Top 5 NFL head coaches who turned their franchise around

Finding a head coach that can collectively turn a disastrous team around is hard to find. Especially head coaches that have the tall task of turning a 2-14 or worse record team back into playoff hopefuls.

Turning an all-but-dead franchise into a playoff contender or Super Bowl championship team doesn't come very often, and sometimes head coaches are given too much time in hopes they can accomplish that.

However, some coaches have the mindset to turn a franchise around for the better.

Here are five NFL head coaches who turned their franchises around.

Which NFL head coach turned their franchise around the most?

#5 - Jimmy Johnson

Philadelphia Eagles v Dallas Cowboys

Jimmy Johnson is arguably one of the best head coaches in NFL history. His mindset was instrumental in reviving the Dallas Cowboys in the early 90s.

When Johnson had initially taken over, the Cowboys were swimming in mediocrity or worse. His first season in 1989 saw the team go 1-15.

Through his first three seasons, Johnson would improve on the Cowboys record. In 1991, they would post an 11-5 record.

The 1992 and 1993 seasons saw the Cowboys win back-to-back Super Bowl championships. Johnson was responsible for giving birth to one of the NFL's biggest dynasties and helped catapult the team into becoming one of the most lucrative in the entire league.

#4 - Pete Carroll

San Francisco 49ers v Seattle Seahawks

Before Pete Carroll came into the picture for the Seattle Seahawks, the team was bouncing between mediocrity and winning seasons. The final two seasons before Caroll took over, the Seahawks went 4-12 (2008) and 5-11 (2009).

Carroll held a 7-9 record in his first season as head coach.

After that, however, the Seahawks would go on to have a winning record every season since 2011. The 2013 season saw the Seahawks win their first-ever Super Bowl championship, and they would return to the Super Bowl the following year.

Carroll helped breathe new life into a franchise that had mostly been forgotten.

3 NFL head coaches who turned their franchise around

#3 - Tom Coughlin

Los Angeles Rams v New York Giants

Tom Coughlin will go down as one of the greatest head coaches of the New York Giants. That is mostly due to him being able to change the course of history with his underdog team beating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, not once, but twice.

Coughlin took the reigns of the Giants in the 2004 season, helping the Giants to a 6-10 record. The following 2005 season, they achieved an 11-5 record.

Though some of his seasons were mediocre, Coughlin was instrumental in helping the Giants believe in themselves once again.

Especially in 2007, when they won a Super Bowl over the previously undefeated New England Patriots and repeated that feat in 2011, taking out the Patriots once again.

#2 - John Harbaugh

Baltimore Ravens v Miami Dolphins

John and his brother Jim are equally some of the best head coaches the NFL has seen, but John is famous for turning the Baltimore Ravens around. His mindset helped create one of the most feared defenses in the league and has turned Lamar Jackson into a superstar in this league.

Though some of the seasons have been less than stellar, John has stuck around with the Ravens since the 2008 season. That was the same season that saw Harbaugh lead his team to an 11-5 record and a playoff run.

Although the Ravens have only succeeded in capturing one Super Bowl championship in John Harbaugh's tenure, he has certainly turned this team around.

#1 - Bill Belichick

New England Patriots v Buffalo Bills

This one should be a given, but Bill Belichick has been one of the most successful head coaches in the history of the NFL. He helped turn Tom Brady into a household name and is now turning rookie Mac Jones into the makings of another legendary quarterback.

Belichick took over head coaching for the Patriots in 2000 and has dominated the majority of those years. The Patriots have only posted a losing record in 2000 and 2020.

It took 20 seasons for Belichick to have another losing season since his taking over. That's massively impressive.

The Belichick era will one day come to an end, but not before it becomes the greatest head coach run of all time.

---