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Belichick once ranked 30 out of 32 as head coach


Cant Hackett

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As we search for a HC, Came across this and lol with Belichick ranked 30th. Comments about Herm were on the mark though.

Ranking the NFL's coaches: One stands mile high above

June 5, 2001

By Pete Prisco

SportsLine.com Senior Writer

Tell Pete your opinion!

Fan poll: Rank the 32 NFL coaches

It used to be a simple task. Name the NFL's best coach, then rank the rest after that.

Increased power of the coaches has changed that some; the recent trend of coaches who also serve as general managers has made the issue far more complex.

Oakland's Jon Gruden is the youngest coach in the NFL but one of the best.(AP)

In addition to strategy, game-time decisions, player relations and staff delegation, there's also player procurement to now consider. Of the 32 head coaches in the league, including Houston's Dom Capers, 14 have control of personnel decisions.

Green Bay's Mike Sherman and Philadelphia's Andy Reid, two second-year coaches, now have control of the personnel decisions with their teams. They are both from the Mike Holmgren tree, who moved to Seattle from Green Bay in large part because he was given personnel control.

It is a caveat that more and more coaches are going to want as they become more successful, much to the chagrin of personnel men who have been working for years to get to a GM level.

Power is nice, but the following coaching rankings aren't about personnel. They're about coaching. Who is the best in the NFL in terms of preparation, game-day decision-making and relations with their players?

Which coach stands out above the rest?

The answer is Denver's Mike Shanahan.

Shanahan has two Super Bowl victories, but his top rating is more than just about rings. He is innovative, creative, organized and has an easy way of dealing with his players.

Add it all up, and it makes for one heck of a package.

To think Al Davis once fired this guy.

"Shanahan is one of the first guys you think of when you think coach,'' said one AFC personnel director. "He has control over football operations there, but he's more coach than anything. He loses players, like (John) Elway and (Terrell) Davis, and his team keeps on winning. That says something about him as a coach.''

Yeah, like he's second to none. He tops the SportsLine.com rankings of NFL coaches, the list of which follows.

Just remember, these rankings are based on coaching only, the way it used to be.

1. Shanahan. If there were one coach that you could pick to win one game, it would likely be Shanahan. His ability to adapt to situations is as good as any coach there has been in the league. What he does with an offense, no matter what the personnel, tells you how good a coach he is from a tactical standpoint. He has made Brian Griese into a Pro Bowl passer, which is indicative of the kind of teacher he can be. One day, the Hall will call. Count on it.

2. Mike Holmgren, Seattle Seahawks. The verdict is still out on Holmgren as a GM, but as a coach he is one of the best. He is very good at having a feel for the game, plus he has a good rapport with the players. Holmgren is tough enough, yet knows how to pull back at the right times. As an offensive coach, he is one of the best in the league. The 2001 season is a big one for him; Paul Allen is paying him big bucks for big results.

3. Jon Gruden, Oakland Raiders. This might seem high for a young coach who still has not won a Super Bowl. But Gruden's worth ethic, coupled with his smooth style of dealing with the modern player, gets him this high. He is also adept at offensive strategy, which is best exemplified by his making Rich Gannon a Pro Bowl quarterback. The Super Bowl will come shortly. He's too good a coach.

4. Jeff Fisher, Tennessee Titans. There are some flaws in Fisher as a game coach, most notably his insistence on playing it too conservatively. But that's his style, and he believes strongly in it. Just ask him. His relationship with his players is as good as any coach in the league, which is why his teams play hard all the time. They like and respect their coach, which is important nowadays. No other coach in the league has the type of relationship Fisher has with his players.

5. Dennis Green, Minnesota Vikings. Green and Pittsburgh's Bill Cowher are the longest-tenured coaches in the league. Green has consistently had his team in the playoffs during his 10 years with the Vikings, even if the Super Bowl has been unattained. His offensive philosophy to attack is perfect for this NFL. His one fault is never having put together a good defense. That's a demerit, but his record is proof of how good a coach he has been.

