More Black Monday Firings: Vikings Axe Frazier, Redskins Kick Shanahan Off Reservation, Buccaneers Make Schiano Walk Plank

The NFL’s annual Black Monday has already seen Rob Chudzinki kicked out of the Cleveland Browns Dog House. Joining that are the firings of fellow fired NFL coaches Leslie Frazier, formerly of the Minnesota Vikings, Mike Shanahan, formerly of the Washington Redskins, and Greg Schiano, formerly of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Shanahan and Frazier each were fired after their fourth years at the helm; Frazier became interim head coach in 2010 after Brad Childress fell under the Vikings’ axe with a 3-7 start. Both coaches were well below.500 during their respective tenures. Schiano was fired after his second year as the Buccaneers’ coach, going 11-21 during his tenure. Chudzinski, by contrast, was fired after only his first year for the Browns.

The Black Monday press releases from each team announcing the coach’s firings all read fairly similarly, citing insufficient progress and the absence of consistent success. While Shanahan has been coaching for the better part of 23 years, it was Frazier’s, Schiano’s and Chudzinski’s first time in an NFL head coaching position. Schiano had previously served as head coach of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in college football

While the New York Jets’ Rex Ryan was expected to be among the Black Monday firings after an 8-8 season, team owner Woody Johnson made it clear after Sunday’s win over the Miami Dolphins that Ryan would be back for at least one more year.

“I’m so proud of you, whether you won this game or not,” Johnson said while addressing players in the locker room. “You gave it everything you had, every play, and you play hard for this coach; that’s why I’ve elected to keep Rex…”

The rest of Johnson’s sentence was drowned out by the cheers of Jets players, who mugged their coach with congratulatory hugs as he avoided the growing crowd of expected Black Monday firings.

In Tampa Bay, Black Monday saw the firings of Schiano and general manager Mark Dominik.

“The results over the past two years have not lived up to our standards and we believe the time has come to find a new direction. Mark has been a valued member of our organization for two decades and we respect the passion he showed for the Buccaneers during his time here,” said Buccaneers Co-Chairman Bryan Glazer.

What do you think about these Black Monday firings? Should any of these coaches have been surprised on Black Monday? Will any of then coach in the NFL again?

UPDATE: Detroit has joined in the Black Monday firings, tossing head coach Jim Schwartz to the lions (from the Lions?). His is unique among 2013’s Black Monday firings in that no team executive offered quote for the press release.