NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the league is committed to “following the litigation all the way” in a nearly decade-long defense of its premium Sunday Ticket product.

A Los Angeles jury ordered the NFL last month to pay $4.7 billion in damages to the residential class and another $96 million to the commercial class of a class action lawsuit that accused the league of violating antitrust laws in distributing out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on the subscription service.

The league could be liable for a total of $14.39 billion because damages are tripled under federal antitrust laws.

“We obviously disagree with the jury verdict and we are committed, obviously, to following the legal process,” Goodell said Thursday during an interview with CNBC. “It’s a long process and we’re aware of that. But we feel very strongly about our position, our policies, particularly on media.

“We make our sport available to the broadest possible audience. Sunday Ticket is just a complementary product. We’re committed to following the litigation all the way and making sure that we get this right.”

The next step is a post-trial motion hearing on July 31, when the NFL will ask Judge Philip Gutierrez to set aside the verdict. If the verdict isn’t set aside, the NFL will appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court. A petition to the Supreme Court could follow.

Meanwhile, Goodell expressed optimism that NFL owners will agree to change league policy to allow private equity ownership of its teams by the end of 2024. If that happens, the league will likely cap investments at 10% per team. A committee has been working on the details since September.

“We’ve had a tremendous amount of interest and we believe that this could make sense for us in a limited fashion, probably no more than 10% of a team,” Goodell said. “But that could be something that we think could complement our ownership and support our ownership policies. We think we’re moving in a very positive direction and hopefully could have something by the end of the year.”

Sports leagues have been investigating private equity options in recent years as franchise values grow and the pool for individual team ownership shrinks.

This on the cost of that appeal, from Florio:

The NFL intends to vigorously contest the Sunday Ticket verdict in court. At some point, the NFL will be required to post an appeal bond.

The league hopes to delay the process or avoid it altogether.

Via Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal, the NFL submitted court papers this week admitting that the requirement of posting a $14.1 billion appeal bond will entail “potential difficulty,” along with “actual prejudice” that “cannot be overstated.”

The league argued that the premium for the appeal bond itself “would be significantly prejudicial.”

The NFL could ultimately prevail in the case. That won’t result in a refund for the cost of the appeal bond.

The league’s plea came in response to efforts by the plaintiffs to have the $4.7 billion verdict entered as a formal judgment, while would automatically be tripled under federal antitrust law.

Even without interest and attorneys’ fees, each team will have to come up with more than $440 million in cash. Some teams, as we’ve explained, will have a hard time doing that.

The league has asked the presiding judge to overturn the verdict or to reduce it to $1. The court will consider the NFL’s motion for judgment as a matter of law on July 31.

– – –

The new head of the NFLPA does not seem unilaterally opposed to an 18-game season.  Adam LaRose of ProFootballRumors.com:

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has publicly spoken on the subject of expanding the NFL’s regular season in recent months, bringing discussion of an 18-game schedule to the forefront. NFLPA director Lloyd Howell has been on the job for one year now, and he is open to discussing the matter well before the current CBA expires.

As things stand, an 18-game schedule could be implemented no earlier than the 2031 season. Significant support exists amongst the league’s owners to arrange for one preseason contest to be replaced by a regular season one well before that point, however. Knowing concessions will need to be made to the player’s union for such a move to be possible, Howell is open to negotiations taking place now to avoid any work stoppages.

“I’m glad Roger said 18. I’m glad that he’s leaning into international [games],” Howell said, via The Athletic’s Mike Jones (subscription required). “I think it gives our guys the opportunity to kind of get their thoughts together, get our position together, to say, ‘This is what and how we’re thinking about it.’

“It makes no economic sense for anyone to have a strike or a lockout. The world’s most popular sports league is going well. How do we keep that going? A lockout is an irrational thing. What’s more rational is, ‘Hey, if I could grow this two times, if I could grow this three times, then we should figure out what the agreements would need to be.’”

A number of issues will need to be addressed for traction to be gained on negotiations between owners and the NFLPA regarding an 18-game arrangement. Howell noted the handling of bye weeks – to little surprise, given the widespread expectation expansion could be accompanied by a second bye week – is one element where concessions could be required. Others include playing surfaces, travel related to international games and general player compensation.

In 2021, the NFL’s preseason schedule was reduced from four games to three in exchange for the regular season adding a 17th contest. That setup will remain in place for at least a fourth year, but if Howell and the player’s union are open to discussing further changes well in advance of the CBA’s expiration, an 18-game arrangement could be hammered out before the end of the decade.

CINCINNATI

QB JOE BURROW on where his new muscles came from.  Mark Lelinwalla of Men’s Health:

AFTER HIS 2023 NFL campaign was cut short due to a right wrist injury, Joe Burrow had a singular mission this offseason: Add muscle to his 6’4” frame to withstand the rigors of a 17-game football season (and beyond).

“I put on 10 or 15 pounds since last season, which I’m hoping helps my body make it through the year. That’s the goal,” the Cincinnati Bengals’ star quarterback says. “It’s all about making sure my body is in tip-top shape, ready to go for Sundays.”

