The Super Bowl has seen some legendary head coaches lead some extremely legendary teams to victory when it matters most. Some coaches have only experienced the Super Bowl once while other coaches got to experience the big dance more than others. But who is the number one coach to win it all?
Here are the rankings for all 58 Super Bowl-winning head coaches (35 coaches in all):
#35: Gary Kubiak: Super Bowl 50
Kubiak returned to the Denver Broncos in the 2015 season and inherited former head coach John Fox’s players. Peyton Manning was past his prime and played his worst season statistically. However, the Broncos got to Super Bowl 50 thanks to the “No Fly Zone” defense. Kubiak is known as an offensive-minded coach, who was the offensive coordinator for the Broncos under Mike Shanahan. The Broncos’ defense took out the Carolina Panthers 24-10 and helped Manning earn his second Super Bowl ring before he retired right after.
#34: Barry Switzer: Super Bowl XXX
Switzer became the head coach of the Cowboys the season after Jimmy Johnson decided to step down, due to his dysfunctional relationship with Jerry Jones. Switzer led the star-studded Cowboys to Super Bowl XXX and won 27-17 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Switzer barely gets credit for the win as head coach, since most of the guys on the roster were coached up by Jimmy Johnson. But hey, Switzer got to complete the Cowboys’ Dynasty of the 1990s.
#33: Don McCafferty: Super Bowl V
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McCafferty became the first rookie head coach to win the Super Bowl. However, legendary quarterback, Johnny Unitas, left the game early with a rib injury forcing backup Earl Morrall to take over. Morrall helped the Colts win against the Dallas Cowboys, 16-13. McCafferty spent three more seasons with the Colts before becoming the head coach of the Detroit Lions, in 1973.
#32: Bruce Arians: Super Bowl LV
Arians became the head coach of the Buccaneers in 2019 and had a talented roster around him, minus the quarterback. Then 2020 came and Tom Brady signed with the Bucs and everything changed. Arians and Brady helped the Bucs earn their first winning season since 2016, and their first trip back to the playoffs since 2007. From there, Brady and the Bucs cruised through the NFC playoffs and won Super Bowl 55 in dominating fashion against the Kansas City Chiefs.
#31: Pete Carroll: Super Bowl XLVIII
The Seahawks were a bit of a mixed bag throughout the years, from a playoff contender to becoming a perennial loser in 2008 and 2009. Then Pete Carroll came to town and created the “Legion of Boom” defense. In 2013, the Seahawks cruised Super Bowl XLVIII and obliterated the Denver Broncos with a record-breaking offense, 43-8 giving Carroll his first Super Bowl win.
#30: Mike Holmgren: Super Bowl XXXI
Holmgren and Brett Favre helped the Packers return to their winning ways after two decades of losing seasons. Holmgren’s Packers reached Super Bowl XXXI and cruised their way to victory over Drew Bledsoe and the New England Patriots. Desmond Howard’s kick-return for a touchdown doesn’t get appreciated as much as Holmgren and Favre helping the game, as the Packers brought the Lombardi Trophy back to Titletown.
#29: Mike McCarthy: Super Bowl XLV
14 seasons after Super Bowl XXXI and three seasons after Brett Favre’s last game as a Packer, McCarthy took a revamped Packers team, led by Aaron Rodgers, and won the franchise’s fourth Super Bowl. What made the victory even sweeter, was McCarthy’s team won it all as a sixth-seed wildcard team.
#28: Jon Gruden: Super Bowl XXXVII
Gruden reached Super Bowl XXXVII with most of Tony Dungy’s players, oddly enough, against the team that traded him to the Bucs, the Oakland Raiders. From there, Gruden knew the Raiders’ weaknesses and took advantage of their offensive struggles, with an elite Buccaneers defense, led by Derrick Brooks, Warren Sapp, Ronde Barber, and John Lynch. It was a blowout of a game, as the Bucs won, 48-21 solidifying them as one of the best defensive teams in the league.
#27: Hank Stram: Super Bowl IV
After losing the inaugural Super Bowl to Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers, Stram’s Chiefs led by Len Dawson had their foot on the gas pedal, and didn’t look back, as they steamrolled the Minnesota Vikings, 23-7. Stram also helped the Chiefs win three AFL titles, and enshrined his Chiefs as another AFL team, who proved they can play and defeat their more superior NFL counterpart.
#26: Tony Dungy: Super Bowl XLI
After not getting over the hump with the Buccaneers in 1999, Dungy finally made it to the Super Bowl with the Colts, and won, 29-17 against the Chicago Bears. Dungy’s defense kept the Bears at bay, after the first quarter, while Peyton Manning and the offense played an excellent battle on the field.
#25: Sean McVay: Super Bowl LVI
After being out-coached by Bill Belichick, McVay became the youngest head coach to win it all, thanks to an elite defense, led by Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey, and Von Miller. MvVay’s Rams also had a very talented star-studded offense, led by Matthew Stafford, who also got to hoist the Lombardi Trophy, after 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions.
