NFL Power Rankings Week 3: Which Coaches Are Earning Their Paychecks?
With Week 3 looming on the NFL schedule, it's time to take a look at the power rankings. No, not the teams; we already did that, remember?
I'm talking about the coaches. The play-callers. The men who run the show on NFL sidelines.
Who's got the hot hand right now? Who's on the hot seat? Let's take a look.
32-21: They Might Need Their Heads Examined
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32. Eric Mangini, Cleveland Browns: So much for "Man-Genius"; the Browns are 0-2 and have looked like the worst team in the NFL.
31. Chan Gailey, Buffalo Bills: So, wait, this guy was a terrible head coach in Dallas, a mediocre head coach at Georgia Tech, was fired from both gigs, and still got the job in Buffalo? How does that make sense?
30. John Fox, Carolina Panthers: Could someone remind John that he's got the best running back tandem in football? He seems to have forgotten.
29. Wade Philips, Dallas Cowboys: So, other than fail to get his players ready to play and not call plays, what does Philips do exactly?
28. Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings: So he can't win when Adrian Peterson has a monster game, he can't control his quarterback, and he looks like he belongs on Dateline's "To Catch a Predator" with Chris Hanson. Why does he have a job again?
27. Tom Cable, Oakland Raiders: Sure, the Raiders won last week. But Cable wasn't the reason why. Don't tell him I said that; I don't want to get beat up.
26. Jack del Rio, Jacksonville Jaguars: I know he has no receivers, but c'mon! Could you at least stop either the run or the pass?
25. Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks: The "Rah! Rah!" coaching routine only lasted a week.
24. Jim Schwartz, Detroit Lions: Actually a decent coach, but his team is 0-2.
23. Mike Singletary, San Francisco 49ers: Don't tell him he's down this low; he might drop his pants again.
22. Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis Rams: See Schwartz, Jim.
21. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants: Sunday Night Football was a disgrace. Where's Jim Fassel when you need him?
20. Ken Whisenhunt, Arizona Cardinals
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Whisenhunt won a game with Derek Anderson as his quarterback. If that's not coaching prowess, I don't know what is.
How He Could Blow It: Seriously, Ken, why didn't you draft a good quarterback this year? You knew Kurt Warner was retiring, and you had to know at this point Matt Leinart couldn't get it done. If they don't fix their quarterback situation fast, Whisenhunt could find himself lining up for a head exam with the rest of the scrubs.
Potential Potholes: San Diego in Week 4, New Orleans in Week 5.
19. Norv Turner, San Diego Chargers
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Got his team turned around after a disappointing season opener against Kansas City, and the offense looks as good as ever. The defense isn't too shabby, either.
How He Could Blow It: Lose to Kansas City again or lose in the playoffs and his chair could be getting awfully hot. Plus, it remains to be seen how the defense stacks up against a decent offense.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 7 through 9 could prove treacherous, but until then, it looks like smooth sailing.
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18. Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: McDaniels got the Broncos back on track in Week 2, blowing out the Seahawks with an impressive offensive and defensive display. He managed to do all of this while looking like he's coaching the team as the final exam for his leisure studies class.
How He Could Blow It: If this team slumps in the second half of the season again, McDaniels could find himself under the gun. While the defense was good against Seattle, it remains to be seen whether they can keep up with elite offenses.
Potential Hiccups: Sunday against Indianapolis, Week 4 against Tennessee, Week 5 against Baltimore, Week 6 against the Jets.
17. Lovie Smith, Chicago Bears
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Smith has moved off the hot seat for the time being, with solid wins over Detroit and Dallas to open 2-0.
How He Could Blow It: Smith isn't the one calling the offensive shots, and the defense hasn't exactly wowed through two games. What's to stop Mike Martz from taking all the credit for the turnaround? Smith isn't a coaching wizard, as evidenced by his performance in years past. Plus, if the team loses more than two in a row, Lovie's back on the hot seat.
Potential Hiccups: Sunday against Green Bay.
16. Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Reid and the Eagles have looked pretty good through two weeks, hanging with the Packers and squeaking by a feisty Lions club.
How He Could Blow It: The quarterback controversy in Philly will make or break the rest of Reid's coaching career. I don't know who the right answer is, but the public's leaning towards Mike Vick. If Reid backs Kolb and he struggles, it could put Andy on a short leash.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 4 through 10. The Eagles need to be 5-4 or better after their clash with the Colts in Week 10 for the season to be a success.
15. Jeff Fisher, Tennessee Titans
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Fisher demolished the Raiders in Week 1 and stays in the top 15 despite an awful performance from quarterback Vince Young last week against Pittsburgh. His team had a shot to win against Pittsburgh, despite Young's howler, which is a testament to Fisher's coaching.
How He Could Blow It: If the Titans can't get some consistency from their offense, regardless of who's at quarterback, this schedule will eat them alive.
Potential Hiccups: The Titans' schedule is loaded this season. The only "easy" games they have are their pair against Jacksonville.
14. Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis Colts
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Caldwell is one of the season's early fallers, as the Colts, widely picked as a Super Bowl favorite, opened the season 1-1. Their destruction of the Giants was pretty impressive, though.
