NFL News NFL News, Reports and Updates
This year, plenty of conversation has focused on the race for MVP, which seems to still have no clear favorite. When it comes to coach of the year, the contest is even more wide open.
There are many candidates who, depending on the final 15 days of the season, could take the prize that, very loosely, goes to the coach whose team most dramatically exceeds its generally-accepted expectations entering the season.
Here’s a list of candidates, in no order other than the manner in which the eight divisions of the NFL are wired into my brain.
1. Bills coach Sean McDermott: His candidacy would flow from the idea that the team bottomed out and then he turned it around, sparked by the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. It felt at the time that Dorsey was a scapegoat. It ended up being the best move McDermott could have made.
2. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel: The most authentic coach the NFL has seen since perhaps Jerry Glanville, McDaniel is who he is and he wants his players to be who they. What they are, working under his guidance, is a team that could end up with the top seed in the AFC. Most expected the Dolphins to be good this year; not many expected them to be great.
3. Ravens coach John Harbaugh: With a brand-new offense and not a lot of star power on defense, the Ravens are making a run at the No. 1 seed. If they beat the 49ers on Monday night, Harbaugh might just clinch it.
4. Bengals coach Zac Taylor: His case took a hit last night in Pittsburgh, when backup quarterback Jake Browning’s magical run morphed into a pumpkin, like many backup quarterbacks after four or five games. With the playoffs suddenly a longshot, Taylor is an even longer shot to win coach of the year.
5. Browns coach Kevin Stefanski: He’s the first Browns coach since Marty Schottenheimer in the 1980s to have a pair of winning seasons. This year, Stefanski has gotten it done not with a wire-to-wire starter but with non-stop quarterback injuries and turmoil. He has started FOUR different…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/coach-race-wide-open-143000810.html
Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Publish date : 2023-12-24 14:30:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
