Ranking all 32 NFL head coaches by big-game résumé: Rams’ Sean McVay behind only Chiefs’ Andy Reid

Head coaches aren’t the end-all, be-all when it comes to Super Bowl contention in the NFL. Only one team hoists the trophy each year, after all, so even the best of the sideline leaders struggle to achieve, let alone sustain, ultimate glory. It’s why we’ve used a number of factors to sort through all 32 head coaches in our annual ranking for 2024.

One of the strongest measures of a head coach’s value, however, might well be big-game reliability. It’s one thing to entice a fan base with inspiring quotes and offseason practices; it’s another to consistently make — then advance in — the playoffs. So we’ve sorted all 32 head coaches into tiers according to their postseason achievement, identifying which of them enter 2024 with the most encouraging big-stage résumé:  

*Inexperienced on the big stage (18)

More than half of the NFL’s 32 head coaches (56%, to be exact) have led two or fewer playoff runs. And 11 of those 18 have yet to coach a single postseason game. There’s certainly a difference between, say, the Miami Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel, who’s reached the playoffs twice in two years, and the New York Jets’ Robert Saleh, who’s still seeking his first postseason game entering Year 4.

But since football is often a war of attrition, memorializing not only success but sustained success, we’ve excluded the following from the higher tiers, as they’re still looking to prove themselves in the big picture: Kevin Stefanski (2 playoff appearances), Mike McDaniel (2), Todd Bowles (2), Dan Campbell (1), Kevin O’Connell (1), DeMeco Ryans (1), Brian Daboll (1), Raheem Morris (0), Dave Canales (0), Mike Macdonald (0), Jonathan Gannon (0), Matt Eberflus (0), Antonio Pierce (0), Robert Saleh (0), Brian Callahan (0), Jerod Mayo (0), Shane Steichen (0) and Dennis Allen (0).

*Frequent absentee (1)

This coach simply isn’t a regular in the postseason, despite a past dabble with playoff…