With Week 4 in the books, as well as the traditionally-held quarter-season mark (yes, I'm aware of the 17 game structure, relax on the math), we are all getting a clearer picture of how each team in the NFL will be shaping up for the rest of the year. This picture includes the league's 32 head coaches, five of which are in the middle of their first-ever campaign leading a franchise on the field.
Let's rank them.
1. Liam Coen, Jacksonville Jaguars
If you are a fantasy football manager, you are likely too hung up on the lack of chemistry between Trevor Lawrence and Brian Thomas, Jr. (12/32 receptions) or Travis Hunter's ho-hum professional debut to notice that the Jacksonville Jaguars are actually tied with Indiana Jones and his Cinderella-esque Colts for the best record in the AFC South through four weeks. And yes, Jacksonville's hyped-up air attack has failed to deliver on its promise (204.5 yards per game). But on the ground, the Jaguars have both acquired and prevented the fourth-most rushing yards per game in the league.
And honestly, from a certain point of view, you can argue that Jacksonville's start is all the more impressive given the issues they've had with their marquee talent. Whether or not it's sustainable is anyone's guess -- and the Jaguars have an absolute gauntlet coming up over the next few weeks, including games against the newly awake Chiefs, Seahawks, Rams, and Chargers. But for now, Liam Coen owns the best record among all rookie head coaches and that deserves recognition.
2. Brian Schottenheimer, Dallas Cowboys
It personally pains me to acknowledge the Dallas Cowboys with a W, but Brian Schottenheimer has done an admirable job with the wild set of cards he has been dealt through the early portion of his head coaching career. Between the Micah Parsons versus Jerry Jones beef saga and CeeDee Lamb's injury, Schottenheimer has been tasked with spearheading a depleted team for his very first assignment.
3. Ben Johnson, Chicago Bears
If there wasn't a simple, fundamental disconnect between Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams' approaches to an offense, then it is likely that Johnson would sit atop these rankings in comfort. But still, here we are, and the Bears, at 2-2, could easily be at 3-1 if it weren't for a truly anomalous (in retrospect) last stand by Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy in Week 1.
In the meantime, Caleb Williams and crew enter their bye week with encouraging signs that Johnson's scheming and Caleb's natural talent and flexibility could actually meld. Granted, those signs came from Williams putting 31 points on Dallas' awful defense, but still. The team currently rolling out a top-12 scoring offense on average per week, and get an easy enough schedule for the next five games to grease whatever squeaky wheels their offense might have.
4. Kellen Moore, New Orleans Saints
You know, you'd expect big things from the guy who basically made the Tush Push a thing. But, when you go from one of the best offensive lines in the NFL to one of the league's worst, then some schemes just become impossible to carry out -- as Moore quickly learned. Ditto with the team's receiving game. Because if you're celebrating the mid-ness of Spencer Rattler, you know your team is in a rough place. And the Saints are certainly in a spot, staring down a 0-4 hole right in the face.
But one thing that Moore did successfully carry over from his time in Philadelphia was his mind for the running back. Call Saquon Barkley's slump a Super Bowl hangover all you like (5.8 down to 3.1 yards per carry), but the dots between that and New Orleans' top-10 rushing yard average through four weeks is easy to draw. And as the Saints would likely tell you : a win's a win.
5. Aaron Glenn, New York Jets
The NFL's other 0-4 rookie head coach, surprisingly, also has coached up a surprisingly decent running game, averaging the third-most yards on the ground in the league. But that's about all the Jets have. At least New Orleans' quarterback situation is clear. And while Justin Fields is dynamic, but there is good reason he's already looking at possibly being replaced. Keep in mind too, that any loss to the Miami Dolphins is a bad one, even if Tyreek Hill was healthy at the time. The Jets have continued to be sad under Glenn, and if any rookie head coach is in the hot seat, it's him.