Ranking the NFL’s 2025 Head Coaching Hires

Seven NFL teams hired new coaches to lead their franchises coming into this season. Two of those coaches are the top candidates for NFL Coach of the Year, while three of those coaches are leading teams that are still in contention to land the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Such is life in this league, so let’s rank the rookie coaching jobs with a month remaining in the season.

Ben Johnson (Chicago Bears)

If the season ended today, the Chicago Bears would be the No. 1 seed in the NFC. That’s an incredible turnaround for a franchise that has been mired in mediocrity over the last few decades. Chicago is now guaranteed to have its first winning season since 2018, and the Bears are optimistic they can win their first playoff game in 15 years.

Ben Johnson helped turn Detroit’s offense into one of the best in the league, and he is doing the same with Chicago. D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai have formed an excellent 1-2 combination at running back, Rome Odunze has been a big-play threat, and Caleb Williams is looking much better in his second season. 

Chicago has now won nine of its last ten games after an 0-2 start to the season. Any belief that the Bears’ record was buoyed by playing mediocre opponents has been tamped down after their Black Friday win over the Eagles in Philadelphia, but they do have a difficult final month of the season. The Bears will play Green Bay (twice), San Francisco, and Detroit in their last five games. If Chicago goes 4-1 or 5-0 in that stretch, there is no doubt that Ben Johnson will be the NFL Coach of the Year.

Mike Vrabel (New England Patriots)

Pretty much everyone knew that this would be a great hire. New England quickly cut bait after one season under Jerod Mayo, allowing Mike Vrabel to lead the franchise back to prominence. Vrabel was always underappreciated in Tennessee, as the Titans have found out since he was let go after the 2023 season.

Vrabel finally has a great quarterback, too. Drake Maye has been fantastic in his second season, throwing for over 3,400 yards with 8.8 YPA. Maye has been doing that even though he doesn’t have great receivers, and his offensive line struggles with pass blocking.

New England is currently the No. 2 seed in the NFL as the Patriots would lose the tiebreaker with Denver if they finish with the same record. We will see how good the Patriots are in their next two games when they face Buffalo and Baltimore.

Liam Coen (Jacksonville Jaguars)

The perpetually moribund Jacksonville Jaguars plucked the juiciest apple left on the Sean McVay coaching tree, and that decision has paid dividends through 12 games. Jacksonville is currently atop the AFC North at 8-4, as Coen has helped make Travis Etienne Jr. one of the top running backs in the conference.

Trevor Lawrence remains a big question mark, though. Jacksonville rolled the dice and gave the former No. 1 overall pick a massive contract extension, but he is still making too many mistakes. Lawrence is completing under 60% of his passes, and he has thrown 11 interceptions on the season.

Brian Schottenheimer (Dallas Cowboys)

No new coach was the recipient of more consternation than Brian Schottenheimer this offseason. Fans bemoaned their fate, while commentators heckled their Cowboys for making the long-time offensive coordinator their head coach. However, Schottenheimer has done a pretty decent job all things considered, and Dallas has now won three straight games, with the last two victories coming over last year’s Super Bowl participants.

This is one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL. George Pickens is finally living up to his potential, and Javonte Williams will soon surpass 1,000 yards. Unfortunately, Dallas is going to need some help in order to make the postseason, as the NFC is loaded with good teams.

Aaron Glenn (New York Jets)

Some commentators were proclaiming that Aaron Glenn would be fired before the end of his first season back in October. The New York Jets were the last team to get a win this season, starting off 0-7, but they have since gone on to win three of their last five games.

It’s not Aaron Glenn’s fault that the front office gave him one of the worst quarterback situations in the league. The Jets paid way too much for Justin Fields, and Tyrod Taylor is not the sparkplug he was in the past. Surprisingly, this team has played better since trading away Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, and the Jets will have loads of draft capital in 2026 and 2027.

Kellen Moore (New Orleans Saints)

The former standout Boise State quarterback stepped into one of the worst situations in the NFL. New Orleans is undergoing a complete rebuild right now, so it’s hard to put too much blame for the Saints’ 2-10 record on Kellen Moore. It’s unlikely that either Spencer Rattler or rookie Tyler Shough factors into the Saints’ long-term plans at quarterback.

Moore is likely to be given a lot of time since New Orleans is still in salary cap hell. The Saints played fast and loose with the salary cap for years, and they now have a lot of dead money they need to get off their books. 

Pete Carroll (Las Vegas Raiders)

Once again, the Las Vegas Raiders tried to do things their own way and got burned in the process. When Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks parted ways after the 2023 season, Carroll was the oldest head coach in the league at 72. Las Vegas threw caution to the wind when hiring the now 74-year-old Carroll this offseason, even though only one coach is within 12 years of him, Andy Reid.

Las Vegas sits four games behind the next-worst team in the AFC West and has the second-worst point differential in the league behind Tennessee. The Raiders started their season with a win over New England, but their only victory since that point came against the lowly Titans. Their last three losses have been by 14+ points, and they have a tough stretch to close out the regular season.