Detroit, Chicago, Oakland and Indianapolis all fire head coaches

Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians retired as the NFL's 'Black Monday' claimed the jobs of several of his counterparts.

Arians, twice the NFL's coach of the year during his career with the Cardinals and the Indianapolis Colts, announced his departure at a tearful press conference the day after a season-ending 26-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

"The tears you see are really tears of joy, peace," Arians said in quotes reported by nfl.com.

"I'll miss the players. I'll miss coming out of the locker room, hearing the national anthem because it still gets me."

Earlier on Monday, the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears parted company with Jim Caldwell and John Fox respectively after missing out on the play-offs.

Two other coaches did not even make it to the new year, with Chuck Pagano fired by the Colts immediately after they beat the Houston Texans to close out a 4-12 season and Jack Del Rio jettisoned by the Oakland Raiders.

Del Rio announced his own exit at his post-match press conference after his team were hammered 30-10 by the Los Angeles Chargers to conclude a season which began with Super Bowl aspirations but ended outside the play-offs altogether with a 6-10 record.

The Lions also missed the play-offs after finishing second in the NFC North at 9-7 and announced on Twitter on Monday: "Detroit Lions General Manager Bob Quinn has informed Jim Caldwell that he will not be returning as head coach."

NFC North rivals the Bears had long been expected to part ways with the veteran Fox after just 14 wins in three seasons, finishing last in the division each year.

At his press conference after defeat to the Minnesota Vikings, broadcast on the team's Twitter feed, Fox brushed off questions over his future and spent little more than a minute at the podium.

"The league makes me be here to talk about this game, and that's what we'll keep it to," he said. "Anything after that, we'll keep you posted."

His sacking was reported early on Monday, with the team eventually confirming the news on Twitter.

With Ben McAdoo sacked during the season by the New York Giants, six teams are looking for new coaches.

The Cincinnati Bengals could be another, with the long-serving Marvin Lewis out of contract, but Hue Jackson is expected to remain with the Cleveland Browns despite their 0-16 season and the Denver Broncos have assured Vance Joseph his job is safe.

Jon Gruden seems almost certain to return to the Oakland job he occupied between 1998 and 2001. Gruden won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2002 season, but has not coached since 2008 after moving into commentary.

Carolina Panthers defensive co-ordinator Steve Wilks and Philadelphia Eagles quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo, who helped make Carson Wentz an MVP candidate before a season-ending knee injury, have been widely linked with the other vacancies.

Vikings offensive co-ordinator Pat Shurmur are also reportedly in demand while the New England Patriots' offensive and defensive co-ordinators Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia have been strongly linked with the Giants and Detroit respectively.

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