#24: Mike Tomlin: Super Bowl XLVIII
After 15 years of leadership under Bill Cowher, Tomlin led the Steelers to their sixth Super Bowl championship, in his second year on the job. Tomlin’s hard-hitting defense made things tough for Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals, especially with James Harrison’s 100-yard pick-six. Tomlin only appeared in one other Super Bowl, which was a loss to the Green Bay Packers, but he has kept the Steelers afloat with winning seasons, all throughout his tenure.
#23: John Harbaugh: Super Bowl XLVII
After falling just short of making it to the big dance in 2008 and 2011, Harbaugh’s Ravens finally made it, and won it all. Jacoby Jones had a 109-yard kick return for a touchdown, while Joe Flacco played a great game, with three touchdowns and no interceptions. It was also the game that gave Ray Lewis his second and final Super Bowl championship, as he retired a champion, who rode off into the sunset!
#22: Brian Billick: Super Bowl XXXV
With the Ravens only residing in Baltimore for five seasons, after their controversial move from Cleveland, Billick’s hard-hitting defense came to life, and pulverized their opponents, to win it all. Billick’s defense included greats like Ray Lewis, Duane Starks, Rod Woodson, and Adalius Thomas to name a few. Billick’s Ravens, go down as one of the best defensive units, of all time.
#21: Doug Pederson: Super Bowl LII:
Things seemed lost for the Eagles when Carson Wentz went down with a season-ending ACL injury. Luckily, Pederson and offensive coordinator Frank Reich kept the hope of the Eagles alive, with Nick Foles, who became a hero in Philadelphia. The Eagles defeated the favored New England Patriots, 41-33 in one of the greatest Super Bowls, of all time.
#20: Bill Cowher: Super Bowl XL
After a lot of winning seasons, and a Super Bowl XXX loss to Barry Switzer’s Cowboys, Cowher finally won it all, in Super Bowl XL. The Steelers’ strong and prolific defense, made things tough and painful for the Seattle Seahawks, along with excellent offensive performances from Antwaan Randle-El and Hines Ward. Cowher retired from coaching after the 2006 season, as Mike Tomlin took the helm, the following year, to continue the Steelers’ winning ways.
#19: Dick Vermeil: Super Bowl XXXIV
After losing Super Bowl XV with the Philadelphia Eagles, Vermeil took the head coaching job of the struggling St. Louis Rams, and slowly made improvements to the team. Then when Trent Green suffered a season-ending injury, Vermeil turned Kurt Warner from a backup into a Super Bowl-winning Hall of Fame quarterback. Vermeil’s “Greatest Show on Turf” offense sped through opposing defenses, all the way to a Super Bowl XXXIV championship, over the Tennessee Titans.
#18: John Madden: Super Bowl XI
Before Madden became the broadcasting and video game icon, we know him today, he managed to win it all, in Super Bowl XI, 32-14 against the Minnesota Vikings. It was the second Super Bowl appearance by the Raiders since they lost Super Bowl II to the Green Bay Packers. The difference was this Raiders team didn’t relinquish the lead to the Vikings, and ascended to victory in Super Bowl lore.
#17: Weeb Ewbank: Super Bowl III
Ewbank is the head coach who delivered the Jets’ first and only Super Bowl championship. He delivered the win against the Baltimore Colts, the team he used to coach from 1954 until 1962 where he won two NFL Championships, including arguably “the Greatest Game Ever Played” in 1958. Ewbank coached Joe Namath, who ironically guaranteed the Jets would “win it all” against the Colts and kept his word in a 16-7 victory!
#16: George Seifert: Super Bowls XXIV and XXIX
Seifert is overshadowed by his predecessor, Bill Walsh, who started the 49ers dynasty back in 1981. Walsh got the 49ers ownership to support Seifert immediately after stepping away from coaching. Walsh knew what he was doing, as Seifert brought two more Super Bowls to the 49ers in 1989 and 1994 respectively.
#15: Mike Ditka: Super Bowl XX
Ditka’s Bears were one of the most iconic teams that bulldozed their way to winning Super Bowl XX. Even though the Bears weren’t known as an offensive team, their impenetrable defense suffocated opposing offenses and struck fear in many during their run in the 1985 season.
#14: Sean Payton: Super Bowl XLIV
When Payton and Drew Brees arrived in New Orleans in 2006, they transformed the team from a laughable loser to a winning playoff contender. Payton and Brees’ greatest accomplishment, was winning it all in Super Bowl 44 against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, just four years after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans back in 2005, making them true heroes to the city.
#13: Mike Shanahan: Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII
The Broncos were a mess, as they went 0-4 in Super Bowls and lost three with John Elway. Once Shanahan arrived, he changed the culture of the Broncos, with the help of Terrell Davis at running back, as he helped Elway earn two Super Bowl championships. Certainly, one of the greatest retirement gifts, for one of the best quarterbacks, to ever play in the NFL.
#12: Tom Flores: Super Bowls XV and XVIII
Even though most people think about John Madden as the greatest Raiders’ head coach, Flores is often forgotten. Flores is the guy who helped the Raiders win two Super Bowls, in the late 1970s and early 1980s thanks to his offensive prowess and turning Jim Plunkett from a draft bust, into an elite game-changer, that was a part of Flores’ championship runs.
