NFL Coach of the Year finalists are out, and we’re ranking them, plus an added bonus of a couple of snubs and coaches who need to stay as far away as possible from any awards. Some names are expected, and others might surprise you by where they land on the list.
Someone really should perform a welfare check on Indianapolis owner Jim Irsay. Could he be of sound mind and still consider hiring Jeff Saturday as the full-time head coach? Apparently, that’s the case according to multiple reports out of Indianapolis as Saturday prepares for a second interview with his buddy Irsay.
After beating the Raiders in Week 10, Saturday’s Colts lost seven in a row to end the season. The team allowed more than 30 points in four of those, which includes giving up 54 points to the Dallas Cowboys. Irsay is off his rocker if he thinks Saturday is the answer to the franchise’s problems. Get a real coach and draft a quarterback.
Josh McDaniels doesn’t seem to have what it takes to be a successful NFL head coach. As an offensive coordinator, McDaniels was outstanding, winning multiple Super Bowls in New England, but he hasn’t done nearly the same in Denver, or Las Vegas as the man in charge. There was a significant expectation that the Raiders would pick up where they left off last year after making the postseason, but McDaniels’ team began the season 1-4 and never recovered.
Tampa Bay regressed in Bowles’ first year as head coach of the team, and that’s putting it nicely. A team that was 13-4 a year ago followed that up with an 8-9 campaign, although they captured another NFC South crown. That alone says a lot about the division — which was weak — and the team’s discipline under Bowles, which felt non-existent.
Tom Brady took time off during training camp, then came in and had one of his worst years on the field. Bowles’ calling card is defense. This year, the D couldn’t stop traffic dressed up as stop signs. The Bucs’ defense finished bottom third in the league in most of the major defensive categories. Even when injuries are involved, a defensive coach should be able to get more out of his guys.
A bit of a longshot here, but a turnaround for a team usually out of the hunt by November is noteworthy. The Lions ended the season 9-8 after winning just three games in Campbell’s first year as head coach. We all had fun with the kneecap-biting quote, but these players showed up and played their asses off for Campbell in year two.
Detroit did their part, winning the final two games on the schedule and five of their last six overall. Campbell’s crew narrowly missed the postseason but finished with a winning record for the first time since Jim Caldwell was running the team (2017). Had the Lions snuck into the playoff field, Campbell might have been a finalist for Coach of the Year.
In his first year with Miami, McDaniel transformed Tua Tagovailoa into a serious MVP candidate before the injuries. Tagovailoa posted career highs in passing yards, touchdowns, yards per attempt, yards per game, passer rating, and QBR. Adding Tyrek Hill to the passing attack undoubtedly helped, but McDaniels’ offensive philosophy also gets a large portion of the credit. No one would’ve had an issue with him being a finalist with a 9-8 record in one of the tougher divisions in the league in year one.
Over the past six years, McDermott has built a perennial AFC contender in Buffalo. The Bills have won at least 10 games in the last four years and have only finished with a losing record once during his tenure. Still, the Bills are seen as underachievers. Josh Allen is viewed as a top two or three QBs in the NFL, yet too many times, the Bills come up short when they shouldn’t. For such a stacked team, many of Buffalo’s games were closer than they should’ve been this season. Like barely beating the Lions by three points. Detroit is much improved, but the Bills shouldn’t be struggling with them.
For all the juggling Kyle Shanahan’s had to do at the QB position this year, some might hand him Coach of the Year based on that feat. But Shanahan’s offense isn’t necessarily built around who’s under center. The Niners cycled through three QBs in ‘22, winning consistently with two of them. Rookie Brock Purdy is a perfect 7-0, including two postseason victories, since stepping in for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo (who stepped in for the injured Trey Lance).
You could almost throw anybody in there to take snaps, and Shanahan would continue to play his style of football. Shanahan’s team is physical and repeatedly hits you in the mouth until you can no longer continue. Like the silly Power Slap league run by UFC’s Dana White.
When Nick Sirianni took over for Doug Pederson, many felt he hadn’t earned a spot as a head coach. Well, all Sirianni’s done is lead the Eagles to the playoffs in his first two years and has Philly one game away from making it to the Super Bowl. The franchise believed in Sirianni, and it’s paid off, as Philly has one of the best teams in the league and the top dog in the NFC.
There’s a huge argument for Brian Daboll taking coach of the year honors after resurrecting the Giants and QB Daniel Jones’ career simultaneously. Under Joe Judge, the New York football Giants were going nowhere fast. Daboll came in from Buffalo and, after one year, has some people calling Jones a top 10 QB. That person was FS1 analyst and former NFL wide receiver Greg Jennings, but that’s a topic for another day.
No matter how you feel about Jones, you can’t deny that his improvement and the team’s overall tick upward are due to Daboll. The Giants qualified for the postseason for the first time since Bob McAdoo and Eli Manning were still around (2016). With Daboll running the show, there’s a lot for Giants fans to be optimistic about.
Jacksonville may have had the largest mess of a situation for any new head coach to clean up coming into the 2022 season. After all the drama with Urban Meyer a year ago and the stunted growth of Trevor Lawrence, it was an uphill battle for Doug Pederson stepping into this new gig. Dougie P changed the culture in Jacksonville, flipping the Jaguars from cellar dweller to division champ in one season.