To bulk up and successfully bounce back from injury, the 27-year-old has relied on a balanced diet, hydration plan (he’s a BODYARMOR athlete, so he’s got some help in that department), and a workout program comprised of exercises that directly translate to the gridiron.

Burrow spoke with Men’s Health about his workout regimen, must-do exercises as a QB, his optimal diet (and the cheat meal that challenges it most).

MEN’S HEALTH: What is your main fitness goal heading into the upcoming 2024 NFL season?

JOE BURROW: This year is mainly just staying healthy, so I’m focusing more on listening to my body and taking breaks when I need them and making sure my hydration is on point day-to-day. My body is feeling good right now, we’re ready to go for the season.

MH: Can you walk us through your pre-game routine and how you focus on your hydration?

JB: My hydration doesn’t necessarily start pre-game, but [in] the days leading up to that. I’m going to be much more dialed on my water intake this season. I’ve been happy with where I’m at right now as far as that. BODYARMOR’s bottles are big and I’m drinking five to six of those a day so I’m going to the bathroom a lot, making sure that I’m staying hydrated, making sure I’m watching the color of [my] pee so it’s clear.

But as far as my pre-game routine, I’m in the stadium and going through my stretches inside and then I go out and throw. Then, we come back in and go through our normal warmup.

MH: As a quarterback what are some staple exercises that directly translate to the field, especially with your throwing motion?

JB: As far as throwing, [those] would be anti-rotation of the core to Pallof press, Pallof walkouts, core stabilization with bands, Keiser twists, Russian twists—anything core-related. Then glutes. So: Banded walkouts, hamstring walkouts. That whole midsection torso area is our main focus.

MH: Do you perform those to targeted sets and reps?

JB: It changes each week. Sometimes it’s high volume, low weight, sometimes it’s high weight, low volume. Before practice, I’m making sure to get my core activated just with very light weight, low reps. Making sure that’s it ready to go and contributed to the throwing motion that I need.

MH: Do you do any exercises that help to train for pressure situations in the pocket—like when you have to scramble out and make plays in a hurry?

JB: We do right-foot elevated split squats as well as isos [isometric holds] in that same position. On the field work, we do a ton of accelerations from a loaded position, kneeling position—several different positions—and exploding out, because you never know if you’re getting dragged down or tackled if you’re going to have to explode out from a lot of different body positions. I put my body in so many different positions, and I’m making sure my core and all my muscles are stable and strong in those positions.

MH: How do you stay loose on off days?

JB: I’m making sure I’m swimming some laps in the pool, getting some light cardio in that’s not super impactful on the joints. I’m doing a little sauna, cold tub every off-day. I have my hyperbaric chamber that I’m sitting in as well.

I think the swimming is great for my shoulder joints. So I’ll hit some backstroke to hit that contrast to get those muscles working the other direction, to make sure I’m not too front-loaded in my shoulder.

The sauna and cold tub gets my blood flow going, and hopefully gets blood to the joints and muscles that need it.

MH: What is your pre-workout diet? How did you adjust that toward gaining that muscle?

JB: Right now I’m eating breakfast before the workout. Then, I get back from my workout, I’m eating at 1:30 with my post-workout shake and then 4:30 I’m eating my first dinner. Then, 8:30 or 9:00 I’m eating my second dinner. So I’m making sure I’m getting about 4,500 calories in for the day.

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During the season, it will have to be a little more because we’re on the field for so long and I still have to get my lifts in.

MH: Give us a sample of what the pre-workout breakfast and two dinners look like.

JB: I eat the same breakfast every day. It’s hash browns, kiwi, toast, eggs, orange juice and turkey bacon. My chef will vary [dinners] day-by-day. Post-workout [meal] is more carbs than usual. Dinner number one is more carbs.

MH: What’s the cheat meal that’s a challenge to your diet right now?

JB: Come October, pumpkin pie is my guilty pleasure. I’m a sucker for a good pumpkin pie.

MH: Is there a substitute that you can swap in that gives you that fix without ruining your nutrition plan?

JB: I hope so. I’m still looking for that. Hopefully, we can find something that gives me that texture with the pumpkin flavor come October.

MH: What are your expectations for the season?

JB: I’m really excited about our squad this year. I think we’re as deep as we ever been. My expectations are always to go out and win every game that we can. You’re not going to go out and be 17-0, but you’re going to go out and compete in every game and you’re going to get better throughout the season.

My goal week-to-week and day-to-day is to always just improve. If we continue improving, we’re going to be where we want to be by the end of the year.

HOUSTON

OL TYTUS HOWARD’s truck was a victim of Hurricane Beryl.  Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com:

Houston still has not recovered from Hurricane Beryl, which hit the city with 80 mph winds on Monday. More than a million people remain without power four days after the Category 1 storm made landfall.

Texans offensive lineman Tytus Howard was affected by the storm, getting his lifted 4×4 truck stuck in floodwaters.

“Tell me why I done let my truck slide into a ditch of like 4ft of water. Well, half the truck,” Howard wrote on social media. “I’m need somebody with a tractor to come pull it out lol so I can get it towed.”