#11: Bill Parcells: Super Bowls XXI and XXV
Parcells’ Giants had incredible defensive experience, in the big dance, thanks to Pro Bowl and Hall of Fame talent like Lawrence Taylor, Leonard Marshall, Henry Carson, and Pepper Johnson, to name a few. This defense helped Parcells lead the team to victory over the Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills respectively.
#10: Tom Landry: Super Bowls VI and XII
Landry was the first head coach of the Dallas Cowboys and made them the icons that they are today, with three decades of success. Without Tom Landry, we wouldn’t know the Cowboys as “America’s Team”. Landry found success in the 1970s leading the ‘Boys to five Super Bowls and winning it all in Super Bowls VI and XII, with excellent production from Roger Staubach leading the charge.
#9: Jimmy Johnson: Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII
Johnson’s Cowboys were full of star-studded talents like Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, and Jay Novacek, to name a few. These two Cowboys teams decimated the Buffalo Bills in back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, to start what became the Cowboys dynasty of the 1990s which was solidified when Barry Switzer led the Cowboys to their Super Bowl XXX victory.
#8: Tom Coughlin: Super Bowls XLII and XLVI
Coughlin goes down in New York lore as a hero who knocked out Bill Belichick and the New Patriots- twice. The best coaching victory for Coughlin came during Super Bowl XLII when the Giants defeated the undefeated New England Patriots, thanks to his tough and aggressive coaching, that kept the Giants in it, all game. The Giants winning Super Bowl XLII is a sports version of David vs Goliath.
#7: Joe Gibbs: Super Bowl XVII, XXII, and XXVI
Gibbs led Washington to glory from 1981 until 1982 and saw some success in 2004 until 2007. Gibbs crafted three Super Bowl-winning teams, in arguably a forgotten football dynasty, that forever lives under the shadow of the San Francisco 49ers dynasty of the ‘80s. Gibbs won it all with three different quarterbacks, and the iconic “Hogs offensive line”, with Hall of Famer Russ Grimm, at his side. Gibbs also won NASCAR Championships under his group Joe Gibbs Racing. Wow, now that is multitasking.
#6: Andy Reid: Super Bowl LIV, LVII, and LVIII
After years of coming just short with the Philadelphia Eagles, Andy Reid found his footing as a championship coach, with the Kansas City Chiefs. He and Patrick Mahomes transformed the perennial playoff Chiefs, into a Super Bowl-winning juggernaut, and have officially made them the first post-Tom Brady era dynasty. All the other 31 teams in the league, watch out, the Chiefs are only getting started!
#5: Bill Walsh: Super Bowls XVI, XIX, XXIII
Walsh’s iconic West Coast offense, changed the game of football, forever. What he had was the recipe for success, during the 49ers’ reign of dominance, in the 1980s. Joe “Cool” Montana and Jerry Rice all became household names in the NFL. Walsh also had an amazing coaching tree of men who became incredible coaches, in their own right, because of the success of the 49ers’ dynasty.
#4: Chuck Noll: Super Bowls IX, X, XIII, and XIV
Noll is responsible for transforming the longtime losing Steelers, into the iconic powerhouse of a dynasty, in the 1970s. With Terry Bradshaw leading the offense and Hall of Fame defensive icons like Joe Greene, Mel Blount, Mike Webster, and Donnie Shell, to name a few of the names, that led the Steelers to four Super Bowl victories. Because of Noll’s winning culture, the Steelers became one of the most iconic and memorable franchises in the league!
#3: Don Shula: Super Bowls VII and VIII
Shula is the only Super Bowl-winning head coach to guide an undefeated team, to win it all back in 1972. Despite winning two Super Bowls, Shula made the Miami Dolphins into a winner throughout his 25-year reign, as head coach of the team. Shula also coached the Baltimore Colts to Super Bowl III before losing to the New York Jets. Shula is also the winningest head coach in NFL history, with 347 wins including the playoffs.
#2: Vince Lombardi: Super Bowls I and II
When it comes to any iconic head coach, Lombardi is that guy who has crafted the iconic Packers dynasty of the 1960s. Besides winning five NFL Championships, Lombardi also won the first and second Super Bowls with excellent play from Bart Starr leading the way on the ground. The Lombardi Trophy is named in his honor for all he accomplished in the league.
#1: Bill Belichick: Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, and LIII
This pick was obvious. What Belichick accomplished as a head coach will probably not be replicated by other coaches…ever. Belichick winning six of nine memorable Super Bowl appearances, whether it’s beating the “Greatest Show on Turf Rams”, to coming back from being down, 28-3 against the Atlanta Falcons, ranks as some of the most iconic football games of all time. Other than having elite offenses and the GOAT of all quarterbacks, Tom Brady, at his side, Belichick’s Super Bowl-winning teams had some of the best defenses ever assembled, with Pro Bowlers and Hall of Famers like Ty Law, Richard Seymour, Darrelle Revis, Dont’a Hightower, Devin McCourty, and Stephon Gilmore to name quite a few iconic defensive stars, to win it all under Belichick’s leadership.
