The 10 Most Underrated NFL Head Coaches Since 2000
8. Mike Shanahan, Denver Broncos/Washington
Average nERD: 2.03 (22nd)
Average Win Differential: 0.77 (30th)
Talk about embattled. There are fewer more controversial head coaches in recent memory than Denver Broncos and Washington head coach Mike Shanahan. Shanny lasted with Denver from 1995 to 2008, leading the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl victories with John Elway as his franchise quarterback. In that span of time, he also masterminded the 2006 AFC Championship upset of the New England Patriots with running back Tatum Bell leading the charge for the Orange Crush. Shanahan missed the playoffs six times in his last 10 years with the team, however, and was let go. If the Broncos looked a little deeper into Shanahan’s contributions, though, they’d have seen that he had a nERD north of 5.00 in five of his nine seasons with the team.
We also know the saga of Shanny’s personality clashes with Robert Griffin III, selected second overall in 2012. To be fair, though, that was Shanahan’s only year with a positive nERD in Washington. His late-career nosedive (-1.52 average nERD in Washington) overshadows the impressive work he did earlier on in Denver, and while his win differential tells the tale of an average career, Shanahan deserves a little more credit than that.