Howard told teammate Laremy Tunsil it was a “long story” about how the truck got stuck, and he later posted video and photos of Houstonians coming to the rescue of the truck.

“Am I officially a Houstonian now?” Howard asked.

TENNESSEE

Charles McDonald of YahooSports.com on the merger of QB WILL LEVIS with new head coach Brian Callahan:

The Tennessee Titans have ushered in a new era with an offensive-minded head coach to pair with Will Levis, their second-year quarterback who is walking into the season as the entrenched starter. Teams will often tell the truth on how they feel about their quarterback talent based on the moves they make in the offseason, and the Titans have been loud and clear: They believe in Will Levis. Or at least, they’re intrigued enough to see what happens in 2024.

The Titans went just about all out in their approach to get Levis help on offense with free agency signings and draft picks. They’ve set themselves up to fairly gather information on Levis’ future, which is really the most important aspect of their season.

DeAndre Hopkins and Tyjae Spears were already in the fold. They signed Calvin Ridley to a huge deal, added Tony Pollard to their backfield and selected Alabama offensive tackle JC Latham with the seventh pick in the draft. Those are sizable investments, particularly Ridley’s deal which came in at a whopping $23 million per year. It’s hard to say that they would make those investments around Levis and then also say that they don’t believe in him. It’s been discussed ad nauseam that the best tool toward building an effective team is having a good, young quarterback on a rookie deal. Levis is not a good player yet, but these moves suggest that the Titans are least giving him the chance to get there.

Levis’ rookie season was a mixed bag. The physical talent and ability to throw the ball can’t be questioned. However, the down-to-down accuracy and decision-making left a lot of room to be desired. Having players like Ridley and Hopkins to throw to should at least make his life a bit easier as he continues to get used to what playing at the NFL level is like. It’s not the worst bet in the world, and his physical skills give the Titans and new head coach Brian Callahan a nice floor to work with at the very least.

Levis should be given some time to adjust to a new offense. It’s not going to be the same offense that featured Derrick Henry in the backfield in recent years. The scheme should be a bit more spread out, which will be an adjustment — but one that could end up benefiting Levis in the long run. Even though Hopkins and Ridley are older, veteran receivers, the duo will at least give Levis the experience he needs to make the most of this. Their presence will also help buoy a young offensive line that’s still looking to make its imprint on the league, with a brand new rookie left tackle who primarily played on the right side in college.

Will these improvements pan out for the Titans? That remains to be seen, but they’ve done what every team with a promising young quarterback should do: give them the best tools needed to succeed. If this experiment doesn’t work out or fails spectacularly, at least the next quarterback will have talent to work with.

MIAMI

The Dolphins are excited about their running back room.  Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com:

Besides David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs of the Detroit Lions, no running back tandem rushed for more yards last season than the Miami Dolphins’ pairing of Raheem Mostert and rookie De’Von Achane.

Mostert turned in the first 1,000-yard rushing season of his career in 2023, with Achane rushing for 800 yards while averaging a league-leading 7.8 yards per carry. Both players return in 2024 to a running backs room that also has veterans Jeff Wilson Jr. and Salvon Ahmed and rookie Jaylen Wright, for whom the team traded up to draft.

While Mostert projects to lead the group this season, the workload behind him remains fluid.

“You wouldn’t be doing justice to the entire group if you were trying to crown this person or that person,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said, “but the whole group, pretty much led by Raheem, it is of quality and depth as good as I’ve been around — and I’ve been around a lot of good groups.

“I think that I have literally spent zero time trying to forecast that room because I recognize supreme competition when I see it, and the great news is instead of saying what I believe or forecast, I get to just watch and allow the players determine all that for us.”

While McDaniel said he hasn’t spent time trying to forecast the room, he’ll have plenty of time this summer to scheme ways to get them all involved in the offense. Achane, in particular, is a player for whom the third-year coach may need to get creative this season.

Achane led all Dolphins running backs with 37 targets and 27 receptions last season, turning them into 197 yards and three touchdowns. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, the average depth of his 163 routes last season was 2.2 yards from the line of scrimmage; expanding his route tree could create opportunities for him in the passing game in 2024.

Whether through the air or on the ground, getting Achane the ball in space is a priority for the Dolphins. Last season, he led all running backs in average speed at the line of scrimmage at 12.2 mph, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. His 21.93 mph also led all running backs, and only Christian McCaffrey recorded more rushing yards over expectation than Achane’s 279.

“I think it’s an important offseason for him because you were just really hanging on by your coattails as a rookie in this league in general,” McDaniel said. “Year 2, you kind of let everything settle, understand much more of the whys of everything that you do and for him, the more he can understand within the offense, the more ways he can get the ball.

“He had outstanding ball production, some of which I know he feels specifically that there’s more out there from the opportunities he had last year and then being able to find different ways to get people the ball whether that’s different types of pass routes, whether that’s different types of run schemes that you can get comfortable with, all those things. More ways to be at the point of attack to play within this offense, that’s what this offseason really provides for him.”

Miami also figures to get Wright involved, considering it traded a 2025 third-round pick to select him in the fourth round this year. The Tennessee product ran a 4.38 40-yard dash prior to the draft, and his 7.4 yards per carry ranked second in the FBS last season.

