Finding a good head coach may be nearly as hard as finding a franchise QB. Let's power rank the top head coaches in the NFL for 2025. There really are a lot of competent head coaches in the NFL, but there aren't many elite ones.
And in today's league, head coaches come in different flavors - you have the young, vibrant, hot-shot head coaches like Sean McVay and Kevin O'Connell, but you also may have the older, battle-tested coaches like Andy Reid and Sean Payton.
Being able to find the right head coach for a given NFL team is a huge challenge, as there are around five or more coaching openings per year. We took the liberty of ranking the 10 best head coaches in the NFL for the 2025 season. Does your team appear on this list?
Let's get into it.
NFL Power Rankings: Which head coaches are the best of the best?
10. Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco 49ers
The interesting thing about Kyle Shanahan's tenure is that every 'down' year he's had with the San Francisco 49ers has been plagued by a ton of injuries. He's got an 8-4 playoff record and has never won fewer than two games when his teams get into the playoffs. From 2021-2023, the 49ers won double-digit games in each season, so let's not act like he can't coach.
San Francisco went 6-11 in 2024. Shanahan comes in at no. 10 in our head coach power rankings.
9. Jim Harbaugh, Los Angeles Chargers
In his first year back in the NFL after a decade away, Jim Harbaugh led the Los Angeles Chargers to a strong 11-6 record and a playoff appearance. LA had won five games the year prior, so Harbaugh helped them more than double their win total. It was an astounding accomplishment, but the Chargers did get manhandled in the postseason.
We'll see if they can unlock more of a ceiling in 2025 - Harbaugh is a very good head coach in whatever team he's on and always gets immediate results. Can they make a run with Justin Herbert under center?
The only Harbaugh on this list, Jim comes in at ninth in our head coach power rankings ahead of the 2025 NFL Season.
8. Matt LaFleur, Green Bay Packers
In his six years as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, Matt LaFleur has never won multiple games in the postseason, but he has finished with double-digit wins in four of his six seasons. Clearly a very good head coach, there seems to be a limitation to him right now, but this Packers team heading into 2025 could be the best one he's had and might be the year where this franchise finally breaks out.
7. Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles
Nick Sirianni isn't even the best coach on his own staff and has benefitted from absolutely loaded rosters. He's still great, but he's not among the most elite head coaches in the NFL and is closer to no. 10 than no. 1 in our head coach power rankings.
Sirianni and the Philadelphia Eagles won Super Bowl LIX in 2024 against the Kansas City Chiefs - can they become one of the few NFL franchises to have won two Super Bowls in a row?
6. Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions
Dan Campbell has truly helped the Detroit Lions dig out of the abyss they were in for years. The Lions dealt with some insane injuries in 2024, so their season was cut short, but they were the best team in the NFL for much of the season, and Campbell's rugged personality is just what this team needed.
Some have criticized him for certain bold in-game decisions, as he has gotten carried away there at times, but no one can dispute just how good of a coach he's been for this team.
5. Sean Payton, Denver Broncos
Sean Payton has gradually improved this Broncos team, and they do feel on the cusp of something special. Going from eight to 10 wins from 2023 to 2024, Payton hit the nail on the head with Bo Nix and is up to his old shehanigans in his second head coaching stop in the NFL. His teams are always tough, disciplined, and well-coached overall.
The Denver Broncos really needed someone like Sean Payton to stabilize the franchise. He's fifth in our head coach power rankings ahead of the 2025 NFL Season.
4. Dan Quinn, Washington Commanders
Dan Quinn is on his second head coaching stop in the NFL and helped lead the Washington Commanders to 14 total wins in the 2024 NFL Season with a rookie QB sensation in Jayden Daniels. Quinn has been to a Super Bowl and now multiple conference championship games as a head coach, getting to the Super Bowl back in 2016 with the Atlanta Falcons.
Quinn and the Commanders are well-positioned to make a Super Bowl run in 2024. He comes in at no. 4 in our head coach power rankings.
3. Kevin O'Connell, Minnesota Vikings
What stands out the most with Kevin O'Connell as a head coach is his QB expertise. In 2024, the Minnesota Vikings won 14 games, as former starting QB Sam Darnold had one of the most efficient seasons of any passer in the NFL. The interesting thing here is that the Vikes let Darnold walk in free agency, and that should tell us a lot about their chances to develop young JJ McCarthy.
The Vikings are in great hands with O'Connell. The roster itself is also in great shape, so it's been a collaborative process for this franchise over the last couple of seasons.
2. Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams
Sean McVay is an outstanding head coach and helped the Los Angeles Rams to a 10-7 record and an NFC West division title in the 2024 NFL Season. The Rams did lose in the Divisional Round to the Philadelphia Eagles, but they finished the regular season at a strong 9-3 pace after an injury-riddled 1-4 start.
McVay did win the Super Bowl back in 2021 and is still just 39 years old. It's flat-out insane how young but how much success he's had in the NFL. He comes in at no. 2 in our head coach power rankings ahead of the 2025 NFL Season.
1. Andy Reid, Kansas City Chiefs
This really isn't up for debate - not only is Andy Reid the best head coach in the NFL, but he's one of the three-best head coaches in the history of the NFL, and his resume honestly might be tops ever. Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs have won three Super Bowls since the 2019 NFL Season and have also made it to the big game three times in a row.
Given that Reid is well into his 60s, he may not be coaching more than a few more seasons, but he's the best until he hangs it up.