There are many things that go into an all-time great head coach, but nothing is more important than winning. Every head coach on this list has a career winning record and has appeared in at least one Super Bowl. Without further adieu, here is my list of the 25 greatest head coaches to have ever coached in the NFL.
Jason Fletcher is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JasonFletcher25, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google+.
25. Marv Levy
Getty ImagesLevy had an opportunity to be one of the top-three head coaches of all time in the NFL, but he couldn't lead the Buffalo Bills to a Super Bowl title, despite making four straight appearances from 1990-93. He went 143-112 during his 17-year head coaching career, five with the Kansas City Chiefs from 1978-82, and 12 with the Bills from 1986-97. Levy was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001.
24. Bill Cowher
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Cowher coached the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1992-2006 and led the franchise to two Super Bowl appearances, winning Super Bowl XL over the Seattle Seahawks. He had a remarkable 161-99-1 career regular season coaching record, and a 12-9 postseason record.
23. Tony Dungy
Getty ImagesDungy was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996-2001, and the Indianapolis Colts from 2002-08. He led the Colts to a victory in Super bowl XLI over the Chicago Bears. Dungy's 139-69 career regular season record was spectacular, but his 9-10 postseason record dropped him pretty low on this list.
22. Sid Gillman
Getty ImagesGillman led the 1963 San Diego Chargers to the AFL Championship and had a 123-104-7 overall record between the AFL/NFL. Gillman might be best known as the guy who instituted the downfield passing game.
21. George Allen
Getty ImagesAllen was one of the greatest regular season coaches in NFL history, as he compiled a 116-47-5 record, but he only went 2-7 during the postseason. He led the Washington Redskins to one Super Bowl appearance in 1972, losing to the Miami Dolphins, who completed the only undefeated season in NFL history. Allen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002.
20. Weeb Ewbank
Getty ImagesAlthough Ewbank only finished one game above .500 for his regular season coaching career, he led the New York Jets to victory in Super Bowl III and won two NFL championships with the Baltimore Colts in 1958 and 1959. Sometimes, playoff success is more important than regular season success.
19. Mike Ditka
Getty ImagesDitka was the head coach of one of most dominant defenses in NFL history, the 1985 Chicago Bears. He led that team to a victory in the 1986 Super Bowl, and finished his 11-year tenure with the Bears with a 106-62 record and a 6-6 record in the postseason. Unfortunately for Ditka, he got the itch to coach again in 1997, and joined the New Orleans Saints for three seasons, where he went 15-33 and never made the playoffs.
18. George Seifert
Getty ImagesWhile Seifert took over right after Bill Walsh for the 49ers, he still did a tremendous job leading the franchise to Super Bowl victories. He compiled a 114-62 regular season record, and a 10-5 postseason record during his 11-year coaching career. Seifert also coached the Panthers for three seasons from 1999-2001.
17. Mike Shanahan
Getty ImagesShanahan would likely be higher on this list had he never joined the Washington Redskins in 2010. As head coach of the Denver Broncos from 1995-2008, Shanahan led the organization to two Super Bowl titles, and was a major factor in allowing John Elway to ride off into the sunset. Shanahan finished his career with a 169-137 regular season record and 8-6 postseason record.
16. Hank Stram
Getty ImagesStram led the Kansas City Chiefs to three AFL titles, including a victory in Super Bowl IV over the Minnesota Vikings. He posted a career regular season record of 131-97-10, and a postseason record of 5-3. Stram is also a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
15. Bud Grant
Getty ImagesGrant is the greatest head coach in NFL history to have never won a Super Bowl. He led the Minnesota Vikings to four Super Bowl appearances during his tenure from 1967-1983, but he lost all four. Despite that fact, he put together a 158-96-5 regular season record in the NFL and has to be considered one of the greatest of all time.
14. Tom Coughlin
Getty ImagesBecause it seems like Coughlin's job security has been questioned for the last two or three years, people don't realize the amount of success he's had in the NFL. Not only did he lead the Giants to two Super Bowl titles, but he lead the Jacksonville Jaguars to two AFC Championship Games during his eight-year tenure. He has a career regular season record of 165-142, and a postseason record of 12-7. Coughlin also looks well on his way to leading the Giants to a NFC East Division title in 2015.
