7. Ben Johnson, Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears hit it out of the park with the Ben Johnson hire, and I feel like he should be ranked higher, but it's kind of hard for me to rank him higher than this, as this is just year one for Johnson, so while he is turning into one of the best coaches in the NFL, he is not nearly as proven as some of these other coaches.
The Chicago Bears went 11-6 in the regular season and won the NFC North in a shocking development. The offense took a massive step forward, and Caleb Williams did play a lot better. The thing with year one head coaches is that you can tell pretty early on if the coach has 'it' or not, and Johnson absolutely does have it.
This bodes very well for the future of the Bears - Chicago will need to bring in some defensive line and secondary help in the offseason, but the offense is pretty much set. The Bears are hosting the Los Angele Rams in the Divisional Round and could end up with two more home playoff games depending on how things shake out.
Johnson and the Bears won't win the Super Bowl this year, but they are trending in that direction.
6. DeMeco Ryans, Houston Texans
DeMeco Ryans has won double-digit regular season games in all three of his seasons as the Houston Texans head coach, and he's advanced into the Divisional Round in all three seasons as well. Ryans is emerging as one of the best head coaches in the NFL, as the Texans blew out the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card Round.
Ryans had a very successful NFL career, and his previous playing days definitely help mold him into the coach he is now. It's hard to imagine that Ryans doesn't continue to win a ton of games with the Texans as the years roll on.
Ryans is no. 6 in our rankings.