http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2017/01/12/nfls-young-coaches-have-been-a-mixed-bag/
NFL’s young coaches have been a mixed bag
Posted by Michael David Smith on January 12, 2017
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The Rams have made 30-year-old Sean McVay the youngest head coach in modern NFL history, and he’s immediately drawing comparisons to the man he replaced for that distinction, former Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin. But while it’s true that Kiffin was both a young head coach and an unsuccessful head coach, there have been some success stories among the youngest head coaches as well.
Mike Tomlin and Bill Cowher were both 34 when they became head coach of the Steelers, and both won Super Bowls. Jon Gruden was 34 when he was hired by the Raiders. He had success in Oakland and then even more success in Tampa Bay. Go a little further back, and Hall of Fame coaches John Madden and Don Shula were hired at ages 32 and 33, respectively.
If you go
really far back you’ll actually find lots of player/coaches who were younger than McVay, such as George Halas, who was 25 years old in his first season leading the Decatur Staleys, who would soon change their name to the Chicago Bears. But we’re talking only about the modern NFL.
With that in mind, here are the coaches who, along with McVay, make up the 10
youngest NFL coaches in modern history, with their ages at the time they were hired:
Lane Kiffin, Raiders, 31 years, 8 months: Had a miserable and short tenure in Oakland characterized by major disagreements with Al Davis about quarterback JaMarcus Russell.
Harland Svare, Rams, 31 years, 11 months: Took over in the middle of the 1962 season and became something of an old-time Jeff Fisher, with surprising job security despite frequently mediocre teams. Svare resigned from his second head-coaching job, with the Chargers, in the middle of the 1973 season even though he had signed a five-year contract extension just a year earlier.
John Michelosen, Steelers, 32 years, 2 months: Never got to the playoffs in four years with the Steelers, finishing with a 20-26-2 record from 1948 to 1951.
Raheem Morris, Buccaneers, 32 years, 4 months: Got fired after three seasons and a 17-31 record from 2009 to 2011. Is currently the assistant head coach and wide receivers coach for the Falcons. Hasn’t drawn a lot of interest for other coaching vacancies.
David Shula, Bengals, 32 years, 7 months: Has one of the worst coaching records in NFL history, 19-52. Left coaching after the Bengals fired him to work in his father’s steakhouse business.
Josh McDaniels, Broncos, 32 years, 8 months: Was fired during his second season after compiling an 11-17 record. Is now a well-regarded assistant with the Patriots who is seen as a likely future head coach.
John Madden, Raiders, 32 years, 10 months: A Hall of Famer with the highest winning percentage of any coach in modern NFL history. Retired to become the NFL’s most popular TV broadcaster, a hugely successful commercial endorser and the front man for a video game that has generated billions of dollars in revenues.
Don Shula, Colts, 33 years, 4 days: Got the Colts to the playoffs three times, then went to the Dolphins, where he became the winningest coach in NFL history.
Al Davis, Raiders, 33 years, 6 months: Before he hired Kiffin and Madden in Oakland, Davis coached the team himself. He was AFL coach of the year in 1963, his first year coaching the Raiders.