The NFL head coach is the mastermind behind every game plan, and Week 5 gave us a fresh glimpse at which leaders are taking control—and which are feeling the heat.
In fact, it may not be long before we see a couple of seats get too hot—and their occupiers get jettisoned out of town! But before that unfolds… How about we take a look around the NFL and stack rank every NFL team’s head coach?
Who are the top head coaches in the NFL after week 5 of games?
32. Carolina Panthers: Dave Canales (Last Week #30)
With how incompetent Carolina is from the top down, it is tough to gauge exactly how much of the mess is Dave Canales’s fault, but when the team you coach is playing as bad as the Panthers are, it simply can’t be a positive indicator.
31. Jacksonville Jaguars: Doug Pederson (Last Week #32)
Doug Pederson was under intense scrutiny coming into this one, with rumors of a lost locker room running rampant, but he rallied his team to a potentially career-saving win.
30. Las Vegas Raiders: Antonio Pierce (Last Week #18)
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Antonio Pierce is starting to take his lumps as a young head coach in this league. Pierce has now watched his team take yet another brutal loss to a division rival, not to mention his top offensive weapon, Davante Adams, already asking for a trade.
29. New England Patriots: Jerod Mayo (Last Week #28)
Another tough week for Jerod Mayo, whose mismanagement of crucial moments, including a botched last-minute drive and a failure to convert multiple opportunities deep in Miami territory, showcased a lack of composure that is all too common for the first-year head coach.
28. Tennessee Titans (bye): Brian Callahan (Last Week #29)
Coach Callahan’s rookie season has been a rollercoaster and not a particularly fun one either! Hopefully, he has some time to catch his breath this week and get back on solid ground because it hasn’t been pretty.
27. New York Giants: Brian Daboll (Last Week #31)
Folks have been hard on Brian Daboll this year, and rightfully so with how New York has looked, but what he did this week without Malik Nabers and Devin Singletary was very impressive. He created a perfect game plan, motivated his team to execute it properly, and made some fantastic in-game adjustments to secure the victory.
Also Read: 5 WORST NFL Head Coaches In The Game Today, And The 5 BEST That Always Dominate
26. Philadelphia Eagles (bye): Nick Sirianni (Last Week #27)
The Week 6 matchup against Cleveland could be make-or-break for Nick Sirianni, who absolutely needs a win against the lowly Browns to keep the organization’s confidence in him from completely disappearing.
25. Miami Dolphins: Mike McDaniel (Last Week #25)
Mike McDaniel managed to escape with the win, but it wasn’t pretty. Miscommunication and wasted opportunities plagued the Dolphins throughout, particularly with special teams mishaps and clock management errors, and that has to fall back on the head coach.
24. New York Jets: Robert Saleh (Last Week #23)
If Robert Saleh isn’t careful, his job may vanish beneath him in short order. His squad has been all over the place this season, and so many of the issues seem to be in the mental sphere of the game. Yes, they showed grit by rallying after falling behind early, but these slow starts are leaving no room for error, something the Jets are not poised to overcome.
23. Chicago Bears: Matt Eberflus (Last Week #26)
There have been a lot of ups and downs for Matt Eberflus during his Bears tenure, but luckily for him, Sunday was smooth sailing against a lowly Panthers team.
22. Los Angeles Rams: Sean McVay (Last Week #19)
To be fair to Sean McVay, he was sort of coaching with his hands tied behind his back this week with all the injuries, but still, a tough loss. His Rams are 1 – 4, and it is clear that frustration is starting to set in.
21. Cleveland Browns: Kevin Stefanski (Last Week #20)
Kevin Stefanski’s Browns looked disjointed and sloppy. Missing key starters or not, this team failed to execute the fundamentals, and while the coach is undoubtedly in a tough spot with Deshaun Watson, at some point, he has to make the call to get him out of there!
20. Arizona Cardinals: Jonathan Gannon (Last Week #24)
The full body of work still hasn’t been great for Gannon this year, but he did manage to start flipping the narrative with a huge win in Week 5 over his divisional rival.
19. Dallas Cowboys: Mike McCarthy (Last Week #22)
Mike McCarthy had his team ready to fight, and while the game plan at times appeared shaky, his trust in Prescott never wavered (not that he had a choice). Even after the turnovers, McCarthy let his quarterback air it out, and he led the Cowboys down the field for a game-winning drive when it mattered most.
18. Indianapolis Colts: Shane Steichen (Last Week #21)
With several key players out, Shane Steichen had to get creative, relying on Flacco’s veteran presence to keep the game competitive. I suppose with their starting quarterback, running back, and center on the injured list, we ought to give Steichen a pass this week, though we’d like to see him get his squad over the hump in crunch time during a game like this.
