Ranking the NFL Head Coaching Hires

The dust has finally settled from the head coaching carousel. There were 9 HC openings in the NFL which marks one of the largest league-wide amount of openings we've ever seen. The pool of candidates this year was really quality and there are so many names who didn't get HC jobs that easily deserve one and will be top of the line candidates again next season. Today we are going to rank the coaching hires from 9-1 (9 being the worst, 1 the best) based off of fit, schemes, the staff they hired around them, and more.

9. Matt Eberflus, Chicago Bears
I am not a fan at all of this hire. I like Eberflus a lot as a defensive coordinator, he coordinated one of the best defenses in the league in Indy for the past few seasons, but I feel like the team fit is horrific. I would have liked him a lot better in a different situation where offense is not the main issue and the main thing that is trying to be solved. The Bears were one of the most attractive HC openings on the market in my opinion as the have a great young QB in Justin Fields and are one of the biggest markets in the NFL. They needed to hire an innovative offensive mind to set up Fields for the future in my opinion and they failed to do it. I liked Eberflus' hire of former Packers QB coach Luke Getsy to be the OC, but if he does well, he will leave for an HC position next year. Just seems like a weird hire to me, the Bears don't need to be insane on defense, they already have been for some time now.
Grade: C

8. Lovie Smith, Houston Texans
I actually don't hate this hire as much as some, but I'm ranking it one of the worst because of the situation. If Smith was hired and given a real chance with a competent franchise, I think it would be a great hire. However, he's taking over one of the worst ran franchises in football and it feels like he was only selected as HC to please the media with the recent Brian Flores allegations. It just feels like they know he will fail and then they will move on to another white candidate as they now would be able to fall back on the "well we tried" excuse. Smith has great experience in the past as an NFL HC and he aced his hire of Pep Hamilton as offensive coordinator. I think Smith has a chance to turn this team around and in turn, make the Texans front office look stupid. 
Grade: C+

7. Josh McDaniels, Las Vegas Raiders
This low ranking is almost more of disappointment in the Raiders for not keeping interim HC Rich Bisaccia around. Bisaccia was one of the best and most inspirational coaches in the NFL last year and what he did for the Raiders cannot be understated. Instead they move to McDaniels, who is an offensive mind which could be great for the Raiders and Derek Carr. However, his calls in New England often were strange and did not move the chains. I like the idea of an offensive mind for the Raiders, but I'm not sure McDaniels is the right guy. I could be wrong, but his initial ranking reflects these beliefs. Also, he ACED his DC hire by poaching Patrick Graham from New York, Graham is one of the best young DCs in the game.
Grade: B-

6. Dennis Allen, New Orleans Saints
While this ranking might seem low, I'm getting into the point on this list where I think all of the hires are at least decent. While maybe people would have rather seen someone else for this job, it was always Dennis Allen's to lose. Sean Payton missed a game last year with COVID and Allen led the Saints to a wild 9-0 upset over the Buccaneers. Allen has been coordinating the defense in NOLA for years now and done a superb job. This position was always his to lose. That being said, he is set up terribly to win. The Saints are in cap hell and also have no starting QB at the moment. Allen may not have that long of a leash, similar to his time as the Raiders' HC a few years back. I think Allen as the Saints HC makes all the sense in the world, but I don't know if he will get as fair of a shot as we'd like to see.
Grade: B-

5. Kevin O'Connell, Minnesota Vikings
This was quite the wildcard hire. The Vikings are trying to zig with the rest of the league by hiring a young offensive minded HC from the McVay/Shannahan coaching tree. O'Connell is just 36 years old and was the OC for the Rams offense (which is one of the league's best), but we don't truly know a ton about him as McVay is the one who calls the plays. This hire could either be a complete home run or it could be a major failure. I'm confident in O'Connell, but also think the team should have hired the proven winner that was Jim Harbaugh. Still, this team has been defense oriented over the past decade with Mike Zimmer, and it hasn't worked out, so switching over to a young offensive mind like O'Connell could be huge for an offense with so many weapons (but also a pending QB decision that must be made on Kirk Cousins).
Grade: B

4. Nathaniel Hackett, Denver Broncos
I feel like I might be higher on this hire than most. Obviously, the main thinking from many about this one is that the Broncos (who are clearly trying to land Aaron Rodgers) brought in the former Packers OC to entice Rodgers to Denver. While I think there is a great chance that these dreams do come true and Rodgers can reunite with Hackett in the mile high city, I still think this is a great hire if they don't. Hackett is the ultimate motivator with a great personality and a fiery passion for the game. His outgoing and 'pick you up' personality/mentality is the exact opposite of what the team previously had with Vic Fangio. If Rodgers comes to town, this is an A+, but even if he doesn't, Hackett should have success.
Grade: B+ *

3. Brian Daboll, New York Giants
These top 3 hires were all really really good to me. The Giants have been the laughingstock of the NFL ever since Eli Manning was no longer Eli Manning. Since that time, the team has also gone through a bevy of absolute failures at HC. McAdoo, Shurmur, and most recently Joe Judge. All were terrible. Brian Daboll feels different. He has never been an HC before but has deserved a shot for years. He has coordinated some of the best offenses in the sport for years, obviously the Bills' for the past couple of years but also at Alabama and various other NFL teams. Daboll is a young offensive mind who wants to win and knows what it feels like to win. Whether the future is Daniel Jones, or someone else, he should be able to get the best out of them. I also love his hires of Mike Kafka (Chiefs QB coach) and Wink Martindale (former Ravens DC) for OC and DC. It's not yet for sure if Daboll will calls plays (I think he definitely should), but he seems like he could finally be the right guy to win in New York.
Grade: B+

2. Mike McDaniel, Miami Dolphins
While I think firing Brian Flores was the ultimate head scratcher earlier this off-season, they did a damn good job of bringing in a replacement. Mike McDaniel was an underrated HC candidate going into the off-season, but the Dolphins were able to sift through and find him for themselves, and it is going to pay off. Just like O'Connell for the Vikings, McDaniel is ANOTHER young offensive mind that stems from the Washington McVay/Shannahan tree. McDaniel is just 38 years old and was the 49ers OC last year. Sure, he didn't call the plays, but he designed a lot of their stuff and helped the most innovative offense in the league succeed. The Niners made it to the NFC title game and the true brink of a Super Bowl with a QB as bad as Jimmy Garopollo starting for them. Firing Flores clearly showed the the Fins' wanted to go offense, and they hired the best offensive coach they could. McDaniel is going to succeed with all of the offensive pieces in place in South Beach.
Grade: A-

1. Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars
Just a year ago, the Jags hired Urban Meyer to be their HC, which turned out to be one of the worst HC hires ever. Last week, they brought in Doug Pederson, which has potential to be one of the best hires ever. I absolutely LOVE this hire for this specific team. The Jags have done nothing but struggle since the beginning of time, and Pederson feels like the perfect man to be able to change that. His skillset perfectly aligns with what this team needs. Pederson brought the Eagles their first Super Bowl title ever just a few years back, and he did it by coaching up two QBs to their fullest in Carson Wentz (who should have won MVP that year) and then Nick Foles (who became the most unlikely SB MVP ever). Pederson knows how to win, and he knows how to coach up a young QB to their best. Trevor Lawrence should be truly ecstatic with this hire. Pederson has also already made some great hires around him with young offensive genius and brother of Zac Taylor, Press Taylor, to be their OC and then Mike Caldwell (Bucs LB coach) at DC. I truly believe Pederson can be the guy to end the era of struggles in Jacksonville, what a hire!
Grade: A