13. Jimmy Johnson
Getty ImagesJohnson spent five seasons as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys from 1989-1993 and four seasons with the Miami Dolphins from 1996-99. He led the Cowboys to two Super Bowl titles in 1993 and 1994, and finished his coaching career with an 80-64 regular season record, while going 9-4 in the playoffs. Had Johnson and Jerry Jones not had issues co-existing, who knows how many Super Bowls the Cowboys could've won.
12. Bill Parcells
Getty ImagesParcells spent 19 years as a head coach in the NFL with four different teams. He led the New York Giants to two Super Bowl titles during his eight seasons with the team. For his career, Parcells went 172-130-1 during the regular season, and 11-8 during the postseason. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
11. John Madden
Getty ImagesMadden coached the Oakland Raiders from 1969-78 and led the organization to victory in Super Bowl XI. During his career, Madden went a whopping 103-32-7 during the regular season, but only 9-7 during the postseason. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.
10. Joe Gibbs
Getty ImagesGibbs had two different tenures with the Washington Redskins, one from 1981-92, and one from 2004-07. While he probably would like to forget the second, Gibbs was masterful during the first, leading the Redskins to three Super Bowl titles. He went 181-108 during his career with the Redskins, and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
9. Paul Brown
Getty ImagesBrown was the first head coach of the Cleveland Browns, and later had a major role in the founding of the Cincinnati Bengals. As head coach of the Browns, he won four AAFC titles before the Browns moved to the NFL, and then won three NFL titles and led the team to a 166-100-6 regular season record, although Brown was only 4-8 during the playoffs. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967.
8. Earl "Curly" Lambeau
Getty ImagesLambeau was the founder of the Green Bay Packers and led the team to six NFL championships during his tenure as head coach from 1919-1949. He started out as a player-coach, before becoming only the head coaching from 1930 on. After leaving Green Bay, he coached the Chicago Cardinals in 1950 and 1951, and then the Washington Redskins in 1952 and 1953. Lambeau went 229-134-22 during his 33-year career, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
7. Tom Landry
Getty ImagesLandry was the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys from 1960-88 and he led the organization to two Super Bowl victories in Super Bowls VI and XII. For his career, Landry went 250-162-6 during the regular season, and 20-16 during the postseason. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.
6. Chuck Noll
Getty ImagesNoll was the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers when the "Steel Curtain" was around. With Terry Bradshaw as his quarterback, Noll led the Steelers to four Super Bowl titles in a six-year span from 1974-79. He finished with a career coaching record of 209-156-1, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.
5. George Halas
Getty ImagesHalas doesn't get as much recognition as he should when talking about the greatest NFL coaches of all time. The reason for that is that he coached prior to the Super Bowl era. Still, he's the second winningest coach of all time, with 318 victories and he won six NFL championships as a head coach with the Chicago Bears.
4. Bill Walsh
Getty ImagesWalsh spent 10 seasons as the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers from 1979-88. He compiled a 92-59-1 record during the regular season, and a 10-4 record during the postseason as he led 49ers to three Super Bowl titles.
3. Bill Belichick
Getty ImagesWhile his first NFL head coaching gig with the Cleveland Browns didn't go as well as he would've liked, Bill Belichick has certainly made up for it since joining the New England Patriots. Belichick is 218-109 during the regular season during his career, and 22-9 in the postseason. He's also won six Super Bowls, four as head coach of the Patriots, and two as an assistant with the New York Giants. Add in three AP Coach of the Year Awards, and Belichick is easily one of the greatest coaches in NFL history.
2. Don Shula
Getty ImagesShula coached in the NFL for a whopping 36 seasons, three as an offensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions, seven as head coach of the Baltimore Colts and 26 as head coach of the Miami Dolphins. During those 36 seasons, he was only a member of two teams with losing records, and took his teams to six Super Bowls as a head coach, winning Super Bowls VII and VIII. Shula is the NFL's all-time leader in head coaching victories with 328, and was the head coach of the Dolphins' undefeated team in 1972.
1. Vince Lombardi
Getty ImagesNot only did Lombardi lead the Packers to victory in the Super Bowls I and II, but he also went 96-34-6 in the regular season during his career and 9-1 during the postseason. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971 and won two Coach of the Year Awards. An astonishing career, considering Lombardi only coached for 10 seasons in the NFL.