17. Cincinnati Bengals: Zac Taylor (Last Week #14)
Clearly, Zac Taylor has some things to address with his defense, which got absolutely torched in Week 5 on Sunday. The Bengals are still sitting at 1 – 4 and have a lot of work to do if they still want to get to the playoffs.
16. Seattle Seahawks: Mike Macdonald (Last Week #16)
For the first time this season, Mike Macdonald’s team looked ill-prepared to play as they faltered to a weak Giants side. It felt like he was out-schemed and out-planned by New York’s OC Mike Kafka, who had the defensive guru guessing all game.
15. New Orleans Saints: Dennis Allen (Last Week #13)
Dennis Allen had his team ready to go on Monday Night. Unfortunately, he was outdueled by one of the best in the business in Andy Reid.
14. Buffalo Bills: Sean McDermott (Last Week #10)
Sean McDermott has some work to do. The team has dropped two straight, and the slow starts are increasingly becoming a concern. With a talent like Josh Allen under center, the seat beneath Sean McDermott is going to heat up real quick if he can’t get his team to play clean ball again soon.
13. Washington Commanders: Dan Quinn (Last Week #17)
Dan Quinn put his stamp on this one, dialing up a game plan that had the Commanders cooking all afternoon. It was also impressive to see the way that his squad out-physical the Browns from the start.
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Todd Bowles (Last Week #7)
Tough showing for Todd Bowles in Week 5, as he is supposed to be a defensive guru of sorts, and his squad got absolutely lit up on primetime.
11. Los Angeles Chargers (bye): Jim Harbaugh (Last Week #12)
With the bye week, Jim Harbaugh can finally exhale, as it has been an intense start to his return to the NFL in L.A. He’ll have a heck of a chess match next week with Sean Payton and a Broncos team that is looking much improved of late.
10. Pittsburgh Steelers: Mike Tomlin (Last Week #8)
A 3-0 start has suddenly turned into back-to-back losses, and Mike Tomlin has to be getting frustrated. It will be interesting to see what he decides to do with the quarterback situation going forward.
9. Denver Broncos: Sean Payton (Last Week #15)
Week 5 was a vindication game for Sean Payton on multiple levels, as he beat the Raiders for the first time since taking over as head coach, and his handpicked rookie quarterback, Bo Nix, delivered in a big way, playing his best game of the season.
8. San Francisco 49ers: Kyle Shanahan (Last Week #6)
Kyle Shanahan’s game plan seemed slightly off this week, and his team paid for it. It’s clear he needs to make adjustments to address the slow start in the first half if they want to continue competing at a high level.
7. Atlanta Falcons: Raheem Morris (Last Week #11)
Raheem Morris is quickly proving to be one of the best young coaches in the game. The Falcons head coach called a gutsy game, particularly in the fourth quarter when he went for it on fourth-and-4 from the Bucs’ 12-yard line, which really ignited their comeback.
6. Green Bay Packers: Matt LaFleur (Last Week #9)
Matt LaFleur’s true colors showed on Sunday, as he proved yet again that he’s a great motivator who also manages to keep his team composed even when there is early trouble. After Love’s early blunder, LaFleur kept his team’s energy up, and the team charged back to get the win. It was impressive to see how he schemed the offense around the key injuries to Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs.
5. Houston Texans: DeMeco Ryans (Last Week #4)
There may have been a couple of confusing calls on Sunday, like when Ryans had Stroud pass on 3rd down late in the 4th, which resulted in a nearly catastrophic intentional grounding, but he always seems to maintain composure, and his young Texans team reflected that during their big win over Buffalo.
4. Detroit Lions (bye): Dan Campbell (Last Week #5)
Dan Campbell’s job during the bye is to make sure that his team stays focused and can keep the level that they played at during Week 4.
3. Kansas City Chiefs: Andy Reid (Last Week #2)
People love to nitpick the Chiefs, but there’s not much you can say about Andy Reid other than that he continues to keep this team executing at the highest levels.
2. Baltimore Ravens: John Harbaugh (Last Week #3)
John Harbaugh showed poise in an absolute rollercoaster of a game. He kept his team focused even when Cincinnati seemed to have seized momentum.
1. Minnesota Vikings: Kevin O'Connell (Last Week #1)
Kevin O’Connell continues to impress in 2024, as he takes his team into the bye week, sitting at 5-0. He has done a masterful job of creating opportunities for Justin Jefferson, despite the massive amount of attention he draws from the opposing defense, and thus, has made Sam Darnold’s job infinitely easier.
Also Read: Grading All 32 NFL Teams’ Head Coaches After Week 4 Games Of The 2024 Season
