Once upon a time, NFL head coaches had one thing in common. It's that they are old. It's relatively old. Going back 20 years, there were many players in the league over the age of 60, and it was believed that coaches had to be paid into their late 40s as coordinators before becoming head coaches.
That has completely changed now. A huge shift in mindset and coaches coming into the ranks younger than ever has led many teams to take risks on young players in hopes of finding a gem that will last a franchise for 20 years or more. With two of the league's oldest coaches, Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick, stepping down this week, head coaches across the league are younger than ever.
Here is a list of current NFL coaches by age:
- andy reed kansas city chiefs:65
- john harbaugh baltimore ravens:61
- mike mccarthy dallas cowboys:60
- tod bowles tampa bay buccaneers:60
- sean payton denver broncos:59
- Doug Pederson jacksonville jaguars:55
- matt everflus chicago bears:53
- mike tomlin pittsburgh steelers:51
- Dennis Allen new orleans saints:51
- Sean McDermott buffalo bills:49
- brian daboll detroit lions:48
- Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions: 47
- Robert Saleh new york jets:44
- matt lafleur green bay packers:44
- Kyle Shanahan: san francisco 49ers:43
- Nick Sirianni philadelphia eagles:42
- Kevan Stefanski cleveland browns:41
- Jonathan Gannon arizona cardinals:40
- mike mcdaniel miami dolphins:40
- zac taylor cincinnati bengals:40
- Demeco Ryans houston texans:39
- Shane Steichen indianapolis colts:38
- Kevin O'connell minnesota vikings:38
- sean mcvey Los Angeles Rams:37
Currently, the average age of NFL coaches is 47.7 years old. More than half of people currently employed full-time are under the age of 50. That number will likely be even lower after this hiring cycle, with top job candidates including Ben Johnson (37), Jerrod Mayo (37), Frank Smith (42), and Brian Flores (37). 42).
The youth movement in the NFL isn't going away anytime soon.
