NFL Insider: Who Do Execs View as the Top Head Coaching Candidates?

Bleacher Report surveyed 18 current or former NFL executives to come up with a list of the top head coaching candidates from around the league and in the college ranks.

Three head coaching vacancies are already open (Los Angeles Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills), and there's a good chance more will come after Week 17. You can expect to hear these coaches' names discussed heavily for any open jobs.

Here are the results of the survey.

10. Vance Joseph, Miami Defensive Coordinator

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

Age: 44

NFL experience: 12 years (one as defensive coordinator; 11 as position coach)

"He has all the makings of a head coach. He has the energy, the personality and the attention to detail. … He did a really good job of playing situations well this year in Miami. Not a great defense, but they were really good on third down." —AFC executive

"I think he's maybe a year or two away, but I say that hopefully. We always move people up too fast. He's going to get some serious looks pretty soon." —former NFL executive

9. Mike Smith, Tampa Bay Defensive Coordinator

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

Age: 57

NFL experience: 17 (seven as head coach; six as defensive coordinator; four as assistant coach) 

"It's the classic situation: Good candidate does solid job the first time around, gets a second chance, and you hope he learned from the first job. … I look at what he did from the start of the season to the end of the season with the defense in Tampa, and I know he can teach." —NFC executive

"He's going to come in and run a good program and do all the right things to make you competitive. What I don't know is whether he's a guy who can take you over the top." —AFC executive

8. David Shaw, Stanford Head Coach

Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Age: 44

NFL experience: nine years (five as position coach; four as assistant coach)

"He runs a really disciplined program that translates to the NFL. Players get better, and he's really patient with the running game. If I had one complaint, he's almost too conservative, but I really think that's by design. He wants to wear people out physically." —NFC executive

"Unless somebody pays him a truckload of money, I don't think he's leaving [Stanford]. I think he's actually really smart to stay there. He's an alum. He could be the coach there for 20 or 25 years, make really good money and live out the rest of his life. Or you can come to the NFL, take a really questionable job and hope that you get three years to turn it around." —former NFL executive

7. Mike Shanahan, Former Washington Coach

Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

Age: 64

NFL experience: 29 years (20 as head coach; seven as offensive coordinator; two as position coach)

"I know he said he's retired, but I don't believe that for a second. He's just making sure that Kyle gets taken care of first. If Kyle gets hired somewhere, I think Mike would jump at the chance to coach again. … I think most people have realized what happened in Washington wasn't his fault." —NFC executive

"It's the same thing as [Tom] Coughlin. He knows what he's doing. He knows how to win." —former NFL executive

6. Tom Coughlin, Former New York Giants Coach

Elsa/Getty Images

Age: 70

NFL experience: 27 years (20 as head coach; seven as position coach)

"Age is the main concern, but if you were trying to make a quick turnaround, I wouldn’t be afraid to have him for two or three years. If I was running Jacksonville, I would seriously think about it. The discipline, the attention to detail, the toughness…it's all there still." —AFC general manager

"I would be clear with him that he was going to have to train one or both the coordinators to be ready to take his job. I'm not sure he would do that after what happened with the Giants, but nobody is bringing him in to be a 10-year answer." —AFC executive

5. Nick Saban, Alabama Head Coach

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Age: 65

NFL experience: eight years (two as head coach; four as defensive coordinator; two as assistant coach)

"He's everything you want in a coach, but he's not coming to the NFL again. It's probably not even worth the call." —NFC executive

"If he had just picked Drew Brees [instead of Daunte Culpepper with the Dolphins], I really wonder how that would have changed the course of that team and the rest of the league. Brees against [Tom] Brady for 10 years? That would have been interesting." —AFC general manager

4. Teryl Austin, Detroit Defensive Coordinator

Paul Sancya/Associated Press

Age: 51

NFL experience: 13 years (three as defensive coordinator; seven as position coach; three as assistant coach) 

"He has a great presence about him, his teams are prepared, and he knows how to create a marriage between the offensive philosophy and the defensive philosophy." —former NFL executive

"I worked with him with one team when he was a position coach, and I really like him. I would want to really sit down and talk to him about how he's going to build a staff. It's one thing to talk about all these guys you want. It's another to actually get those guys." —NFC executive

3. Josh McDaniels, New England Offensive Coordinator

Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

(One first-place vote)

Age: 40

NFL experience: 16 years (two as head coach; nine as offensive coordinator; two as position coach; three as assistant coach)

"It's the same thing that everybody talks about: Will he leave New England, or is he just going to wait for [Bill] Belichick to retire? I think he'll leave because Bill is not going to leave anytime soon. His problem is if he wants control of personnel, that's not going to happen. He screwed up too much the last time." —NFC executive

"Great mind for the game. He's just like [Kyle] Shanahan from that perspective. Great play-caller, great game-planner and actually a pretty decent guy to talk to. But he tried to pull that 'Little Bill' act in Denver, and it flopped like most of Belichick's assistants." —NFC executive

1a. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan Head Coach

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

(Nine first-place votes)

Age: 53

NFL experience: six years (four as head coach; two as position coach)

"Great coaches have to have the ability to be a [jerk] while not alienating players. It's really hard to do. Harbaugh is great at it. He lives for it. He's authentic, he's driven, and he's not afraid to surround himself with really smart people." —former NFL executive

"He's the top coaching candidate, and I think he really wants to be back in the NFL, but it's not going to be for a couple of years I don't think. He'll eventually leave [Michigan]. Some owner will give him everything he wants one day. But he can't walk away right now. Too soon." —former NFL executive

1. Kyle Shanahan, Atlanta Offensive Coordinator

Don Juan Moore/Getty Images

(Eight first-place votes; ranks higher than Harbaugh because he was named more frequently)

Age: 37

NFL experience: 13 years (nine as offensive coordinator; two as position coach; two as assistant coach)

"I was concerned about him after the situation in Cleveland, but he fixed all those concerns, and he has picked up offensively where his dad left off. He's a great play-caller. I didn't think Matt Ryan was going to work in that offense, but he proved me wrong." —NFC general manager

"I still worry about how he's going to do in front of the big room, when you have to hold guys accountable. But he's always going to be two or three steps ahead of the average defensive coordinator." —AFC executive

Others getting more than two votes: Jon Gruden, Anthony Lynn, Doug Marrone, Sean McDermott, Sean McVay, Matt Patricia and Chris Petersen.

All NFL coaching experience courtesy of Pro Football Reference.