Mike Shanahan, Leslie Frasier, Greg Schiano And Rob Chudzinski Fired After NFL Regular Season Comes To A Close

Following an action-packed final week of the NFL season that saw the Philadelphia Eagles take down the Dallas Cowboys to claim the NFC East and Green Bay Packers fight back against the Chicago Bears to win the NFC North, the 2013-2014 playoff schedule is now set. Featuring the twelve best team's in the league, the postseason promises to be another thrilling slate, a slate that will culminate with a Super Bowl showdown between the AFC and NFC Champions at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. While many teams will now briefly celebrate their berth in the postseason before preparing for the opening round, other teams around the league are forced to ponder the future after disappointing campaigns.

With the first Monday after the final week of the season coined "Black Monday," various teams knew changes would be made from top to bottom. In a competitive league such as the National Football League, failure to live up to expectations can ultimately lead to firings, cuts and player releases in the blink of an eye and after the most recent campaign came to a close, three teams have already experienced household changes. Cleveland Browns head coach Rob Chudzinski was relieved of his duties after one season in Ohio while Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan and Minnesota Vikings leader Leslie Frasier were also dismissed after tenures that included plenty of highs and lows. Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano was also relieved of his duties. Schiano -- who had three years remaining on his contract -- led the Bucs to a disappointing 4-12 record this season.

The Browns finished the 2012-2013 campaign with a record of 5-11 and looking to improve heading into this past regular season, Cleveland higher-ups elected to bring in former Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinksi. Dismissing Chudzinski shortly after Cleveland's Week 17 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the 45-year-old head coach will now look to latch on with another team as a coordinator or perhaps even as head coach. Leslie Frasier of the Vikings was let go after his fourth season with the Purple and White. Just a year after leading the franchise to its first postseason appearance since 2009, Frazier was let go Monday after Minnesota wrapped up the 2013-2014 slate with an overall record of 5-10-1.

Washington coach Mike Shanahan was also let loose Monday morning after the defending NFC East Champion Redskins finished the season 3-13. Dropping the season finale to the New York Giants, Shanahan finishes his career in D.C. With an overall record of 24-40. Noting that Redskins fans deserve the best, team owner Daniel Snyder said the organization's goal is to return to the playoffs. Snyder also thanked Shanahan for his four year of work.

“Redskins fans deserve a better result," he said. “We thank Mike for his efforts on behalf of the Redskins. We will focus on what it takes to build a winning team, and my pledge to this organization and to this community is to continue to commit the resources and talent necessary to put this team back in the playoffs.”

Art Briles of Baylor University, former Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden and former Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith are being considered as possible replacements for Shanahan while current New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is in the running for the Cleveland position. According to CBS Sports, the Minnesota Vikings are reportedly interested in dipping into the college ranks to fill their vacant head coach spot.

UPDATE: The Detroit Lions have fired head coach Jim Schwartz after five seasons. Schwartz put together an overall record of 29-51 in the Motor City, reaching the playoffs in 2011.