In a league where the talent differential from team to team is minimal, elite coaching can make the difference between a team making a legitimate Super Bowl push and the front office making early preparations for the NFL Draft each season.
Just as there are several head coaches across the NFL who open the season squarely on the hot seat and are facing pressure to deliver success immediately, there are also many who are the driving force behind their franchise's sustained runs at the Lombardi Trophy or who arrived in new destinations with a track record of excellence.
Meet the top 10 head coaches for the 2023 NFL season.
1. Andy Reid, Kansas City Chiefs
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Head coaching record: 386-247-1
Super Bowl championships: 2
Andy Reid has ascended to the benchmark by which every NFL coach is measured. Coaching Patrick Mahomes certainly helps, but Reid's longevity and track record of sustained success with with four Super Bowl berths and 13 conference championship appearances merely scratch the surface of what makes him special. Reid's innovative offenses — built around the skill sets of his players — and his adaptability both in-game and as the season progresses set him apart. As long as Reid and Mahomes are together, the Kansas City Chiefs should be considered the team to beat not only in the AFC's gauntlet but across the NFL.
2. Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco 49ers
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Head coaching record: 52-46
Super Bowl appearances: 1
Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch have built a defensive juggernaut and an offense that's loaded with explosive playmakers tailored to his innovative scheme. Shanahan has forged a successful career by masterfully being able to dictate to opposing defenses, particularly when it comes to how he's able to deploy the likes of Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, all while often evolving on the fly through the course of a game. The 49ers' offense has nearly become autopilot for quarterbacks, as illustrated by Brock Purdy leading San Francisco to the NFC championship game in 2022, and Jimmy Garoppolo orchestrating a Super Bowl berth, largely because of Shanahan's coaching style and influence.
3. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
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Head coaching record: 298-152
Super Bowl championships: 6
Bill Belichick is destined to become a first-ballot Hall of Famer five years after he retires, especially as the Patriots' 2023 campaign begins with Belichick being 19 victories shy of surpassing Don Shula as the sport's winningest coach of all time. However, some of the bloom is off the rose — even with owning the record for most Super Bowl rings by a head coach — especially given the fact that including the postseason, New England is one game under .500 following Tom Brady's departure in 2020. The rest of the AFC East has surpassed the Patriots in terms of personnel — a view shared by multiple executives across the league — to the point that Belichick might struggle to break Shula's record on the sideline in New England.
4. Sean Payton, Denver Broncos
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Coaching record: 152-89
Super Bowl championships: 1
Sean Payton is the working definition of a culture driver. Beyond his outsized impact on the trajectory of a franchise, Payton's influence on quarterbacks such as Drew Brees was a significant drawing card to the Denver Broncos hiring the 59-year-old in hopes he can resurrect quarterback Russell Wilson's career. Under Payton's tutelage, even Jameis Winston won in New Orleans. The Saints made the postseason in four of Payton's final five seasons in New Orleans, and the Broncos are banking on a similar run of consistency beginning in 2023.
5. Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks
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Coaching record: 161-112-1
Super Bowl championships: 1
The Seahawks under Pete Carroll have won a Super Bowl championship, torn down from the Russell Wilson era, and now suddenly have the young pieces in place to potentially begin a new era of sustained success. A dynamic wide receiving corps built around D.K. Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and rookie Jaxon Smith-Njigba — along with explosive running back Kenneth Walker II — forms a worthy complement to a physical defense that imposes its will on opposing offenses weekly. Carroll is the driving force behind what Seattle has built over the past two decades, and what might be looming in the Emerald City.
6. Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles
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Coaching record: 23-11
Super Bowl appearances: 1
Nick Sirianni is a rising star, coaching a roster that's loaded with talent and built around one of the game's ascending top quarterbacks with a wide Super Bowl window in the NFC. One of the hallmarks of a successful program is having assistant coaches hired as head coaches elsewhere; and in the span of one offseason, both of Sirianni's coordinators landed head coaching jobs following Philadelphia's run to Super Bowl LVII. An analytics-driven strategist who does an outstanding job of delegating to his staff, Sirianni has cultivated a culture in Philadelphia that has his players ready to run through walls for him, after just two seasons.
7. Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars
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Coaching record: 51-45-1
Super Bowl championships: 1
By guiding Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars to a postseason victory in his first season at the helm in Jacksonville, Doug Pederson reinforced his reputation as both a quarterback whisperer and culture changer. Pederson's hyper-aggressive philosophy, empowering his staff and getting his players to buy in were essential to his run of success in Philadelphia. And he was able to quickly replicate that formula — and plant the seed of results — in just one season in Jacksonville. The Jaguars took their place among the AFC's elite with last season's run to the divisional round. With Pederson's guidance of Lawrence already paying dividends, this franchise's trajectory is pointing steadily upward.
8. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers
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Coaching record: 163-93-2
Super Bowl championships: 1
He is the model for coaching consistency, if there ever was one. Mike Tomlin has never finished below .500, despite coaching in the pressure cooker that is the AFC North. Having long ago instilled his tough and physical brand of football on the Steelers, Pittsburgh's future is tied to the trajectory of second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett. If Tomlin aims to make a third Super Bowl appearance anytime soon — not to mention keep his 16-year streak without a losing record alive — Pickett will need to make major strides beginning in 2023.
9. Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions
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Coaching record: 17-28-1
Far from the punchline of Dan Campbell's introductory press conference, where he vowed that his Lions would "eat kneecaps," Detroit has quickly built one of the game's most exciting young rosters. Moreover, Campbell has instilled a tough-as-nails competitive culture in the span of just two seasons. The weight of a franchise waiting 30 years for another division title is significant, but Campbell has set the foundation for a bright future in the Motor City.
10. John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
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Coaching record: 147-95
Super Bowl championships: 1
Already with one Super Bowl ring on his finger, John Harbaugh has sustained a culture of success that spans nearly two decades, built around a ground-and-pound offense and a dominant defense. Quarterback Lamar Jackson has already won one MVP award, and the Ravens have built his most impressive receiving corps to date, which could throw open the offense's playbook more than ever. For Harbaugh to climb in these rankings, the Ravens will need to figure out a way to find more postseason success than just the one playoff win they had over the past five seasons.