Wright visited the Dolphins during the pre-draft process and spent time studying their offense. He said he feels tailor-made for McDaniel’s scheme.

“Just the way that they like to create space for the running backs, space for everybody,” Wright said. “They got the receivers to spread everybody out to make the defenses drop back in coverages and stuff like that. That just makes it better for the running backs. Just the system and everything we do, I feel like it’s perfect for me.”

Wilson and Ahmed appear to be the odd men out in the room, but both players can solidify roster spots with a strong training camp — something Ahmed has done in each of the past two seasons under McDaniel.

After finishing 31st and 25th in rushing attempts and yards, respectively, in 2022, the Dolphins recommitted to the run game in 2023 and recorded the sixth-most rushing yards in the league last season. With even more talent added to their running backs room in 2024, expect a similar commitment to the run game this season.

NEW YORK JETS

Will WR DAVANTE ADAMS find his way to the Jets?  Something to keep an eye on per Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com:

When Aaron Rodgers was traded to the Jets ahead of the 2023 season, there was chatter about his new team making a run at trading for the quarterback’s former teammate Davante Adams.

The wide receiver remains a member of the Raiders, but that chatter has fired up at other points over the last couple of years. It’s happened again this week.

During an appearance on Up & Adams, Adams was asked if Rodgers has been in his ear about joining up again.

“He’s in the ear, that’s for sure, he’s in the ear,” Adams said. “But it’s not as easy. Obviously, we can get together and talk about the old times and the potential of doing this and that, but like I said, I’m a Raider, and he knows that.”

It seems like a good bet that Rodgers heard Adams’s comment. Rodgers was asked for his thoughts about Raiders offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, who was an assistant in Green Bay when Rodgers and Adams were there, at a golf tournament and his answer pivoted to mentioning Adams.

“I love Luke Getsy, he’s a fantastic coach,” Rodgers said, via Vegas Sports Today. “And I love Davante. I can’t wait to play with him again.”

Stranger things than former teammates joining back up later in their careers have happened over the course of NFL history, but there’s no sign that a reunion is in the cards right now.

THIS AND THAT

MONTE KIFFIN

Dan Pompei of The Athletic remembers the former NFL coach who passed away on Thursday at age 84.

Monte Kiffin died Thursday at 84, but his impact on the game of football will not die soon.

Ole Miss, where Kiffin worked as an analyst for his son Lane, said Monte died in Oxford, Miss., surrounded by family and friends. Lane paid tribute to his father on X and called him “My hero.”

Kiffin may have been the Bill Belichick of assistant coaches — irrefutably one of history’s greatest. He was an NFL assistant for 29 years, but he is celebrated mostly for the 13 years he presided over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense and dominated with a scheme now called the Tampa 2.

The Tampa 2 was a modification of the Cover 2, which had its origins in Pittsburgh with the Steelers’ Steel Curtain. Tony Dungy learned the defense as a player and coach with the Steelers in the late 1970s and early 80s. Dungy worked with Kiffin on the Minnesota Vikings staff in the early 90s, and when Dungy was hired as the Bucs’ head coach in 1996, he hired Kiffin as his defensive coordinator.

At the time, Kiffin was a longtime NFL linebackers coach after being dismissed as the head coach at North Carolina State after going 16-17 in three seasons.

With the Bucs, Kiffin and Dungy tweaked their scheme, often dropping the middle linebacker, emphasizing takeaways and adopting a bend but don’t break philosophy.

With future hall of famers Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, John Lynch and Ronde Barber, Kiffin smothered offenses over an extended period.

In 1999, they held opponents to a franchise-record 228 first downs. The following season, they set another team record with 55 sacks. In 2002, Kiffin’s Buccaneers led the league in points allowed, yards allowed and interceptions, becoming the first team to do so since the 1985 Chicago Bears.

The Bucs won the Super Bowl that season, and Kiffin was voted Assistant Coach of the Year. He became the highest-paid assistant coach in the NFL and later was the highest-paid assistant in college football.

“Monte Kiffin was a beloved and iconic member of the Buccaneers family, and our entire organization mourns his loss today,” said the Glazer Family, owners of the Buccaneers, in a statement. “As a coach, Monte was a true innovator who got the best out of his players and helped create one of the signature defenses of the early 2000s. His passionate and energetic leadership style resonated with all his players. … Off the field, Monte was kind, genuine, gracious and always had a positive attitude.”

The Buccaneers inducted Kiffin into their Ring of Honor in 2021, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame gave him the Award for Excellence in the category of assistant coaches in March.

Kiffin served as an assistant coach for his son Lane on three teams — USC, Florida Atlantic and Ole Miss. Lane remains the head coach at Ole Miss, and another son, Chris Kiffin, is the linebackers coach of the Houston Texans.

Kiffin’s Tampa 2 defense remains a staple of football teams at every level.

BROADCAST NEWS

This about the FOX 2024 broadcast teams as the Tom Brady Era begins.  Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com:

Tom Brady’s arrival to Fox is displacing Greg Olsen from the network’s top NFL broadcast team. That much already was known.

