ESPN's Top 20 NFL Coaches Ever

I think the answer is twice. And in one of those cases, all it cost them was the chance to go play the undefeated Patriots, so not exactly a championship lost there.

 

Twice.

In the 2007 season they were the No. 2 seed at 13-3 and lost 28-24 to San Diego (11-5), which had beaten the Colts in Indianapolis during the regular season.

In the 2005 season they were the top seed at 14-2 and lost to Pittsburgh (11-5), which, of course, went on to win the Super Bowl as a wild card.

Really, their most embarrassing loss came as a No. 5 seed, in Dungy's final game in the 2008 playoffs, when they were a 12-4 wild card and lost in overtime to San Diego, which sneaked into the playoffs at 8-8.

All that said, the issue here is your over-the-top use of the word drastically.

By any measure, the Colts were wildly successful in the Dungy era. During those seven seasons, only two NFL teams made more Super Bowl appearances (New England with three, Pittsburgh two) and won more Super Bowls (NE and Pitt with two). In fact, Pittsburgh (nine) and New England (11) were the only teams in that span to win more playoff games than the Colts' seven (Philadelphia also won seven but, of course, didn't win a Super Bowl).

And I'm pretty sure only New England won more regular-season games (86-85), though I'm not going to check every team (but I don't think anyone else was even close).

Again, while it's fair to say the Colts probably should have had more postseason success given their regular season record, to say they drastically underachieved is quite ridiculous.

 

Does that make Shula's Dolphins underachievers? He had arguably the best QB of his era for 13 years and made only one Super Bowl appearance (a loss).

 

This is a fascinating thread for so many reasons.

1. Some are knocking Dungy for his teams underachieving in the playoffs -- saying he should have won more Super Bowls.
2. Other are saying his Super Bowl win is overrated because winning a title is not important.
3. Other says he should not get credit for turning around bad teams because he didn't pick the players.
4. Other knock Dungy saying he was a figurehead...Monte Kiffin built the Tampa defense, Manning led the Colts offense.

Dungy is getting the Kurt Warner/Art Monk/Jim Rice...treatment when it comes to his career credentials.

Abbott compared Dungy to Torre, which is fair, but I wonder if he compares more to Madden? Very similar regular season winning percentages. Can make some of the same complaints (he didn't put together the team, he was a figurehead, he didn't win enough in the playoffs, etc.) Because of my age, of course, I think Madden was the better coach, but how much better than Dungy?

 

The argument is a matter of degrees, which is what you get when ranking someone or something. He's at least very good, perhaps excellent, but great? Would he go into the Hall of Fame as a head coach?

Is Dungy the 20th best coach of All Time?

If you want to talk about taking nothing and making something, you have to put Tom Coughlin out there. He took an expansion team to a winning record in their second season, and then won 36 games in the 3 following seasons. Coughlin took the lesser Manning, as a rookie, and won 2 Super Bowls including the greatest upset in pro football championship history.

 

Seriously?

 

While I think Dungy is likely underrated as a coach, Coughlin is comically underrated. When is the last time he was on the cover of a major magazine or got a major profile? He had a book come out this spring, and it barely registered to the outside world. He is like Curtis Martin -- a guy doing great in New York and no one talks about it.

 

Shula wishes he had the kind of talent on those Miami teams that Dungy had in Indy.

 

Was he not the HC of the Giants before Eli Manning was aquired? Was he not the HC of the Giants when they won 2 Super Bowls? Isn't Peyton better than Eli? Is not the Giants defeat of the previously undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl the greatest upset in pro football history? Not the greatest game, but the greatest upset?

 

How many times do you think Coughlin was asked to do something like that and he told them to fuck off?

It's his own doing. And I respect him for it, especially considering the other NYC team does the exact opposite.

 

Don Coryell and Dan Fouts are sweating this thread and don't know why...

 

Dungy also is very similar to George Seifert, although Seifert had one more title...

I am not saying Dungy isn't a good coach. I'm just saying he's not in my top 20. He'd probably be in the 25-30 range. I find him comparable to Holmgren. The difference is, Dungy will make the HOF, probably on his first try, while Holmgren isn't likely to get in.