In our site group chat, I posed this question twice. If you were running an NFL team, who would you hire as a head coach this offseason? I didn’t get many responses. It was a lot of Josh McDaniels and I don’t know. It’s slim pickings out there. With no logical NFL offensive or defensive coordinators ready to become head coaches, teams should college coaches this offseason.
Urban Meyer:
Urban Meyer knows how to coach. He’s won everywhere. He won at Bowling Green, Utah, Florida, and Ohio State. He just wins. I don’t buy that Meyer couldn’t win in the NFL. Meyer is an offensive genius and his scheme has changed numerous times to fit his guys. Alex Smith, Tim Tebow, or any of the Ohio State guys. Meyer is innovative. He’s really smart on TV too. He brings a vibe that players have seemed to respect him.
Matt Rhule:
Matt Rhule is a program builder. That’s half the battle in the NFL. He brought Temple to new heights. He resurrected Baylor from the dead. Rhule’s Baylor team is the only team in the Big 12 that pretends to play defense. He also has experience on both sides of the ball. He played linebacker for Penn State. Rhule has NFL experience as an offensive line coach for the New York Giants. That was back in 2012 with Tom Coughlin when the Giants were good. Rhule also has a spin and turned down the Jets after they wouldn’t let him pick his own staff.
Brian Kelly:
Say what you want about Brian Kelly but he’s fantastic. It’s not easy to win at Notre Dame. It’s like winning at Stanford except it’s cold. Kids don’t care about the old traditions anymore. Kelly is 242–93–2 in his collegiate coaching career. That record includes stops at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame. Not the easiest places to win. Kelly brings toughness and physicality. Every time Notre Dame takes the field, it’s a dog fight and his team plays defense.
Jim Harbaugh:
Jim Harbaugh took Colin Kaepernick to the Super Bowl. I could stop right there if I wanted. Harbaugh went 22-2 at San Diego in his final two years there. He boat raced teams at Stanford. He’s beating everyone except Ohio State at Michigan. Harbaugh can coach and wins everywhere.
Lincoln Riley:
Hiring Lincoln Riley would be rolling the dice on an offensive wizard. Offensive innovation at it’s finest. Riley is known as the most creative offensive mind in college football. He made Jalen Hurts look functional which is a miracle. Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray both won the Heisman. Riley fooled me into thinking Shane Carden was a top prospect. Riley has a chance to change the NFL forever.
Those are 5 great candidates right there. Who would you even choose out of the NFL ranks right now? Josh McDaniels if he wants to leave. Okay, then who? It’s time for teams to dip their toes into the college ranks. College coaches should be the focus of NFL teams that need a new coach.
