10 NFL Coaches You'd Most Like to Have on the Sidelines

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In today's game, coaches are on a shorter leash than ever. One disastrous season can cost a coach his job, and at most you have three seasons to make an impression before you get canned.

This season there will be eight new coaches—that's one out of every four teams. Having stability on the sidelines is not something that many teams can say they have, but it goes a long way in building a foundation for a competitive team.    

These are 10 coaches have you'd most like to have on the sidelines. 

John Fox

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The Carolina Panthers let John Fox leave in the offseason, but that was due more to the fact that they didn't want to pay Fox and not an indictment about his coaching abilities. That's why it was no surprise to see Fox land the coaching job with the Denver Broncos. 

Fox turned around a struggling Panthers team and had them within grasp of a Super Bowl two years later. He never had a season worse than 7-9 until this past season, when the Panthers bottomed out at 2-14. You can't blame him entirely though, considering they had one of the worst passing games in history.

Fox has a challenge ahead of him in Denver, but he has proven in the past that he can turn a franchise around.  

Tom Coughlin

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Tom Coughlin's style isn't for everyone. He runs a tight ship and pays great attention to detail. His style has earned him the nickname "Colonel Coughlin." 

While some players might not like playing for him, the man has won everywhere he has been. Coaching in New York isn't easy for anyone and despite facing constant calls for his job, Coughlin has led the Giants to the postseason in four of his seven seasons, not to mention a magical Super Bowl victory.

Even after winning a Super Bowl, Coughlin still doesn't get much respect and remains on the hot seat. His coaching accomplishments stand for themselves, though.  

John Harbaugh

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John Harbaugh made the unlikely leap from secondary coach to head coach and did so smoothly.

In his three seasons with the Ravens, Harbaugh has led the team to the playoffs every year. His rookie season was particularly impressive, as the team started Joe Flacoo at quarterback (then a rookie) and advanced all the way to the AFC Championship Game. Plus, they've won at least one playoff game every season.

Despite losing defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, Harbaugh has done a great job keeping the defense elite and improving the offense. 

Mike Smith

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Not all football fans know the name Mike Smith, but they should. 

When he took over in Atlanta in 2008, the franchise was in ruins. The team was still reeling from the Michael Vick debacle, and their head coach resigned 13 games into the season to accept a college job. 

In the three years since, Atlanta has had three winning seasons and made two trips to the postseason. Most importantly, the team has stability, something they were desperately lacking. The only blemish on Smith's resume is that he hasn't won a playoff game, but expect that to change in the future with Matt Ryan behind center.  

Rex Ryan

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Despite only being a head coach for two seasons, Rex Ryan has made his impact felt and not just with his words. 

Most of the time people just hear what comes out of Ryan's mouth, but there is much more to the man. He can dial up blitz schemes with the best of them and created a masterful game plan that stymied Tom Brady and the Patriots top ranked offense in the playoffs this past season.

Ryan also has a great connection with players. In a poll conducted last year by Sports Illustrated, Ryan was the clear winner with 21 percent of the vote. He attracts potential free agents to the Jets. Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard signed with the Jets mainly because of Ryan.

His loud mouth can be tough to deal with at times, but you can't argue with his results.  

Andy Reid

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Andy Reid gets criticized for never winning the big game, but I bet there are tons of teams that would love to have him as their head coach.

Reid has always been flexible as a coach and it was on full display this past season, as he had to adjust the entire offense for Michael Vick.

In his 12 seasons in Philly, Reid has guided the Eagles to the playoffs nine times, and most impressively, five NFC Championship Games. His record is 1-4 in those games, and that takes him down a few notches, but it's still very impressive. 

Mike McCarthy

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The most recent coach to hoist the Lombardi Trophy has done a masterful job coaching the Packers for the past five seasons. 

He's made the playoffs three times, had only one losing season and nearly went to another Super Bowl. 

When talking about McCarthy, you can't ignore the Brett Favre situation. McCarthy did a great job transitioning the team from Favre to Aaron Rodgers, and it resulted in a Super Bowl win three seasons later. It would have been easy to go back to Favre when he wanted to return, but McCarthy and Ted Thompson stood firm and it paid off in the end. 

Sean Payton

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When Sean Payton took over in New Orleans, he not only helped turn around the Saints, but also the city as well. Signing Drew Brees didn't hurt either. 

Payton's innovative and creative offensive sets have caused defensive nightmares for the past five years. That span includes three playoff appearances, only two less than the team had in the previous 39 years, and of course their heart-warming Super Bowl victory in 2010.

Payton helped put the Saints back on the map and it looks like they're here to stay.   

Mike Tomlin

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The Pittsburgh Steelers are known as a team with stability at coach. They've only had three different coaches since 1969—the Denver Broncos have had three different head coaches since the start of last season. 

Tomlin got the Steelers job as a long shot candidate after Bill Cowher stepped down in 2006. The move came as a shock, as the team passed up Ken Wisenhunt and Russ Grimm. There were plenty of people who weren't happy.

That soon went away though, as Tomlin coached the team to it's sixth Super Bowl win in his second season, becoming the youngest coach to do so. He nearly added another Lombardi Trophy this season, but was denied by the Packers.

Tomlin has a great ability to motivate players and get the best out of them. Tomlin appears to be next in line behind Knox and Cowher as great Steelers coaches.  

Bill Belichick

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To say Bill Belichick has rebounded since a forgettable tenure in Cleveland back in the early to mid 90s would be a massive understatement.  

Since taking over the Patriots in 2000, New England has had only one losing season, Belichick's first with the team. After that season, they won eight division titles and three Super Bowls, including back-to-back titles, a feat no other team has accomplished since the 90s.  

You could say he hasn't won anything big since the Patriots were caught videotaping other teams. But that would be discounting a .797 win percentage, 51 wins, three division titles and a trip to the Super Bowl.    

Honorable Mention

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Bill Cowher, Jon Gruden and Jeff Fisher deserve honorable mention. 

These coaches are currently out of the game, but don't be surprised to see them roaming NFL sidelines in the next year or two. 

Cowher and Gruden both have a Super Bowl ring and Fisher was within inches of having one. 

You could add Tony Dungy and Mike Holmgren to this list, but it appears neither of them are coming back to coaching as of now.