Whether or not an NFL team can be considered a Super Bowl has always been determined by the coaching staff surrounding the team, primarily at the head coaching position. This season has seen a plethora of NFL coaches put through all kinds of adversity, and still able to guide their teams to winning records regardless. Let’s rank who the five best candidates are for the 2025 NFL Coach of the Year award.
1. Mike Vrabel
After a two-year hiatus from being a head coach, Vrabel returned to coach his former team in New England and has led them to perhaps the best turnaround season in NFL history. Much of the Patriots’ success can be attributed to Vrabel’s ability to develop second-year quarterback Drake Maye into one of the league’s best in just one offseason together.
Vrabel’s development of Maye, combined with his ability to turn the Patriots’ defense into one of the NFL’s most elite this season, it’s no surprise that he should be the favorite to win his second Coach of the Year award in February.
2. Mike Macdonald
If your team is playing at home against the Seattle Seahawks, the odds of your team walking away with a win is pretty much zero. That’s the kind of impact Macdonald has had in his two years in Seattle, as he’s helped to turn the Seahawks into the best road team in the league.
Through his first 12 road games coached in his NFL career, Macdonald sports an impressive 11-1 record. Macdonald also became the fifth head coach in NFL history to win nine of his first 10 road games to start a career. That road warrior mentality has led the Seahawks to possess the NFC’s number one seed this season, and maybe Macdonald’s first Coach of the Year award.
3. Demeco Ryans
When the Texans started the season 0-3, the likelihood of Ryans keeping his job in Houston seemed fairly slim. Fast forward to now, and the Texans now stand at a solid 10-5, having won 10 of their last 12 games thanks in part to the best defense in the NFL.
Defense has been the Texans’ calling card ever since Ryans took over as head coach back in 2023. However, defense is not the only thing Ryans has excelled at in both his career and this season.
After Texans’ star QB C.J. Stroud was forced to miss three weeks due to a concussion, Ryans was able to hold the fort down by leading the Texans to a 3-0 record in Stroud’s absence. That level of adversity combined with his team’s stellar turnaround could certainly help Ryans case with Coach of the Year voters come February.
4. Kyle Shanahan
In another season where the 49ers have been plagued yet again by the injury bug, long-time head coach Kyle Shanahan has put on a maestro performance in getting San Francisco to 11-4 on the year.
When star players like Brock Purdy, George Kittle, and almost the entire starting defense went down early, the Niners’ season seemed lost before it even began. Thankfully, Shanahan was able to guide San Francisco to a 5-2 record while seemingly reviving the career of backup Mac Jones in the process.
When the chips were down for Shanahan, he was able to keep the ship afloat while making the Niners look as dangerous as ever heading into the playoffs. If the NFL Coach of the Year were to fall into his hands this season, it would be well deserved.
5. Dave Canales
When Canales signed on to become the head coach of the Panthers last season, many people expected his tenure to be short-lived, especially given the nightmare Carolina has been at the front office level.
Yet through all the chaos, Canales has the Panthers on the brink of their first playoff appearance since 2017, and their first NFC South title since 2015. Much of that is thanks in part to Canales’ development of both Bryce Young and receivers like Tetairoa McMillan.
Young is currently on pace to set career highs across the board while also perhaps finishing with his first winning season as a starter in his third year. While McMillan is on pace to set the Panthers franchise record for receiving yards in a rookie season.
All of those records and wins is thanks in part to Canales brilliant offensive scheme and playcalling, which will certainly catch the eye of some voters this season.
