Who is the Next Mike Vrabel? NFL HCs Most Likely to Lead Team From Worst to First

The New England Patriots may have come up short in Super Bowl LX, but they can at least feel confident that they made the right decision by hiring Mike Vrabel as head coach.

Vrabel has turned a squad that had slumped through back-to-back 4-13 campaigns into a powerhouse, one that went 14-3 in his first season and set an NFL record by going 9-0 on the road during both the regular season and playoffs.

The Patriots are now well-positioned to build on that incredible run and remain in Lombardi Trophy contention for years to come.

Let's highlight the four head coaches who are inheriting teams that just finished at the bottom of their respective divisions and will have a chance to dramatically change their fortunes in 2026.

John Harbaugh, New York Giants

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The New York Giants pulled off the biggest coup of the 2026 hiring cycle when they landed John Harbaugh. The former Baltimore Ravens head man was a surprising addition to the candidate pool after he failed to take his team to the playoffs for the first time in four years, but the G-Men shouldn't be concerned about a down campaign in Charm City.

Harbaugh has more than proven that he's one of the league's great coaches. During his 18 seasons in Baltimore, his teams went 180-113 during the regular season and reached the playoffs 12 times. They made it to the AFC Championship Game on four occasions and even won Super Bowl XLVII.

While Harbaugh's teams weren't finding the same level of postseason success in recent years, the Ravens consistently rated amongst the best teams in football. Since 2019, only the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills have won more games than the 76 victories Baltimore has tallied in that span.

Fortunately for Big Blue, Harbaugh has a history of hitting the ground running. Shortly after being hired away from Andy Reid's Philadelphia Eagles staff in 2008, Harbaugh orchestrated an 11-5 regular season and went all the way to the AFC Championship Game. He followed that up with four more consecutive postseason berths, winning a game during each trip before going a perfect 4-0 on the way to lifting the Lombardi Trophy in 2012.

It's not outlandish to expect similar early success with the Giants. Many of the pieces needed to contend already seem to be in place, including a promising young quarterback in Jaxson Dart and other building blocks such as wideout Malik Nabers and running back Cam Skattebo.

If the G-Men have a good offseason, filling holes on the roster with shrewd free-agent pickups and a strong draft class, they'll be able to turn things around in similar fashion to the Patriots during Vrabel's first year. 

Klint Kubiak, Las Vegas Raiders

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The Las Vegas Raiders are on the cusp of what could be a franchise-altering offseason.

The organization's decision to hire Klint Kubiak looks better than ever after the Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator helped guide his squad to victory in Super Bowl LX. With the 38-year-old taking the reins from canned 74-year-old head coach Pete Carroll, the Raiders may have found a coach who could be in place for decades to come.

Although Kubiak has been bouncing around the league in recent years—making five different stops in the five seasons since he first became an OC with the Minnesota Vikings in 2021—he should settle down in Sin City for the long haul. It certainly helps that he'll have the means to craft a roster that fits his system, with the Raiders possessing both immense amount of cap space (their $87.8 million is the second-most in the league) and draft capital.

No pick is more important than the No. 1 overall selection Vegas currently holds. Barring something wildly unexpected, that pick will be used on Indiana's Heisman Trophy-winning national champion quarterback Fernando Mendoza. It also means the Raiders may finally have found an answer to a quarterback problem that has plagued the franchise for years.

With other up-and-comers like Ashton Jeanty and Brock Bowers already in place, the Raiders can focus on padding out Mendoza's protection and building up an offense that could make a stunning turnaround after ranking dead-last in both yardage and scoring in 2025.

While it won't be easy in an AFC West division that boasted two playoff teams this past season and figures to see the Kansas City Chiefs return to prominence quickly, the Raiders could be a sneaky contender in 2026 with Kubiak and Mendoza linking up to spur a rapid rebuild like the one the Patriots just accomplished.

Mike LaFleur, Arizona Cardinals

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With the Arizona Cardinals' nightmarish season ending with the firing of former head coach Jonathan Gannon, there's hope that some sweeping changes will return this long-suffering franchise to prominence.

Mike LaFleur will be the head coach overseeing a rebuilding effort in the desert, one that could see the Cardinals turn over much of their roster this offseason. It doesn't seem that any player is safe, even its highest-paid player, quarterback Kyler Murray.

According to NFL Network insiders Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo during an appearance on NFL GameDay Morning, the Cardinals are "likely to move on" from Murray this offseason after the signal-caller spent the last seven seasons as the team's starter.

While the finances of moving on from Murray are tricky, it's become clear that the signal-caller isn't the answer in Arizona. He's gone 38-48-1 across his 87 starts and has missed vast swathes of time with various injuries.

If the Cardinals can find a taker in the trade market or opt to eat the costs of cutting him, it opens the door for the type of quick turnaround the Denver Broncos had after parting ways with Russell Wilson in 2024. That club wasn't expected to contend after releasing the veteran QB, but has gone 24-10 and made back-to-back playoff appearances in wake of the blockbuster decision.

While Denver was fortunate to have found Bo Nix in Round 1 of the 2024 draft, the Cardinals don't have as clear of an option to fill the void Murray's departure will create. The team could run it back with Jacoby Brissett, although signing someone like Malik Willis in free agency or trying their luck with a rookie prospect such as Ty Simpson offers more upside.

It won't be easy, but hitting a home run on one of the latter options and getting the most out of them in LaFleur's system would open the door for the Cardinals to make the type of resurgence New England experienced under Vrabel.

Robert Saleh, Tennessee Titans

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Robert Saleh's tenure with the New York Jets was largely a bust, but his outstanding work as the San Francisco 49ers' defensive coordinator has gotten him another head coaching job.

Now at the helm of the Tennessee Titans, the 47-year-old has a quality opportunity to make his second head coaching act a far more memorable one.

Saleh is widely regarded as one of the best defensive minds in football. During his time with Gang Green, his defenses finished top-five three consecutive seasons between 2022-24.

While San Francisco only ranked No. 20 in total and No. 13 in scoring defense this past season, Saleh was able to scheme up ways to effectively overcome the loss of several superstars and help the team make an unexpected run to the divisional round of the playoffs.

He will now be tasked with improving not only a unit that finished No. 21 in total and No. 28 in scoring defense, but lifting an entire team that only won three games this past season. Vrabel showed this is possible during his first year in New England and the Titans could follow that blueprint during Saleh's inaugural campaign.

Vrabel inherited a team that had been stuck in the league's basement but had several promising building blocks to work with, including a prized first-round quarterback heading into their second season. Vrabel and offensive coordinator hire Josh McDaniels were able to coax a major leap from Drake Maye—who emerged as a legitimate MVP candidate in Year 2—to spearhead a Super Bowl run.

Saleh is taking over a roster headlined by 2025 No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward. The coach appointed Brian Daboll—another head coach looking for redemption in the Music City—to oversee the Titans' offense, hoping he'll be able to develop Ward quickly during a pivotal sophomore season.

Although Saleh delegated defensive play-calling duties during his time in the Big Apple, he's going to be taking on that responsibility in Tennessee. Mike Macdonald just proved it's a perfectly viable choice when the Seattle Seahawks head coach became the first defensive play-caller to lift the Lombardi Trophy.

If everything goes to plan, the Titans should be back in the playoffs for the first time since Vrabel led Tennessee there in 2021 and could even win a game for the first time since his second season in 2019.