This Black Monday is gonna hurt, and experts claim this axe isn’t coming up for air anytime soon.

During the regular season, at least four head coaches were fired, on what is becoming known as Black Monday in the NFL world.

All because these teams were out of playoff picture?

The Redskins, Mike Shanahan is no longer head coach. The Vikings fired Leslie Frazier, Greg Schiano of the Buccaneers was also fired, and last but not least – Jim Schwartz with the Lions isn’t coming back to that team anytime soon.

Their teams did pretty badly this season, the Skins were at 3-13, Vikings finished 5-10-1 and the Bucs at 4-12 all last in their divisions. Schwartz’s Lions were among the best of the worst at 7-9.

The other firing announcements came 24 hours after the Cleveland Browns fired head coach Rob Chudzinski just after his team closed out the 2013 season with a seven-game losing streak to finish 4-12.

Shanahan was 24-20 in four seasons as coach of the Redskins, but his future was shot with the team’s performance – adding to that, his questionable relationship with quarterback Robert Griffin III.

“Redskins fans deserve a better result,” owner Dan Snyder said in a statement.

The Redskins started the season hopeful, with a 2012 record of 10-6, and the NFC East title.

The Vikings, however, fired Frazier after his team went 21-32-1 in three-plus seasons. Minnesota did make it to the playoffs last season, so there was hope there too.

“Unfortunately, we did not achieve consistent success and did not achieve the progress we expected,” Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman said in a statement.

Schiano’s Bucs had two mediocre seasons.

“The results over the past two years have not lived up to our standards and we believe the time has come to find a new direction,” said Buccaneers co-chairman Bryan Glazer.

Detroit fired Schwartz after a late-season fade that cost the Lions a play-off berth as they lost their final four games.

Schwartz was 29-51 in five seasons with the Lions. They had one winning season, going 10-6 in 2011.

“I think it’s a cut-and-dry wins and losses business,” said Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, who added that the players had to accept “quite a bit” of responsibility for the team’s mediocre season.

Chudzinski, unfortunately lasted only one season with the Browns even though he has three years remaining on his contract.

So the NFL does realize that not all football teams can win, someone has to lose – wonder if the teams’ owners feel better.

Image via YouTube