The 10 Most Underrated NFL Head Coaches Since 2000
7. Tony Sparano, Miami Dolphins
Average nERD: 0.12 (31st)
Average Win Differential: -0.50 (39th)
In 2008, Tony Sparano walked into a perfect situation for any first-time head coach: the Miami Dolphins had gone 1-15 the year before, meaning he had a franchise-altering first overall selection in the NFL Draft to work with. The team selected stalwart left tackle Jake Long to protect their offensive blind side, and it looked like they had the foundation to a solid offense. Unfortunately, they didn’t have much to run their offense through. That year, they passed on eventual Atlanta Falcons selection Matt Ryan at quarterback and instead selected Chad Henne in the second round and subsequently signed Chad Pennington to start.
If you remember, Sparano was also the first head coach to use the “Wildcat” formation prolifically in the pros, where both running backs Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown would line up in the backfield, one getting a direct snap as the de facto quarterback. Sparano turned the team around from 1-15 to 11-5 in his first year but only attained a 1.54 nERD in 2008. That would be the high point of his head coaching tenure, as he oversaw a simply middling period for the Dolphins, not a below-average one.