Brady will team with Kevin Burkhardt and Olsen with Joe Davis.

Andrew Marchand of TheAthletic.com has revealed the rest of the changes to Fox’s NFL lineup for 2024.

Marchand reports that Adam Amin and Mark Sanchez are the No. 3 team, Kenny Albert and Jon Vilma No. 4, Kevin Kugler and Daryl Johnston No. 5 and Chris Myers and Mark Schlereth No. 6.

Albert and Vilma return from 2023, but the other broadcast teams are shakeups.

Sanchez worked with Kugler last season, Johnston with Davis and Schlereth with Amin.

Robert Smith, who previously worked with Myers, is not listed.

Marchand did not list sideline reporters for the broadcast teams.

– – –

This from Mike Florio on a complication/opportunity in the NFL’s relationship with CBS.

Paramount is merging with Skydance. This means that CBS will change hands.

Which apparently means that the NFL could open its current deal with CBS.

Which the Commissioner didn’t rule out on Thursday.

Appearing on CNBC, Goodell was asked about the possibility that a CBS ownership change will allow the NFL to renegotiate the CBS contract.

“Do you plan to?” Goodell was asked. “What do you expect to happen?”

“Well, listen, CBS has been a great partner for us back to 1956, I think,” Goodell said. “They’ve been extraordinary, right up to the Super Bowl this past year where we had record ratings at the Super Bowl, over 200 million people watching. So they’ve been a great partner.

“We’ll obviously be paying close attention to the process. We know Skydance. We’re partners with Skydance. They’ve done a terrific job with our relationship. So we’ll look at the structure of the deal. We’ll see how it impacts us. We’ll see how it impacts our business and we’ll make the best decision for the NFL at that point.”

The best decision for the NFL usually takes the form of one word: More. Opening up the contract will result, inevitably, in more for the NFL.

Currently, the league can end all broadcast deals four years early, putting every package back on the market after the 2029 season. If the NFL could put half of the Sunday afternoon package out to bid, the league definitely won’t get less than what CBS is paying.

If someone else would pay more, CBS could be out. Just like it was from 1994 through 1997, after Fox poached the NFC package.

RANKING THE COACHES

Cody Benjamin offers this to talk about, ranking the head coaches from 32 (Dennis Allen) to 1 (Andy Reid).

Tough to rank the first year guys, but he puts Dave Canales of the Panthers the highest at #24.

Sean Payton down at #18?  Below Mike McCarthy and others?

Football is a team sport. Which means, more often than not, you won’t be a serious Super Bowl contender if you don’t have a formidable combination of elite talent and/or consistent, innovative coaching. Just as a quarterback is often only as effective as his supporting cast, a coach’s designs alone can’t always elevate a team; personnel is equally key. Even so, it’s not hard to see that some NFL contenders enjoy proven leaders on the sidelines, while others are still in search of such stability.

If you’re interested solely on which coaches have the best big-game resume, we’ve got another whole rundown right here. Otherwise, here’s how we’d sort each of the league’s 32 head coaches going into the 2024 season:

Class C: Unproven or underwhelming

As long as these coaches are employed, they have a chance to redeem themselves. As we stand, however, they’ve either yet to prove their staying power or struggled to build a promising program.

32. Dennis Allen (Saints)

Season: 3rd with Saints, 6th as head coach

Career record: 24-46 | Playoffs: N/A

Allen’s proven time and again he can deliver a tough defense. In more than four years as an NFL head coach, however, he’s yet to deliver a single playoff appearance, skewing conservative in crunch time. New Orleans has delayed a total rebuild to give him an experienced roster, and yet he’s struggled to shake the notion he’s simply holding the top job because of close ties to predecessor Sean Payton.

31. Jerod Mayo (Patriots)

Season: 1st with Patriots, 1st as head coach

Career record: N/A | Playoffs: N/A

At 38, Mayo at least projects a more transparent and inviting personality than longtime predecessor Bill Belichick. He also had a direct hand in New England’s feisty defenses of recent years. Still, it’s hard to know if he’ll be enough of a needed pivot from the previous regime’s old-school philosophies when, in many ways, he’s simply an extension of that regime.

30. Brian Callahan (Titans)

Season: 1st with Titans, 1st as head coach

Career record: N/A | Playoffs: N/A

Did Callahan make the quarterbacks, or did the quarterbacks make Callahan? In truth it’s not that black or white, but much of the former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator’s appeal as a head man stems from his linkups with greats like Peyton Manning, Matthew Stafford and more recently Joe Burrow. His offensive focus should at least be a welcome changeup in Tennessee.

29. Robert Saleh (Jets)

Season: 4th with Jets, 4th as head coach

Career record: 18-33 | Playoffs: N/A

Is Saleh well-liked in the building? Is he still a master of defensive orchestration? The answer is probably yes on both accounts. He and general manager Joe Douglas, however, have overseen more of a reality show than a reliable football operation in New York, most infamously hitching multiple playoff-caliber teams to Zach Wilson. Aaron Rodgers was probably right that everyone’s job depends on his return to glory.

