Matt Patricia, Detroit Lions. (Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports)
The Detroit Lions have parted ways with Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn.
Matt Patricia and Bob Quinn have been fired by the Detroit Lions after a 4-7 start.
The Lions are the third team to fire the head coach and general manager this season. After losing at home on Thanksgiving Day to the Houston Texans, the Lions join the Houston Texans and the Atlanta Falcons as teams looking for the next two faces of their franchises. Detroit made a huge mistake moving on from Jim Caldwell in favor of Patricia when it did after the 2017 season.
Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell will serve as the interim head coach the rest of the way.
Who could the Lions look to replace Matt Patricia as their next head coach?
Detroit may have waited too long to fire Patricia, who went 13-29-1 in his 43 games as Lions head coach over parts of three seasons. The Lions went an atrocious 3-12-1 in 2019 after a mediocre 6-10 campaign in his first year on the job in 2018. By parting ways with Patricia and Quinn, this gives the Lions the best shot moving forward after getting the right pair to lead them.
Candidates the Lions should look at include Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. Both will end up being hired as head coaches in this cycle. The Lions may want to look at bringing back Caldwell into the fold, as well as someone from the college game like Alabama Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian.
The Lions have to act quickly to make sure they can get the right head coach for the 2021 season.