough to save Anthony Lynn’s job, all the other teams that need head coaches pick within the top seven of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Here, we take a look at each team that has a head coaching vacancy and try to predict who the team will hire to lead their young core into 2021. As a bonus, I will mention who I think they should hire and why I think that would be a good fit for that particular team.

Let’s get started at the top of the 2021 NFL Draft with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The match between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Urban Meyer has been popular ever since the team let Doug Marrone go. Word has it that Meyer has already begun putting a coaching staff together, but is still trying to decide whether or not to accept the position that seems to be his if he wants to.

After incredibly successful stints as a college head coach everywhere he’s been, maybe it is time for Urban Meyer to try his hand at the NFL. Dating back to his days at Bowling Green and Utah, to his championship teams at Florida and Ohio State, Meyer has really done all there is to do at the collegiate level.

But can his success transfer up to the NFL? I’m not so sure. As an Ohioan, I love and respect Urban Meyer and all that he has accomplished. He has proven to be a great leader and has displayed his ability to quickly turn an organization into a championship-caliber unit. But I still have some questions.

First and foremost, we have to talk about his health. The reasoning he gave for leaving both Florida and Ohio State. Obviously, we all want Meyer to be happy and healthy, and if he thought he wasn’t I’m sure he wouldn’t consider this opportunity. But are we sure that Meyer can handle being a head coach in the NFL?

After spending his entire career molding kids into young men, the NFL would be a whole different ball game. He will have to deal with a ton of grown men and their giant egos and personalities. Not that he didn’t have his fair share of difficulties throughout his NCAA (have you taken a look at the roster he coached at Florida) but the NFL could be a totally different story.

Another thing that Meyer will surely have to deal with as the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars that he rarely had to in the past? Losing. Meyer can’t just recruit top-tier talent to his NFL team as he did in college. He will likely have to endure some rough patches if he wants to power through and find success.

I’m not sold that Meyer would be a great fit for a young and hopefully upcoming team like the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, Meyer certainly has experience working with a group of young players and leading them to success. That is what the Jags are seeming to hope for, sitting atop the 2021 NFL Draft in hot pursuit of Urban Meyer.

My Pick: Joe Brady, Offensive Coordinator, Carolina Panthers

I love the fit here for Joe Brady and the Jacksonville Jaguars. They are inevitably going to be bringing in a bright, young quarterback atop the 2021 NFL Draft, so why not take a chance on a bright, young offensive mind to lead him. We saw what Brady can do with top talent like Joe Burrow at LSU, and I would be intrigued to see what he could do when paired with a guy like Trevor Lawrence or whoever they may select with the first pick of the 2021 NFL Draft.