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The Denver Broncos have a Top 10 coach in the NFL, ESPN says.
Barely.
We've debated the merits and ranking of John Fox a few times this offseason, but this ranking represents the combination of a more complete spectrum of NFL insiders. NFL general managers and executives, former and current, were asked to rank all 32 head coaches into tiers, 1-5.
In general Fox, whose Broncos have won the AFC West in three consecutive years, is well-regarded in NFL circles, moreso than with the media. Fox ended up in Tier 2, 10th overall, behind Bill Belichick (1st), Andy Reid (4th), Mike Tomlin (6th), and Jim Harbaugh (9th) in the AFC.
10. John Fox, Denver Broncos (1.97 average)
Fox gets high marks for taking two teams to Super Bowls, with and without a great quarterback. He received more 2 votes than anyone, and there wasn't much discussion. "He was up and down in Carolina and had no chance at the end," one executive said. "You gotta give him credit for getting to the playoffs with Tim Tebow in Denver."
One assistant coach challenged the notion that winning big is automatic with Peyton Manning behind center. "If it's all about Peyton, what happened in the Super Bowl?" this coach asked. "There is a whole lot of coaching going on to score 600-plus points with 55 touchdown passes and break records not by one yard and one TD, but by hundreds of yards and five TDs."
It would be interesting to know where Fox would rank relative to Carroll if the Broncos had blown out the Seahawks in the Super Bowl instead of the reverse unfolding. Multiple voters said they could not give a coach a 1 without a Super Bowl victory.
You just had to throw that in, didn't you, ESPN? Yes, wouldn't it be "interesting" to see how these two coaches ranked if Fox had won it all? Wouldn't that be just a curious exercise. (Pete Carroll was voted the #2 coach behind Belichick). Thanks for ruining a decent article by trolling Broncos fans with your tea and crumpet chatter. Go start a book club.
Ranking NFL head coaches by tier [ESPN Insider]