By noon Monday, the Houston Texans likely will have called a select number of candidates to arrange interviews for their newly vacated coaching job. Names may include Gary Kubiak, Jerry Gray, Gregg Williams and/or Mike Martz.

With that, the race will be on.

The race to rebuild, to find a new leader, an inspired vision or just a better coach.

In the NFL, this month promises to be a mad scramble. At least four coaches either have been or will be fired. As many as eight could be out of work. The Detroit Lions already canned Steve Mariucci. The Texans will dump Dom Capers. Martz will formally surrender his job in St. Louis once he reaches a settlement with the Rams.

This is our endangered-coach watch, with prospects listed in order of their chance for resurfacing.

¢ Martz: A brilliant offensive mind, he’d be an excellent fit in Houston. But Martz needs a strong boss who can drag him back to reality when his offensive wizardry starts to run away with the program.

¢ Jim Haslett: The New Orleans Saints won’t fire Haslett, but he has been worn down by a skinflint owner and the aftereffects of Hurricane Katrina. Speculation is he’ll ask out of his contract. He won’t have a problem finding another job if he’s allowed to go.

¢ Mike Sherman: The Green Bay Packers gave him full control in 2000, and his personnel decisions proved his undoing. Sherman took the team to the playoffs in four of six seasons, but first-year general manager Ted Thompson stripped a contending team to its core and didn’t find replacements. Sherman might keep his job, but probably won’t take another one.

¢ Mariucci: He went to the playoffs four times with the 49ers, and even with the debacle in Detroit is 75-71 overall. But after failing to improve the Lions’ young players, he needs to take over a veteran team.

¢ Dick Vermeil: At 69, after producing six playoff teams in 15 years, it’s time to go. He’ll coach his last NFL game today.

¢ Mike Tice: He got the Minnesota Vikings job in 2002 because he came cheap and kept it because former owner Red McCombs was cheap. He’ll coach his last game today, too.

¢ Norv Turner: He produced one playoff team in nine NFL seasons. Unless he survives this season, Turner is done as a head coach.

¢ Capers: Coach of expansion teams in Carolina and Houston, he took the Panthers to the NFC Championship Game in 1996, but hasn’t come close since. He won’t get another chance.