The 3 best bets for NFL Coach of the Year
Following our three best picks for the next head coach to be fired, we dive into our top-three Coach of the Year candidates.
Favorite - Sean Payton (+350)
Sitting at 11-2 on the season, New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton is currently in a three-way tie with Kansas City's Andy Reid (+400) and L.A.'s Sean McVay (+400).
It's tough to cross off a head coach who has his team in contention for a Super Bowl, but McVay is potentially behind the eight ball. He took home the award last season, piloting the Rams to an 11-5 record and an NFC West title in Year 1 after a dismal 4-12 campaign. However, history isn't on his side, as the last time a coach took home the honor in back-to-back seasons was in 1982-83.
Reid often gets the Bill Belichick treatment - winning at a consistent rate to the point where it becomes normal. Despite taking the league by storm with a second-year quarterback and being in a prime spot to take the AFC West, Reid needs to win out to stay in the mix. The Chiefs still have a tough divisional game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday and will have to play in Seattle the following week. Considering the Chiefs' preseason win total had them pegged as the worst team in the division, it would be a shame to overlook Reid if Kansas City does win out.
Payton is aiming for his first 13-plus-win season since 2011 and will likely lock the feat up with New Orleans favored in all three games to close out the season. McVay and Reid are nipping at his heels in the odds race, but there's no reason to get cute with this one.
Underdog - Matt Nagy (+500)
Nagy, in a sense, is this year's version of McVay - the former inherited a three-win Chicago Bears team that didn't have a single player voted to the Pro Bowl last season and is in a position to win the NFC North in his first year at the helm. The Bears also cemented themselves as a legitimate threat after a prime-time win over the Rams on Monday Night Football in Week 14. Flipping the tables with an 11- or 12-win season should have Nagy firmly in the discussion for Coach of the Year.
Long shot - Pete Carroll (+1200)
Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is in the third tier with Miami's Adam Gase (+1000), Houston's Bill O'Brien, and Dallas' Jason Garrett (+1200). Projected to win 8.5 games in the preseason, Carroll and the Seahawks could possibly run the table and finish the year in the spotlight.
Carroll is overachieving in a year in which some thought back-to-back subpar seasons would be answered with yet another step in the wrong direction for a franchise facing a potential rebuild. Instead, Carroll has the Seahawks in the playoff mix at 8-5 and is coming off one of the biggest wins of the season on the national stage. There's also a chance Seattle can win out and finish 11-5, with home games coming against Arizona and Kansas City after playing San Francisco on the road.
Alex Kolodziej is theScore's betting writer. He's a graduate of Eastern Illinois who has been involved in the sports betting industry for 11 years. He can quote every line from "Rounders" and appreciates franchises that regularly wear alternate jerseys. Find him on Twitter @AlexKoIodziej.