NFL: Predicting the Careers of Each NFC Head Coach

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Atlanta Falcons Head Coach Mike Smith

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Age: 52
Record: 33-17 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 3
Awards: 2008 AP NFL Coach of the Year
Playoff Appearances: 2

Mike Smith is one of the best head coaches in the NFL today. Constantly trying to make his team better, and succeeding is what makes him have that almost 69% winning average. With Matt Ryan, and the talent he's placed around him, he's looking to be the head coach of the Falcons for at least another decade.

Retires at 63
Seasons: 14
Playoff Appearances: 9
1 Superbowl Win 

Carolina Panthers Head Coach Ron Rivera

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Age: 49
Record: 0-0 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 0
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 0

Ron Rivera, in my opinion, is one of the best defensive minded coaches in the league. He absolutely tortured quarterbacks when he was with the San Diego Chargers. Will he be able to do this in the tough NFC south? Yes, no doubt about it. But Cam Newton, as much potential as he has, do and of you see him getting the Panthers past the likes of Brees, Ryan, or Freeman? 

Fired at the age of 56
Seasons: 7
Playoff Appearances: 3

Again, yes, the Panthers will. They will have enough talent on defense and a solid quarterback in Newton to rise to the top in just a couple years. After they get into the playoffs for 3 years straight, other teams start to catch on. This spells the end for Ron Rivera after back to back horrible seasons.

New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton

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Age: 47
Record: 52-30 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 5
Awards: 2006 NFL Coach of the Year
Playoff Appearances: 3
1 Superbowl Win 

Sean Payton is the man who everyone will always remember for bringing the Lombardi Trophy to New Orleans a few years after total devastation was caused by Hurricane Katrina. 

Contract Expires at age 60
Seasons: 16
Playoff Appearances: 7
1 Superbowl Win

Because of what he did for the city in the past, they will feel obligated to keep him as long as possible. After Drew Brees retires at the age of 38 (after all, he is 32 now), the Saints try to find a franchise quarterback and struggle in doing so, even though Payton is known for being able to teach quarterbacks well. They let Sean Payton walk after his contract is up.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Raheem Morris

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Age: 34
Record: 13-19 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 2
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 0

Raheem Morris will find it difficult to take over the NFC South with so much talent around. He will want to stray away from his current coaching methods to find a way to win, which only ends up making the Buccaneers worse. 

Fired at the age of 40
Seasons: 8
Playoff Appearances: 2

Being fired at the age of 40, he will have other chances to be head coaches even if he has to accept a defensive coordinator job to work his name back up the potential head coaches list. 

Arizona Cardinals Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt

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Age: 49
Record: 36-34 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 4
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 2

While it seems that Ken Whisenhunt has been coaching the Cardinals for a long time; it's really only been 4 years. The reason it feels like such a long time is because it's rough when you don't have a competent quarterback. With Whis bringing in Kevin Kolb, as well as other key free agent signings. They need to convince Larry Fitzgerald to stay with the team, and Whis is trying to do just that.

Contract expires at the age of 56
Seasons: 11
Playoff Appearances: 5
2 NFC Championships

I predict Ken Whisenhunt will get the team to perform well in the near future (as you see an NFC Championship), but will decide to not resign a contract with the team after two below average seasons. He will, however, continue coaching.  

San Francisco 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh

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Age: 47
Record: 0-0 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 0
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 0

Jim Harbaugh will want Andrew Luck. Sadly for him, the 49ers will have one average year out of Alex Smith. The team around him is good enough to not be in the top 10 of the draft next season, which puts them absolutely out of reach for Luck. They just miss the playoffs with the Rams and Cardinals fighting for the NFC West crown.

Fired at the age of 50
Seasons: 3

After not getting Luck, Jim Harbaugh is... well, out of luck, because he is fired after just three poor showings. He returns to college. 

Seattle Seahawks Head Coach Pete Carroll

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Age: 59
Record: 8-10 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 1
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 1

Pete Carroll was extremely lucky to get into the playoffs his first year. His team seems to be going in the wrong direction when it was already a weak team. He's a great guy, but he's just not fit to be an NFL head coach. 

Fired at the age of 61
Seasons: 3
Playoff Appearances: 1

St. Louis Rams Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo

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Age: 51
Record: 8-24 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 2
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 0

The St. Louis Rams are obviously in good hands with Spagnuolo. They have a future elite quarterback in Sam Bradford. They are finally building a formidable offensive line, and placing younger, newer weapons around their quarterback. Their defense is only getting better, with Spagnuolo being one of the best defensive coordinators before leaving the Giants to become head coach.

Retires at the age of 65
Seasons: 16
Playoff Appearances: 8
2 Superbowl Wins

When it's all said and done, the Rams will get two Superbowls under Spag and Bradford. 

Dallas Cowboys Head Coach Jason Garrett

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Age: 45
Record: 5-3 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 1/2 year
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: None

Jason Garrett was promoted after Wade Phillips was fired. He will lead the Dallas Cowboys to have some success in the playoffs, and after not tasting nearly as much as they want, they decide to fire Jason Garrett. 