6. Dan Reeves, Atlanta Falcons. Reeves' career might be entering its final season, which would be a shame since he is such a good coach. If all things were equal, he'd outperform many of the coaches on this list. He won't get the respect he deserves when he leaves the game, but he has been one of the best coaches for a long time. That Falcons team he took to the Super Bowl three seasons ago is all the proof you need.

7. Tom Coughlin, Jacksonville Jaguars. He is far too demanding, has far too many nit-picky rules and his players don't really like playing for him. He also has a tendency to get too emotional on game days, which hurts what he does from a strategic standpoint. So how come Coughlin has won? It's because he's a detail freak who works tirelessly at the task. Coughlin knows football, and does a great job of out-scheming the other guy. His whole life, aside from family, is football. If only he had better player-relations.

8. Dick Vermeil, Kansas City Chiefs. The kinder, gentler Dick Vermeil is a much better coach than the Vermeil of his Philadelphia Eagles days. Vermeil won a Super Bowl two seasons ago with the Rams and his players embraced him. Gone were the days when every player on the roster cursed his every move, as was the case with the Eagles. Even if he does sometimes get sappy, Vermeil does relate to the players despite his turning 65 in October. It will be interesting to see what his offense can do with the Chiefs now that he doesn't have Mike Martz to run the show.

9. Brian Billick, Baltimore Ravens. Billick might seem like a goofy, free spirit who will say anything, but the reality is that he is a detail-oriented coach who knows what buttons to push. His adapting from an offensive coach who loves to play wide open to a conservative style was key to the Ravens winning the Super Bowl last year. How many other coaches would have made that switch, even though deep down you know it was killing Billick? He can really rise up this list in the next couple of years.

10. Tony Dungy, Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His easy-going style works with this team. But he has to be willing to play more open on offense if his team is to get to the Super Bowl. That's not something he believes in doing, but all the great coaches make the adjustments that need to be made. That's one that Dungy has to make to be considered among the elite in the league. Now that he has a legitimate quarterback in Brad Johnson, this is that time for Dungy.

11. George Seifert, Carolina Panthers. His Super Bowl-winning days with the 49ers seem like a long time ago. Seifert has struggled with the Panthers, and things don't look like they'll get much better this season. Could this be the end of Seifert's coaching career? He has been a good coach, who won with a great team, but always has coached with class. He might never be considered one of the best coaches, but has been a winner.

12. Jim Fassel, New York Giants. Fassel's timely guarantee that the Giants would make the playoffs proved to be the right motivational tactic. If the Giants hadn't followed through, there's a good chance Fassel would have been let go. Instead he got a new contract. Giving the reigns to the offense to Sean Payton was a brilliant move, since Fassel was far too conservative calling the plays. The players seem to like him, which helps.

13. Steve Mariucci, San Francisco 49ers. The stripping down of the 49ers for cap reasons has hindered Mariucci's growth as a coach. But he has done a solid job with a young football team that is on the rise. Mariucci is another former Holmgren prot

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30 may have been a bit harsh, but he definitely belonged in the lower half at that point in time. Cleveland was a complete failure for BB and the Pats were pretty atrocious in his debut season there.

It just still baffles me that Bill Freaking Belichick, the guy that cut Bernie Kosar mid-season, couldn't handle Andre Rison, and once drafted a fullback in the first round is now perhaps, the best coach since Lombardi. Perhaps he made the same deal with the devil that Namath did...

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That just shows you how things can change in life- 5 years ago Bellicheck was a loser that failed in Cleveland and now look at him - immortal in the eyes of some

Any similarity to people that post on jet websites?

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That just shows you how things can change in life- 5 years ago Bellicheck was a loser that failed in Cleveland and now look at him - immortal in the eyes of some

Any similarity to people that post on jet websites?

yeah, but PatsfanTx is still waiting for the immortal part :mrgreen:

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31. Marty Mornhinweg, Detroit Lions. The newest Holmgren disciple to get a job, Mornhinweg is considered a bright, offensive mind. But is he ready to be a head coach? Some in the league privately question if he got a top job too soon. Then again, they said that about Gruden, too. Tough to judge him now, but if he's like Gruden he'll soar up this list in a hurry.

:lol::lol::lol::lol:

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