The Five Worst NFL Teams to Lead as Head Coach

Almost every NFL assistant dreams of someday becoming an NFL head coach. After all, there are only 32 jobs available and, on average, only a few job openings each year.

Because of the limited opportunity, many assistants will jump at the first offer they get. And, sometimes that works out for them. Many other times, they fail.

This seems especially true for several organizations around the league. Whether its owner interference, horrible fan base or something else, being the head coach of some teams ends up being more of a nightmare than a dream job.

Here's a look at the five worst teams for which to be a head coach.

Oakland Raiders - A few years ago, this team had the potential to do great things. They had a former league MVP in quarterback Rich Gannon. They had one of the best receivers in the league in Randy Moss and they have some of the most loyal fans you're going to see. The problem was they also have owner Al Davis. Some owners will insist on having some control over the day-to-day operations of their team. Davis wants full control. An incoming coach has little say over who his assistants are or even what players are on his team. In essence, being a Raiders' head coach means you're a puppet leader. Davis calls the shots and everyone knows it.

Davis also has a notoriously short leash with coaches. The Raiders have had 7 head coaches since he fired Art Shell in 1995. Jon Gruden, who left to coach the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002, lasted four seasons. Lane Kiffin is still with the team after one season (though there are rumors Davis is trying to get him to resign). The remaining five coached an average of 26 games (1.6 seasons).

Atlanta Falcons - Much like Al Davis, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank interferes with his coaches. He's not as tight fisted as Davis, but Blank is notorious for being a bit too friendly with some of his players, including former quarterback Michael Vick; something that makes a coach's job harder.

Blank looks solely at ticket sales and, because of that, he makes splashy coaching hires like Bobby Petrino. The problem is, he also doesn't give coaches time to establish a legitimate foundation for long-term success. Dan Reeves was fired after an injury plagued season. Jim Mora was fired despite a winning record and being a year removed from a playoff appearance. One can only hope that, with the embarrassment he suffered last season both from Vick and Petrino, Blank has learned his lesson. But, I kind of doubt it.

Arizona Cardinals - Somewhere in the Arizona desert there is a black hole that somehow sucks away a coach's potential the second they choose to coach the Cardinals.
The Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1988 (originally as the Phoenix Cardinals). They have had one winning season (in 1998) since then and just two 8-8 seasons. The scary part of all of this is there are plenty of theories of what has went wrong but no definitive proof of what needs to be corrected in order to straighten things out.

Detroit Lions - The Detroit Lions lack of success can be summarized in two words; Matt Millen. The Lions' General Manager is currently on his 3^rd head coach since being hired by the Lions in 2000 and those three men combined for a 31-81 record. Any coach choosing to coach the Lions will have to work with a man who has used first round picks on Joey Harrington, Charles Rogers and Mike Williams.

Of course, the Lions misfortunes can't be blamed solely on Millen. After all, the team hasn't won its division since 1993 (when the NFC North was still the NFC Central division) and hasn't won a playoff game since 1991.

Miami Dolphins - The Dolphins made a big move by hiring Bill Parcells to run their football operations. But, this is a team that is a long way from being successful. They have questions at pretty much every position because of years of trading multiple draft picks in an attempt to bring in a replacement for Dan Marino at quarterback. It also doesn't help that they play in the same division as the New England Patriots. If Parcells can work his magic, this team may turn into one of the better franchises to coach for. But, I think this team is in for a long-term rebuilding project.