Fired at the age of 53
Seasons: 8 1/2 
Playoff Appearances: 3
1 NFC Championship

After getting fired from the Cowboys, they strongly consider hiring a man already on their staff - Rob Ryan - as the head coach. 

New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin

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Age: 64
Record: 69-50 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 7
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: 4
1 Superbowl win 

Tom Coughlin is on the hot seat according to many people, yet he's only had one losing season in his 7 years with the New York Giants. He's going to be the coach of this team for years to come. With Eli Manning, the Giants will win 1 more Superbowl. Coughlin will want to see if he can ride the success in (which would be) the last year on his contract, instead of retiring. Only reaching the opening round of the playoffs, he retires, leaving the New York Giants with two Superbowls.

Retires (his contract ends) at the age of 70
Seasons: 13 
Playoff Appearances: 7
2 Superbowl Wins

Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach Andy Reid

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Age: 53
Record: 128-82 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 12
Awards: 2002 AP NFL Coach of the Year
Playoff Appearances: 9

Andy Reid has a great track record of getting to the playoffs. 75% of the time so far in his career, he's gotten to them... The biggest strike against him is that he has no Superbowl win even though he's had so many chances. He's built a team that's ready to win now, and I think that he will win a Superbowl...

Retires at the age of 60
Seasons: 19 
Playoff Appearances: 13
1 Superbowl Win

Will this be the year that Andy Reid finally wins it all? Possibly. They have the talent, and I think that the problems at linebacker aren't as harsh as many try to make it out to be. I don't want to say they will, but I could definitely see them winning the Superbowl in the next year or two. If they can keep the talent for the next couple years, they will easily get a Lombardi trophy for Andy Reid. He'll try to continue to chase that second ring, but by the time he calls it quits, I don't think he'll get it.

Washington Redskins Head Coach Mike Shanahan

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Age: 58
Record: 6-10 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 1
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: None 

Mike Shanahan's tenure in the nation's capital has been horrid at best. The problems with Donovan McNabb and Albert Haynesworth are gone, but they have to get over replacing them, as well as improving the rest of their team at the same time.

Retires at the age of 63
Seasons: 6 
Playoff Appearances: 1

Shanahan will try to improve the Redskins, but he will fail after many attempts. Just as many people think the Redskins are going to turn the corner, he abruptly retires and says that he's done with coaching for good.

Chicago Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith

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Age: 53
Record: 66-52 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 7
Awards: 2005 AP NFL Coach of the Year
Playoff Appearances: 3

Lovie Smith was on the hot seat until he brought his team all the way to the NFC Championship game vs their long time rival, the Packers, this post season. After winning one NFC Championship game and losing the recent one, many are wondering what Lovie Smith has in store for the Bears. Is he a legit NFL head coach?

Fired at the age of 58
Seasons: 12
Playoff Appearances: 4
1 NFC Championship

While he's made many of the right moves when it comes to the Bears, he only makes the playoffs once in the next 5 years with the other three teams thriving in the NFC North, causing the Bears to let him go after his worst season to date as a head coach. 

Detroit Lions Head Coach Jim Schwartz

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Age: 45
Record: 8-24 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 3
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: None

Jim Schwartz is an up and coming NFL head coach. Many teams are already calling the Detroit Lions a big threat in the NFC North, if Matt Stafford can stay healthy. I believe he will; he and Schwartz will be one of the very dangerous combinations in the NFC for the next decade. He becomes the Jeff Fisher of the NFC, staying with the Detroit Lions for an unheard of 17 years 

Contract expires at the age of 59
Seasons: 17
Playoff Appearances: 6
1 Superbowl Win

Green Bay Packers Head Coach Mike McCarthy

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Age: 47
Record: 48-32 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 5
Awards: 2007 NFL Alumni's Coach of the Year
Playoff Appearances: 3
1 Superbowl win 

The Green Bay Packers are doing everything right. Anytime someone criticizes moves they make, 9 times out of 10, the Packers end up becoming a better team. Mike McCarthy has years to develop his play calling and his playbook. For the next decade, he will have an elite quarterback to lead the offense to great places. Get ready Packers fans, for a lot of epic games versus the Lions in the near future. 

Retires at the age of 61
Seasons: 19
Playoff Appearances: 10
3 Superbowl Wins

A few years after Aaron Rodgers retires (and stays retired, unlike other former Packer quarterbacks), McCarthy will call it quits and will go down as one of the best NFL head coaches of all time, and up there with Vince Lombardi as the best Packers head coach. (A little optimism doesn't hurt, does it?)

Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier

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Age: 52
Record: 3-3 (inc. postseason)
Seasons: 1/2 Season
Awards: None
Playoff Appearances: None

Leslie Frazier gets his much deserved head coaching job after Brad Childress was fired. He looks to have McNabb take Ponder under his wing and help him develop into a starting caliber quarterback. He rebuilds their defense quickly and brings them to the playoffs as his last 2 years as a coach in the NFL.

Retires at age 58
Seasons: 6 1/2
Playoff Appearances: 2
1 NFC Championship

After developing Christian Ponder into a quality NFL quarterback, the Vikings go to the Superbowl, but lose.