2026 NFL Coach of the Year Odds, Picks & Predictions: Best Bets
The 2026 NFL season is here, and the Coach of the Year race offers plenty of intriguing options across the futures market. The award often rewards coaches who exceed preseason expectations, engineer major turnarounds or guide their teams toward the top of the standings.
Jesse Minter and John Harbaugh enter the season as +750 co-favorites, followed by Brian Schottenheimer at +950. However, recent Coach of the Year history suggests bettors shouldn’t be afraid to look further down the odds board. Below, Picks and Parlays NFL handicapper Steve Seagrave breaks down the latest 2026 NFL Coach of the Year odds, recent winners and key betting trends before revealing our two best bets for the upcoming season.
2026 NFL Coach of the Year Odds
Here are the latest NFL Coach of the Year odds:
| Coach | Team | COY Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Jesse Minter | Baltimore | +750 |
| John Harbaugh | NY Giants | +750 |
| Brian Schottenheimer | Dallas | +950 |
| Kellen Moore | New Orleans | +1200 |
| Klint Kubiak | Las Vegas | +1200 |
| Robert Saleh | Tennessee | +1600 |
| Kevin Stefanski | Atlanta | +1600 |
| Joe Brady | Buffalo | +1600 |
| Mike McCarthy | Pittsburgh | +2000 |
| Kevin O’Connell | Minnesota | +2000 |
| Dan Campbell | Detroit | +2200 |
Past NFL Coach of the Year Winners
Looking at recent NFL Coach of the Year winners and their preseason odds provides some additional context when evaluating the 2026 futures market. Only two of the last 10 winners entered the season shorter than +1400, while several coaches have cashed at +2000 or longer.
| Season | Coach of the Year | Team | Preseason Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mike Vrabel | New England Patriots | +600 |
| 2024 | Kevin O’Connell | Minnesota | +2000 |
| 2023 | Kevin Stefanski | Cleveland | +3000 |
| 2022 | Brian Daboll | NY Giants | +1400 |
| 2021 | Mike Vrabel | Tennessee | +2500 |
| 2020 | Kevin Stefanski | Cleveland | +2000 |
| 2019 | John Harbaugh | Baltimore | +2800 |
| 2018 | Matt Nagy | Chicago | +875 |
| 2017 | Sean McVay | LA Rams | +5000 |
| 2016 | Jason Garrett | Dallas | +2800 |
NFL Coach of the Year Betting Trends
- Only one coach has won the award despite his team finishing below .500 in the standings that season, with Jimmy Johnson accomplishing the feat in 1990.
- There have been 13 multiple winners of the NFL Coach of the Year award, with Don Shula, Chuck Knox and Bill Belichick each winning at least three times.
- Winning the award in consecutive seasons has been extremely difficult. There has not been a back-to-back NFL Coach of the Year winner since Joe Gibbs accomplished the feat in 1982 and 1983.
2026 NFL Coach of the Year Predictions and Picks
Last season, we correctly predicted Mike Vrabel to win NFL Coach of the Year as the +600 favorite. This season, we’ll look a little further down the board and split our bet between two coaches offering considerably larger payouts.
NFL Coach of the Year Best Bet #1: Joe Brady +1600
Joe Brady +1600 is our first best bet to win the 2026 NFL Coach of the Year award.
Five of the last nine winners were first-year coaches with their current team, and Brady fits that profile in Buffalo. He takes over a Bills team that was a perennial contender under Sean McDermott but is coming off a season in which Buffalo failed to win the AFC East.
Brady has established a reputation as an offensive innovator and helped LSU win the National Championship as the Tigers’ passing game coordinator in 2019. He now gets an opportunity to lead a Buffalo roster capable of immediately returning to the top of the AFC.
The Bills’ strength of schedule ranks around the middle of the pack depending on the metric, but their slate includes four games against rebuilding AFC East opponents in the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. That creates an opportunity for Buffalo to pile up wins and contend for one of the conference’s top playoff seeds.
If the Bills earn the No. 1 seed in the AFC, Brady would have an extremely compelling Coach of the Year case. The narrative of a first-year head coach immediately leading his new team to the conference’s best record is exactly the type of storyline that can attract voters.
At +1600, Brady provides an appealing combination of price, roster quality and narrative potential in the 2026 NFL Coach of the Year futures market.
2026 NFL Coach of the Year Best Bet #1: Joe Brady +1600
NFL Coach of the Year Best Bet #2: Dan Campbell +2200
Dan Campbell +2200 is our second best bet to win the 2026 NFL Coach of the Year award.
Campbell has established himself as one of the NFL’s best coaches over the last three seasons, but he has still never won Coach of the Year. Detroit was decimated by injuries last season and still managed to finish 9-8 despite beginning the year with two new coordinators.
After finishing last in the NFC North, the Lions enter 2026 with the sixth-easiest schedule in the NFL. Their non-rotation games against the Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars could provide Detroit with additional opportunities to improve its record and return to the postseason.
Campbell also has plenty of offensive talent at his disposal. Jared Goff has led the NFL in passing yards and touchdowns over the last four seasons, while Detroit’s collection of playmakers includes Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Sam LaPorta and Jameson Williams.
The combination gives Detroit the offensive firepower necessary to once again emerge as one of the NFC’s top teams. If the Lions rebound from a 9-8 season and contend for the No. 1 seed in the conference, Campbell should receive serious consideration for the award.
There could also be an element of an “overdue” narrative surrounding Campbell after Detroit’s success over the past several seasons without him winning Coach of the Year.
At +2200, Campbell offers an excellent price on a coach whose team has the potential to make one of the league’s biggest year-over-year jumps.
2026 NFL Coach of the Year Best Bet #2: Dan Campbell +2200
2026 NFL Coach of the Year Best Bets
Recent NFL Coach of the Year history shows that bettors don’t necessarily need to target the preseason favorites. Seven of the last 10 winners entered the season at odds of +2000 or longer, creating plenty of incentive to search further down the board for value.
Joe Brady offers an intriguing combination of first-year head coach narrative and immediate championship expectations with the Buffalo Bills. If Buffalo rebounds to win the AFC East and challenges for the conference’s No. 1 seed, Brady could quickly emerge as one of the favorites for the award.
Dan Campbell provides an even bigger potential payout at +2200. Detroit is coming off an injury-plagued 9-8 campaign, but a healthier Lions roster combined with a favorable schedule could put Campbell in position to finally capture his first Coach of the Year award.
Best Bet #1: Joe Brady +1600
Best Bet #2: Dan Campbell +2200
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