Best head coach spots for Texans OC Bobby Slowik include Cowboys, Giants

There are already a couple of NFL head coaching jobs that will be up for grabs this offseason, and there likely will be even more after the 2024 season ends. Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik is already a popular name to fill one of those vacant seats.

Slowik, 37, became an offensive coordinator in 2023, when he joined new Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans in his departure from the San Francisco 49ers. The former 49ers passing game coordinator was tasked with building an offense around rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud and make improvements to an offense that was 30th in the NFL in scoring and 31st in total yards.

The Texans finished the 2023 season with the 12th-most offensive yards in the NFL and 13th-best scoring offense in the league. Stroud won Offensive Rookie of the Year and even received down-ballot MVP votes. Within that one season, Slowik had already done enough to secure head coaching interviews for open spots.

The New York Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh after their Week 5 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in London, creating the first head coach opening of the year. Four weeks later, the New Orleans Saints parted ways with head coach Dennis Allen after a loss to the Carolina Panthers to extend their losing streak to seven straight games.

More head coaching spots are sure to open up with the lackluster performances, and Slowik's name will surely be one included in speculative fits. Here are the five best landing spots for the Houston OC in 2025:

Bobby Slowik head coach landing spots

Las Vegas Raiders

Thanks to their 2-7 record entering Week 11, Las Vegas appears to be in a great position to draft its future franchise quarterback with an early pick in the 2025 NFL draft. Head coach Antonio Pierce has not quite been able to recreate the success he had late last season when he took over as the interim head coach following Josh McDaniels' firing. Should the Raiders decide to part ways with Pierce after his first full season, they'll most likely be looking for an offensive-minded replacement to help develop a new franchise quarterback.

In an admittedly small sample size, Slowik already has a track record of success with handling young quarterbacks and easing their transition to the pro level. Stroud was a high-level talent coming out of Ohio State, but it's thanks to that the young gunslinger got to show off the best parts of his skill set in his rookie season.

This year has been more of a struggle for Stroud, Slowik and the Texans, but plenty of those struggles have to do with the major injuries suffered by Houston's top two receivers, Nico Collins and Stefon Diggs. Las Vegas could really use an offensive mind like Slowik's to help shape the team's new quarterback into a 2025 and beyond.

New York Giants

Many of the arguments for the Raiders can apply to the Giants as well. New York is in position to hold a top draft pick – in part thanks to poor quarterback play – and will likely take a swing at a new franchise quarterback in the 2025 NFL draft.

It remains to be seen whether the Giants will part ways with head coach Brian Daboll after his three seasons in charge, but his seat is warming up as New York continues to lose games. The team's five-game losing streak is tied for the active lead with Las Vegas, with the most recent loss coming to the lowly Carolina Panthers in Germany.

As with the Raiders, if the Giants bring in a young new quarterback and need a coach that can help spur his development, Slowik would be one of the top options on the open market.

Dallas Cowboys

Unlike the first two teams on the list, the Cowboys are very much not in need of a new franchise quarterback. The team signed veteran Dak Prescott to a massive extension before the 2024 season that made him the highest-paid player in NFL history.

However, Dallas' offense is in dire need of an upgrade. Head coach and offensive playcaller Mike McCarthy, who was already on the hot seat for his lack of playoff success, has led the Cowboys to the worst offensive start of his 18-year career as a head coach.

Dallas' offense is tied for 10th-worst in the NFL at scoring points and 12th-worst at gaining yards. Its passing offense in particular has looked at best uninspired and at worst one-dimensional with its heavy reliance on wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who has nearly twice the number of targets as No. 2 option Jalen Tolbert. The quarterback play from Prescott and Cooper Rush has also been poor, with the former on pace to match his career high in interceptions and nearing a career low in completion rate before a season-ending hamstring injury.

As the Cowboys enter Week 11 with a 3-6 record, the need for an offensive reset appears clear. Slowik, who's just a four-and-a-half-hour drive up I-45 from Jerry World, could helm the efforts to put together a new, fresh identity for the Cowboys' offense moving forward.

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Chicago Bears

Matt Eberflus is perhaps the clearest example of a sitting duck head coach since, well, former Bears head coach Matt Nagy (remember the reports he'd be fired after Thanksgiving in 2021?).

Chicago has been on a downward spiral ever since the Week 8 loss to the Commanders on Jayden Daniels' Hail Mary pass. The Bears have already fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron after less than one full season, and some signs are pointing to a lost locker room in Chicago. For the second time in four years, the team appears set to fire its head coach one season after drafting a rookie quarterback.

Caleb Williams will be in dire need of stability and a capable offensive play-caller as he prepares for season two in the NFL. Slowik could provide both of those things, as well as significant quarterback development upside, should he take over as the Bears' head coach. He's already built an offense around a young quarterback capable of generating explosive plays in and out of structure. Slowik has also proven this season that he can make an offense work – to a certain extent – in spite of a lackluster offensive line and missing play-makers.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars are in a similar spot to the Cowboys at this point in the season. They extended their quarterback in the offseason and had dreams of a potential playoff berth for the 2024 season. Instead, the offense has struggled immensely, and Jacksonville is in the driver's seat for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

The franchise has struggled to create consistency for franchise quarterback Trevor Lawrence since drafting him in 2021. His first season was a disaster under then-head coach Urban Meyer and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. After the Jaguars fired Meyer and hired Doug Pederson, offensive play-calling duties have appeared to oscillate between Pederson and offensive coordinator Press Taylor at different points during the season.

Now, Pederson is on the hot seat with the Jaguars holding a 2-8 record that's tied for the NFL's worst and an offense among the worst in gaining yards and scoring points. As with the Cowboys, Slowik could present an opportunity for a hard reset on Jacksonville's offense and Lawrence's development as an NFL quarterback.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bobby Slowik head coach landing spots: Texans OC is a top candidate