A list published Tuesday by PFF’s Daniel Wasserman, ranking the ten best returning head coaches ahead of the 2025 season, has omitted Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, which will understandably draw the ire of fans of the green and gold.
These lists are often designed to be controversial, invite debate, and they ultimately mean very little, but let’s examine LaFleur’s credentials compared to the coaches ranked in the top ten.
The top ten, in order: Andy Reid (Chiefs), Sean Payton (Broncos), Sean McVay (Rams), John Harbaugh (Ravens), Mike Tomlin (Steelers), Jim Harbaugh (Chargers), Kyle Shanahan (49ers), Nick Sirianni (Eagles), Dan Campbell (Lions) and Kevin Stefanski (Browns).
LaFleur ranks tied for third in win percentage out of the 27 active coaches who have at least a season under their belt. At 0.648, he has the same win percentage as Reid. Only three active coaches have made the postseason at a better rate, or won their division at a higher clip.
Of course, the factors that go against LaFleur are his lack of making it to, never mind winning, the Super Bowl.
Going case by case, Stefanski, who ranked 10th on PFFs list, has the seventh-worst win percentage among active coaches and has never won the AFC North with Cleveland, albeit he has won two NFL Coach of the Year awards for overachieving with the resources at hand.
Campbell may have won back to back NFC North titles, but he has a much lower win percentage than LaFleur and has won the division in a lower percentage of his seasons as a head coach. He has not enjoyed any more postseason success than LaFleur and does not call plays.
The conversation around Sirianni’s true impact on the Eagles is a tricky one, as he does not call plays on either side of the ball, but has made the Super Bowl twice and won it once. He also has the highest win percentage of any active NFL head coach
The highs of Shanahan have been higher, making two Super Bowls (losing both), but the lows have been lower, with Shanahan only making the postseason in half of his campaigns as a head coach. He is sandwiched between Dan Quinn and Mike Vrabel in career win percentage.
Jim Harbaugh has a slightly better win percentage than LaFleur and has made a Super Bowl, but has won his division at a lower rate and has actually coached a year less in the NFL than the Packers head coach. They probably have equal cases.
It is more difficult to make a case over Tomlin, John Harbaugh, McVay and Payton, who have pelts on the wall in terms of games coached and crucially, winning a championship, even if LaFleur has a better win percentage than all of them. No one would argue LaFleur better than Andy Reid.
Based on their body of work, LaFleur, as well as Pete Carroll, who is going into his 25th year as an NFL head coach and has made two Super Bowls and won one of them, probably deserve to be in any top ten list, with Stefanski and Campbell the obvious candidates to drop out.