Ranking the NFL's Head Coaches

Every serious football follower has an opinion about who is the best head coach in the NFL and I am certainly no different than most just because of my chosen profession as a sports columnist and handicapper.

Heck, anyone who knows me or has ever read any of my often, inflammatory, sports columns, knows I have an opinion on just about everything under the sun relating to the world of sports (although I must admit that I've been told on several occasions just where to stick that opinion).

At any rate, I am at it once again - this time, with my 2007 list of the best head coaches in the National Football League following a highly-surprising season full of twists and turns.

So enough with the chit-chat, here we go.

Bill Belichick: New England Patriots
While Belichick may not be the most entertaining person you'll ever meet, the man can flat-put coach the game of football. Yes, Belichick can often be stand-offish and aloof - however, I'd be lying through my teeth if I said he wasn't the best coach in the NFL. With three Super Bowl rings already in his pocket - and the very real possibility of winning a couple more in the next couple of years, makes Belichick the undisputed, best head coach in the NFL.

Tony Dungy: Indianapolis Colts
I don't think there's any question at all that Tony Dungy is without-a-doubt, the second-best head coach in the entire NFL. As a matter of fact, the only question surrounding Dungy these days is whether he has surpassed Belichick as the best head coach on the planet.

Joe Gibbs: Washington Redskins
I know you're probably thinking I'm off my rocker, but I thought long and hard about this selection - especially since Gibbs hasn't won anything of consequence since he decided to return to the NFL a few years ago. Still, three Super Bowl rings - with three different starting quarterbacks - earns Gibbs third place on my list of top coaches for 2007 despite the mediocrity of his Washington Redskins.

Mike Shanahan: Denver Broncos
I decided on Shanahan for the fourth spot because he seems to produce legitimate Super Bowl contending teams almost every year. With two Super Bowl championships already in his pocket, Shanahan could get a third one day soon if young quarterback Jay Cutler turns out to be the special quarterback some people think he can be.

Mike Holmgren: Seattle Seahawks
One Super Bowl victory, and two losses, with two different teams, qualifies Holmgren as a man who knows what it takes to succeed as a head coach in the NFL. I also have to say that Holmgren would likely have another Super Bowl title on his resume had his Seattle Seahawks not been totally robbed by several questionable calls by the incompetent group of officials who worked their Super Bowl loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers three years ago.

Jon Gruden: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Say what you want about Jon Gruden, but it was just a few years ago that Gruden was being talked about as the 'future' of head coaching in the NFL. After a couple of down seasons, the Buccaneers are back on track - and so is Gruden - who already has one Super Bowl victory on his resume.

Jeff Fisher: Tennessee Titans
I don't know how else to say it; Jeff Fisher can flat-out coach the game of football - even if his team did fall one-yard short of getting his first and only Super Bowl championship just after the start of the new millennium. No head coach in the entire league does more with less than Fisher.

Andy Reid: Philadelphia Eagles
Yes, I know Reid's personal home environment has been compared to a "drug emporium" by a Philadelphia-area judge and he can't control his own children, but the man is - by far - the best head coach in Philadelphia Eagles history.

Wade Phillips: Dallas Cowboys
I don't care that Phillips doesn't have a Super Bowl ring as a head coach. 90 percent of the league's head coaches could tell you all about Phillips' genius - so I won't. I will say that I won't be surprised to see Phillips win a title inside the next two or three seasons.

John Fox: Carolina Panthers
I think Fox is one of the best coaches in the game and I would have ranked him higher if it weren't for the fact that the Panthers have struggled so badly the last two seasons. Still, one Super Bowl appearance - that was nearly a victory - tells me Fox knows his stuff.

Lovie Smith: Chicago Bears
Smith has been nothing short of spectacular in rebuilding the Chicago Bears in just a couple of seasons and his defensive prowess is matched by only a handful of coaches in the world. Still, his perplexing decision-making, like sticking up for mediocre quarterback Rex Grossman, has hurt the Bears a bit in each of the last two seasons if you ask me.

Jack Del Rio: Jacksonville Jaguars
Del Rio has built one of the best defensive teams in the league in Jacksonville, but hasn't been able to get the job done in the postseason.

Mike McCarthy: Green Bay Packers
McCarthy is clearly a much better head coach than I gave him credit for last season. He has built the Packers into a fine defensive unit - and a title contender in lickety-split time.

Romeo Crennel Cleveland Browns
I think Crennel is an absolutely fine coach and one who should have had a head coaching job at least a decade ago. I will be pulling for Cleveland to succeed as long as the classy Crennel is heading the franchise.