How He Could Blow It: If Colts' management ever discovers that Peyton Manning has been coaching the entire team this whole time, Caldwell is as good as gone. And for a man whose expression never changes, that's a real possibility.
Potential Hiccups: Week 8 against Houston will be a shot at redemption.
13. Rex Ryan, New York Jets
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Wow, I guess there is a bit of bite to all of Ryan's yapping, isn't there?
How He Could Blow It: If the offense performs like it did in Week 1, Ryan's in deep trouble. All his talking could prove costly to his future if this team struggles.
Potential Hiccups: Sunday against Miami, Week 8 against Green Bay.
12. Mike Shanahan, Washington Redskins
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Shanahan's team gave up 497 passing yards to the Houston Texans but still lost by just three in overtime. That's pretty impressive.
How He Could Blow It: That pass defense needs some help in a big, big way.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 4 through 7 are going to be awfully tricky.
11. John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: The Ravens' defense has been better than expected, but the offense has been awful through two weeks.
How He Could Blow It: The offense has to get better if Harbaugh expects to stay Super Bowl contenders. Shoot, if they want to make the playoffs, the offense has to be better.
Potential Hiccups: Week 4 against Pittsburgh, Week 5 against Denver, Week 6 against New England.
10. Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Did you see the way the Falcons eviscerated the Cardinals? The scary part is, they did a lot of the damage with their third-string running back.
How He Could Blow It: Have more offensive performances like Week 1 against Pittsburgh.
Potential Hiccups: New Orleans and San Francisco loom large in the immediate future for the Falcons. Plus, if Michael Turner's out an extended period of time, you'll see why Jason Snelling was the third-string back.
9. Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Raise your hand if you expected the Chiefs to be 2-0 after two games. Nobody? Exactly.
How He Could Blow It: Kansas City's passing game has looked terrible through two weeks of the season. Plus, how much credit goes to Haley, and how much goes to assistant coaches Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel?
Potential Hiccups: The next three weeks will go a long way toward determining whether the Chiefs are contenders or pretenders.
8. Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Lewis didn't let the Bengals quit against the Patriots in Week 1 and used his defensive acumen to power the Bengals past the Ravens in Week 2.
How He Could Blow It: The offense looks pretty awful, and the defense, while solid, isn't flawless. Remember Week 1?
Potential Hiccups: Week 6 against Tampa could be intriguing, while Week 7 against Atlanta could prove a challenge.
7. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: It's been an up-and-down season for the Patriots head coach thus far. He was lauded as a genius after they beat the Bengals, but looked pretty bad when New England lost to the Jets.
How He Could Blow It: The defense still looks awfully suspect, particularly in the secondary. Plus, he doesn't really have a great run game at his disposal.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 5 through 7 will be tough tests for Belichick and the Pats.
6. Gary Kubiak, Houston Texans
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: He might be crazy, but the Texans are 2-0 and looking like serious contenders in the AFC. The passing game and running game are both looking pretty good so far this year.
How He Could Blow It: That defense is still shaky, despite a star-studded cast of characters.
Potential Hiccups: The Cowboys always play the Texans tight, and the Week 8 rematch with Indianapolis looks pretty intense.
5. Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: What's this? The Buccaneers are 2-0? Believe it. Morris has his team believing in his system, and they're playing excellently right now.
How He Could Blow It: Morris and the Bucs have been overachieving right now, so any losses they suffer would prove detrimental to his position in the top five.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 3 through 7 will be a real test for this young team and coach.
4. Tony Sparano, Miami Dolphins
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: The Dolphins are one of the NFL's pleasant surprises at 2-0, and Sparano's game-managing strategy is a huge part of that.
How He Could Blow It: Sparano relies heavily on keeping opponents within reach, but his offense is far from explosive. If Miami gets into a gunfight, they could be in trouble.
Potential Hiccups: The Schedule from here until Week 12 gets pretty brutal. If the 'Fins are 7-4 or 6-5 after this stretch, it will be considered a rousing success.
3. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Tomlin has coached the Steelers to 2-0 despite being without Ben Roethlisberger until Week 6. He's revitalized the Steelers' defense and gotten enough out of the offense to keep them in the lead.
How He Could Blow It: The offense hasn't been great and could pose serious problems from now until Big Ben returns.
Potential Hiccups: Weeks 3 and 4 pit the Steelers against good opponents. Both of those could be big trouble.
2. Mike McCarthy, Green Bay Packers
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: McCarthy's Packers flexed their offensive and defensive muscles against Buffalo in Week 2 and look like one of the best teams in football.
How He Could Blow It: Can Green Bay live up to the hype? They have to keep winning if McCarthy wants to stay in his lofty perch.
Potential Hiccups: The next four weeks are all potential pitfalls for the Pack.
1. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints
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Why He Earned His Paycheck: Payton has had the Saints ready to go in the first two weeks of the year, winning both weeks with defense rather than offense. With that kind of flexibility in his game plans, is it any wonder that Payton's No. 1?
How He Could Blow It: A loss would do it, at least temporarily.
Potential Hiccups: Sunday against Atlanta and Week 6 against Tampa Bay.
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