NFL coaching purge starts early as Browns fire Mike Pettine and 49ers dismiss Jim Tomsula

The Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers didn’t wait around for Black Monday. They fired their coaches Sunday night.

The Browns parted ways with Mike Pettine after two seasons, and the 49ers got rid of Jim Tomsula after one.

The Browns, who finished 3-13, fired Pettine and General Manager Ray Farmer after a 28-12 home loss to Pittsburgh.

The 49ers, who closed with a 19-16 overtime victory at home against St. Louis, were 5-11 in Tomsula’s lone season.

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“Jimmy has been a valuable member of the 49ers organization for the last nine years,” 49ers Chief Executive Jed York said in a written statement. “We all know he is a man of high character, and his contributions on the field and in our community have always been greatly appreciated. This entire organization is proud and grateful to have worked so closely alongside Jimmy. We all wish him and his family great success in the future.”

Pettine was 10-22 in two years, losing 18 of his final 21 games after a 7-4 start to last season. His job security had been in question throughout the fall, even though Browns owner Jimmy Haslam had said at training camp he did not plan to “blow things up” if the season fell short of expectations.

“We greatly appreciate Ray’s and Mike’s dedication and hard work while with the Cleveland Browns,” Haslam said. “We’ve made this decision because we don’t believe our football team was positioned well for the future. We are all disappointed with where we are and we take full responsibility.”

The Browns have had seven head coaches since they rejoined the league as an expansion team in 1999.

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