Brian Billick: Baltimore Ravens
Billick has been absolutely atrocious for a few of seasons now. If people think he had anything to do with the Ravens Super Bowl championship in 2000 - think again. The defense, led by current Cincinnati Bengals head coach, Marvin Lewis, won it for them if you don't remember.

Tom Coughlin: New York Giants
I won't mince words - I don't like Tom Coughlin very much at all. However, I will say that the man can coach the game of football and has won wherever he has gone. It's too bad his personality usually gets him run out of town prematurely.

Brad Childress: Minnesota Vikings
I watched Childress for years when we were both in Philadelphia plying our respective trades and I'm going on record right now to say this young head coach gets the Vikings into the Super Bowl before he's through in Minnesota. Of course it helps to have a special running back like Adrian Peterson.

Sean Payton: New Orleans Saints
Sean Payton and Childress could be twins. They're both fairly young and smart and have been around the game for quite some time and have the unequivocal respect of their players. I can easily see Payton and Childress squaring off in the NFC title game inside the next couple of seasons.

Marvin Lewis: Cincinnati Bengals
Lewis totally turned around the worst franchise in the league in the blink of an eye - before the team began drafting a succession of wacko, head-case players who should be playing in the film, 'The Longest Yard' instead of the NFL. Still, Lewis is hands-down one of the best defensive minds in the game - ever.

Gary Kubiak: Houston Texans
Kubiak did a fine job this season and certainly has the young Houston Texans on their way to legitimate on-field success. And just think - we thought he was foolish for selecting Mario Williams with the No. 1 overall pick two years ago.

Dick Jauron: Buffalo Bills
He's well-respected - and a longtime veteran of the game. Not only that, but he also managed to get his mediocre Buffalo Bills to overachieve for him all season long.

Herm Edwards: Kansas City Chiefs
Edwards' tendency to play it too close to the vest at times is an absolute killer for any offense. While I also know Edwards from his days in Philadelphia in the 1970s, I genuinely believe he may be better suited for a defensive coordinator's position than a one as head coach.

Eric Mangini: New York Jets
All I'm going to say is that "Mangenius" must have dropped quite a few points off his IQ this season because the Jets were absolutely atrocious from the opening game until the end of the regular season.

Mike Nolan: San Francisco 49ers
The Niners took another huge step backwards this season after taking a couple of small ones forward last season. Now, I can see that Nolan - and young quarterback Alex Smith - are both clearly in over their respective heads in Frisco.

Rod Marinelli: Detroit Lions
Now I know why Marinelli has never been a head coach before - he is absolutely horrific. Too bad the Lions are going to let offensive coordinator Mike Martz take the fall for the team's lack of success this season after a red-hot start.

Scott Linehan: St. Louis Rams
What's a synonym for 'horrific?' Oh, that's right ... Linehan. Somebody, please beam Scotty up.

This group of first-year head coaches doesn't get a ranking just for the simple fact that they have just completed their first seasons and don't have much to be judged on. However, I have written a brief on each coach's respective first season and my feelings on each coach and their respective futures.

Mike Tomlin: Pittsburgh Steelers
Tomlin is clearly the class of this group. The Steelers - and Tomlin - each had absolutely fine seasons in 2007 and possess a future that is as bright as any team's in the league. Tomlin will likely be a Top 10 coach in no time at all.

Ken Whisenhunt: Arizona Cardinals
This former veteran assistant had an absolutely fine first season leading the Arizona Cardinals while also having the task of changing the team's overall mentality this season. The thing I enjoyed most about Whisenhunt's first year as a head coach was the fact that he wasn't scared to make decisions - and stick by them - a common mistake many first-year head coaches make.

Norv Turner: San Diego Chargers
Mediocre, average and timid are the first words that come to mind when I think about Norv Turner as a head coach. However, I will admit that he may be football's best offensive coordinator.

Lane Kiffin: Oakland Raiders
The Raiders will have another new head coach in two years and Kiffin, who is in waaaaay over his head with this job, will be asking himself why he ever left the comfort of USC to go and work for Al Davis in the first place.

Cam Cameron: Miami Dolphins
I think Cameron is actually the worst head coach in the NFL. How Cameron can see a 'bright side' in going 1-15 in his first season is far beyond me. Cameron, like Turner, is far better suited for an offensive coordinator's position than a head coaching job. If Bill Parcells doesn't get rid of Cameron immediately, I'll be shocked.

Bobby Petrino: Atlanta Falcons
I saved this spot specifically for the world's biggest quitter - and one of the biggest low-life head coaches I have ever seen in my life. Petrino, quit like a dog on his team - after telling them all year to work, work, work - really hard. What a joke! Petrino will never again coach in the NFL - even if he wins five national titles in a row at Arkansas.