28. Antonio Pierce (Raiders)

Season: 1st with Raiders, 1st as head coach*

Career record: 5-4 | Playoffs: N/A

*Note: Pierce served as interim head coach for the Raiders to close 2023

Las Vegas’ interim coach to close 2023, Pierce is trying to buck a trend of promoted fill-ins failing to sustain the momentum of their abrupt arrivals. With just six combined years of college and NFL coaching experience, he’s a true unknown. Team leaders bought into his fiery personality on the fly, however, so if he can eventually get quarterback figured out, maybe the underdog story will escalate.

27. Jonathan Gannon (Cardinals)

Season: 2nd with Cardinals, 2nd as head coach

Career record: 4-13 | Playoffs: N/A

His 2023 debut was predictably a mixed bag; a last-minute quarterback shuffle preceded a 1-8 start, but his group was unusually competitive, even with Kyler Murray fresh off ACL rehab, down the stretch. With a lineup still under construction, it’s fair to wonder how far his Cardinals can leap in Year 2. His hard-nosed, sometimes-quirky leadership appears to be trending up, though.

26. Matt Eberflus (Bears)

Season: 3rd with Bears, 3rd as head coach

Career record: 10-24 | Playoffs: N/A

Perhaps no coach will benefit more from a personnel overhaul in 2024, with Caleb Williams and a trove of proven weapons coming aboard this offseason. Chicago is also betting on Eberflus’ recent returns as a defensive mind. After an ugly one-and-a-half years that included in-season staff turnover and mercurial offense, his “D” finally came to life late in 2023, threatening a wild-card push.

25. Mike Macdonald (Seahawks)

Season: 1st with Seahawks, 1st as head coach

Career record: N/A | Playoffs: N/A

The youngest head coach in the NFL at 36, Macdonald doesn’t come off as the new kid on the block, in part because of his training under football greats in John and Jim Harbaugh. How he outfits the offense will be a question, but he registers as a perfect fit for the other side of the ball, fresh off back-to-back seasons leading a top-five scoring defense with the Baltimore Ravens.

24. Dave Canales (Panthers)

Season: 1st with Panthers, 1st as head coach

Career record: N/A | Playoffs: N/A

Carolina has grown a reputation as dangerously impatient when it comes to head coaches under owner David Tepper, but Canales’ arrival could represent a genuine step in the other direction — and a perfect partner for 2023 No. 1 pick Bryce Young. Just 43, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator oversaw career revivals from Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield in successive seasons.

23. Raheem Morris (Falcons)

Season: 1st with Falcons, 4th as head coach

Career record: 21-38 | Playoffs: N/A

Morris, who also went 4-7 as the Falcons’ interim coach in 2020, was only 32 when the Buccaneers hired him back in 2009. More than a decade later, he’s re-earned a top job with widely revered character and smart defense, best exemplified with the Super Bowl-winning Los Angeles Rams. Paired with ex-Rams colleague Zac Robinson in Atlanta, he could make his own quick march to the postseason.

Class B: Accomplished, with questions

These coaches aren’t necessarily slam-dunk bets to go the distance, either due to lack of experience, uneven stretches or recent woes, but they’ve shown enough to warrant more time and belief.

22. Todd Bowles (Buccaneers)

Season: 3rd with Buccaneers, 7th as head coach

Career record: 43-58 | Playoffs: 1-2

Bowles, who also went 2-1 as the Miami Dolphins’ interim in 2011, isn’t entirely dissimilar from his NFC South counterpart Dennis Allen in that his physical defense tends to mask more conservative game-management calls for a borderline wild-card contender. Still, in the last four years, he’s won a Super Bowl ring and led a playoff win of his own, giving him a touch more authority.

21. Brian Daboll (Giants)

Season: 3rd with Giants, 3rd as head coach

Career record: 15-18-1 | Playoffs: 1-1

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A tough nut to crack after two wildly different seasons to open his Big Blue tenure, Daboll was a rightful Coach of the Year in 2022, rejuvenating Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley en route to a surprise playoff run, only to slip as both a situational play-caller and sideline maestro in 2023. Once again the onus will be on him maximizing Jones and a still-rebuilding offense in the tough NFC East.

20. Dan Quinn (Commanders)

Season: 1st with Commanders, 7th as head coach

Career record: 43-42 | Playoffs: 3-2 (0-1 in Super Bowls)

Washington saw firsthand how much Quinn’s Dallas Cowboys defense excelled as a ball-hawking unit, and the club’s simultaneous infusion of veteran players should aid his debut. The question is, does Quinn really register as a step forward after Ron Rivera? His teams are feisty, but he hasn’t led a winning season as a head coach since 2017, before his old Falcons fizzled to 18-23 from 2018-2020.

19. Shane Steichen (Colts)

Season: 2nd with Colts, 2nd as head coach

Career record: 9-8 | Playoffs: N/A

The former Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator was dealt a potentially fatal hand in 2023, with dynamic rookie Anthony Richardson lasting just four games due to injury. Steichen tailored the offense to backup Gardner Minshew and nearly made the playoffs anyway. Now comes the hard part: Restarting the Richardson project and sustaining the peaks of his debut-season play-calling.

