AFC South coaching tiers: A mixed bag of experience and enigmas

While much of the country spent the summer debating whether "Oppenheimer" or "Barbie" was the blockbuster of the year, Yardbarker NFL writers reviewed the work of the league's 32 head coaches and assigned each of these leading men to a tier. 

In sticking with the spirit of cinema, we named the six tiers after either a movie title, genre or actor to help rationalize if each coach is producing an Academy Award- or a Razzie-level performance. Here's how the AFC South stacked up:

Tier 2: 'THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION' Tier | Almost an Oscar

Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars: In his first season with the Jags, Pederson snapped a four-year streak of fourth-place finishes and guided the team to its first playoff appearance since 2017, where they pulled off a 27-point comeback win over the Chargers that was pure "Magic."

Pederson helped QB Trevor Lawrence reach his first Pro Bowl and running back Travis Etienne eclipsed 1,100 yards rushing after missing his entire rookie season. In his six total seasons as a head coach, Pederson has taken his team to the playoffs four times, winning a Super Bowl in 2017 with the Philadelphia Eagles. His 56 wins are tied for 11th-most among active NFL coaches.

Mike Vrabel, Tennessee Titans: Although Pederson has a Super Bowl championship on his resume, Vrabel just might be the top head coach in the AFC South simply for his ability to do more with less. The Titans set an NFL record with 91 different players used during the 2021 season, and yet, somehow, Vrabel still led that team to a 12-5 record, its second straight division title and first No. 1 playoff seed since 2008.

Among coaches who have coached 35 or more games, Vrabel’s .585 win percentage is tops in the Titans era and second-best in franchise history behind Bum Phillips (.611). Of Tennessee’s five division titles since 1999, Vrabel has two of them. He’s taken the Titans to the playoffs three times with one AFC Championship Game appearance, and he has just one losing season in five years, which came last year. After missing the playoffs last season, though, will we "Remember the Titans" and Vrabel come January? 

Tier 5: NETFLIX ORIGINALS TIER | Too new for critical review

DeMeco Ryans, Houston Texans: With Houston being his first head-coaching gig, there’s not much to judge Ryans on other than his body of work as an assistant. In two seasons as defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers, they finished with a top-three defensive unit both years, including the No. 1-ranked defense and scoring defense in 2022.

Ryans was a second-round pick of the Texans in 2006, so it’s safe to say he’s pretty invested in the success of the franchise. The front office gave him some fantastic building blocks to work with in No. 2 overall pick C.J. Stroud and No. 3 overall pick Will Anderson, and now it’s up to Ryans to build a winner, or this will be "A Bumpy Ride."

Shane Steichen, Indianapolis Colts: Like Ryans, the only thing to judge Steichen on so far is his work as an assistant coach. And like Ryans, his work as Philly’s offensive coordinator was pretty impressive. Under his guidance, the Eagles had the No. 3 overall offense and scoring offense in 2022. Quarterback Jalen Hurts finished as the runner-up in MVP voting, and A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith became the first WR duo in franchise history to reach 1,000 yards in the same season.

Steichen has a lot less to work with in Indianapolis, but the team is hoping he can work the same magic with rookie Anthony Richardson as he did with Hurts. If the team trades star running back Jonathan Taylor, it’s going to be a rough year in Indy. If Steichen does find success, it will likely be a few years down the road. For now, this feels more like "The Lone Ranger" than "Oppenheimer."