18. Sean Payton (Broncos)

Season: 2nd with Broncos, 17th as head coach

Career record: 160-98 | Playoffs: 9-8 (1-0 in Super Bowls)

There might not be a tougher coach to place, perhaps because Payton’s become so polarizing. Once the vaunted leader of a hyper-efficient New Orleans Saints contender, he’s managed a single playoff victory in his last four years as a head coach, and now he’s resetting the table in Denver, likely with a rookie quarterback in Bo Nix.

17. Mike McCarthy (Cowboys)

Season: 5th with Cowboys, 18th as head coach

Career record: 167-102-2 | Playoffs: 11-11 (1-0 in Super Bowls)

From a resume standpoint, McCarthy deserves higher billing; his 167 career wins rank 18th all time, and his Super Bowl peak proves he can win on the ultimate stage. The issue is that, even provided an all-star setup in Dallas, his offensive touch has recently and consistently struggled to translate when it matters most: Despite three straight 12-win seasons, his Cowboys are 1-3 in playoff competition.

16. Doug Pederson (Jaguars)

Season: 3rd with Jaguars, 8th as head coach

Career record: 60-53-1 | Playoffs: 5-3 (1-0 in Super Bowls)

Nothing, it seems, is ever boring when it comes to Pederson’s teams: He experienced ultimate highs (a Super Bowl triumph) and lows (an early dismissal) in Philadelphia before rejuvenating Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville, only to then oversee a turnover-riddled step back in 2023. The player-friendly pizzazz remains, but he’s got to prove again he’s got an innovative handle on the offense.

15. Nick Sirianni (Eagles)

Season: 4th with Eagles, 4th as head coach

Career record: 34-17 | Playoffs: 2-3 (0-1 in Super Bowls)

How does a guy with the second-best win percentage among active coaches end up 15th just two years after leading the Eagles to a Super Bowl shootout with the Kansas City Chiefs? Look no further than the 2023 collapse, in which his brash personality only exacerbated a 1-7 finish that included and preceded major staff upheaval. With new top assistants, the pressure’s on to capitalize on an all-star roster.

14. Zac Taylor (Bengals)

Season: 6th with Bengals, 6th as head coach

Career record: 37-44-1 | Playoffs: 5-2 (0-1 in Super Bowls)

A fair question regarding Taylor had centered on the coach’s ability to elevate Cincinnati without a healthy Joe Burrow, but he finally provided a bit of an answer in 2023, keeping the Bengals in the playoff hunt while Burrow nursed yet another ailment. After back-to-back AFC Championship bids starting in 2022, however, he could really stand to benefit from his signal-caller staying upright.

Class A: The best in the game

These coaches are not flawless, and some are under more pressure than others, but you’d be hard-pressed to find any team who wouldn’t rush to hire them if they were available, given their strengths.

13. DeMeco Ryans (Texans)

Season: 2nd with Texans, 2nd as head coach

Career record: 10-7 | Playoffs: 1-1

Ryans had been deemed a future head coach as far back as his days roaming NFL turf as a linebacker, and he delivered on the promise in his first year guiding Houston, ceding the offense to Bobby Slowik and MVP-like rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, while maximizing youngsters on his preferred side of the ball. Meeting even loftier expectations, perhaps with more aggressive in-game calls, is the next challenge.

12. Kevin O’Connell (Vikings)

Season: 3rd with Vikings, 3rd as head coach

Career record: 20-14 | Playoffs: 0-1

Few coaches have proven to be cooler characters in their first two years on the job; after infusing optimistic belief in a surprising 13-4 debut that saw Minnesota escape one tight game after another, O’Connell was equally as trustworthy in 2023, when a rash of quarterback injuries didn’t derail the franchise’s morale. His pass-oriented offense is perfect for their young, talented lineup.

11. Mike McDaniel (Dolphins)

Season: 3rd with Dolphins, 3rd as head coach

Career record: 20-14 | Playoffs: 0-2

Like his quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, McDaniel is suddenly under some pressure to come up big in key spots, which is justified considering the unmatched track speed his offense possesses. Still, it’s important to remember how much — and how quickly — his timing-based attack vaulted Tagovailoa and Co. into MVP discussions. Two postseason tickets in two years suggests he’s here to stay as a head man.

10. Kevin Stefanski (Browns)

Season: 5th with Browns, 5th as head coach

Career record: 37-30 | Playoffs: 1-2

So much of Cleveland’s trajectory is tied to Deshaun Watson, which doesn’t necessarily bode well considering the quarterback’s unpredictable availability. Fortunately, Stefanski has proven adaptable as leader of the offense, taking pressure off Baker Mayfield back in 2020 and then coaxing a playoff bid out of an aging Joe Flacco in 2023. If Watson is mercurial, then Stefanski is the club’s steady hand.

9. Sean McDermott (Bills)

Season: 8th with Bills, 8th as head coach

Career record: 73-41 | Playoffs: 5-6

NFL: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Buffalo Bills

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There are strong shades of early career Andy Reid in McDermott, a literal Reid disciple: Pressure is mounting for him to finally take an elite quarterback and annual contender to the promised land, and yet his track record as calming voice is hard to deny, with six playoff bids in seven years on the job. Whether Josh Allen can elevate a remade offensive supporting cast could go a long way in determining his future.

8. Dan Campbell (Lions)

Season: 4th with Lions, 4th as head coach

Career record: 29-33-1 | Playoffs: 2-1

Campbell, who also went 5-7 as the Dolphins’ interim in 2015, opened his Motown career as more of a mascot than a game-changer, giving a win-deprived Lions club some surface-level zeal. As time has gone on, however, his unflinching aggression has seeped throughout the organization, pairing perpetual boldness with a gradually improved roster. His commitment to the bit may have contributed to the Lions’ heartbreaking 2023 finish, but it also advanced the club to the point of being an actual contender.

7. Jim Harbaugh (Chargers)

Season: 1st with Chargers, 5th as head coach

Career record: 44-19-1 | Playoffs: 5-3 (0-1 in Super Bowls)

On one hand, Harbaugh’s been out of the NFL for a decade, and, in fact, has just four seasons of pro head-coaching experience under his belt. On the other, he’s been an undisputed victor at every spot, with 16 winning seasons in 20 years as a head man, including three NFC title games and a Super Bowl appearance during his San Francisco 49ers days. L.A. is bound to be more disciplined under his watch.

6. Mike Tomlin (Steelers)

Season: 18th with Steelers, 18th as head coach

Career record: 173-100-2 | Playoffs: 8-10 (1-1 in Super Bowls)

There’s a little bit of a late-stage Bill Belichick conundrum happening here: Tomlin is an all-timer, forever averse to losing seasons and always getting late-year fight from even battered rosters. How much, however, are his locker-room gravitas and career resume masking the fact he hasn’t led a playoff win in literally eight years? At the very least, you always know his Steelers will be a tough out.

5. Matt LaFleur (Packers)

Season: 6th with Packers, 6th as head coach

Career record: 56-27 | Playoffs: 3-4

Critics dinged his sterling record early on simply because he had MVP-level Aaron Rodgers at his disposal, but then LaFleur went and nearly guided Jordan Love and a group of young receivers to the NFC title game in 2023. He could stand to shore up the defensive staffing, sure, and maybe get even more aggressive on the big stage. There’s little to critique about the ways he deploys versatile skill weapons, however, and it might not be long before he’s actually back in the Super Bowl conversation.

4. John Harbaugh (Ravens)

Season: 17th with Ravens, 17th as head coach

Career record: 160-99 | Playoffs: 12-10 (1-0 in Super Bowls)

His 2012 Super Bowl title seems like a lifetime ago, if only because the Lamar Jackson-era Ravens have reached just one AFC Championship. Is there some pressure to get over the hump with the current setup? Sure. Yet has any coach not named Andy Reid proven so adaptable in terms of both offensive and defensive scheming and philosophy? From transitioning to Jackson from the Joe Flacco days to shepherding multiple top-level coordinators, he’s one of the NFL’s most consistent CEOs.

3. Kyle Shanahan (49ers)

Season: 8th with 49ers, 8th as head coach

Career record: 64-51 | Playoffs: 8-4 (0-2 in Super Bowls)

Shanahan has built a steady warhorse in San Francisco, positioning himself for plenty more Super Bowl candidacies. He’s sometimes refused to trust his precious offense in big spots, but the seamlessness with which he assembled NFC-winning play calls and personnel around both Jimmy Garoppolo and now Brock Purdy suggests he’s the most quarterback-friendly leader in the game this side of Andy Reid. Four times in the last five years, his balanced attacks have either reached the conference final or Super Bowl. One of these days, especially with Purdy just settling in as an MVP type, he may well finally hoist the trophy.

2. Sean McVay (Rams)

Season: 8th with Rams, 8th as head coach

Career record: 70-45 | Playoffs: 7-4 (1-1 in Super Bowls)

It’s a near-tossup between McVay and his NFC West counterpart in the top three. Once looking like a safe bet to retire young following a stark post-Super Bowl regression, the former rediscovered his fast ball overseeing a new crew around Matthew Stafford in 2023. While he’s not nearly as aggressive in-game as his reputation suggests, McVay remains a standard-setter for offensive design, he’s delivered on the big stage, and his hires on the other side of the ball have proven solid as well. Five playoff trips and two Super Bowl bids in seven years? That’s gold.

1. Andy Reid (Chiefs)

Season: 12th with Chiefs, 25th as head coach

Career record: 258-144-1 | Playoffs: 26-16 (3-2 in Super Bowls)

No question here. Once the template for great-but-not-elite coaches overseeing the Eagles’ close-but-no-cigar runs of the 2000s, Reid has completely entrenched himself as a future Hall of Famer in Kansas City, melding the superstar traits of quarterback Patrick Mahomes with constant offensive wrinkles and a warranted trust of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. He and the Chiefs are the contemporary version of Belichick and the Patriots, except with more fireworks, and their unflinching ability to adapt from high-octane attack to disciplined crunch-time strategy sets them well above the rest. Whether his guys need to win in a shootout or by playing ugly, they’ll come through when it counts.