Week 17 of the NFL regular season will not only have an impact on the Playoff seeding, but it will also have an impact on awards like the AP Coach of the Year honors.
Currently, this award is a two man race between AFC East rivals Sean McDermott of the Buffalo Bills and Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins. What makes this even more intriguing is that these two teams play in the final game of the season.
So, not only will the winner of the Bills vs Dolphins game decide where Buffalo finishes in the seeding and if Miami even makes the Playoffs, but it will also decide which coach wins this award.
NFL betting sites have released their odds for this award. As mentioned McDermott and Flores are the betting favorites prior to Week 17.
Can any other coach sneak in and steal this award from the AFC East’s top two coaches? Let’s huddle up to examine this NFL futures bet and make an award winning prediction.
Coach of the Year Betting Odds
The following odds are courtesy of BetOnline:
- Sean McDermott (-130)
- Brian Flores (+140)
- Kevin Stefanski (+850)
- Matt LaFleur (+1000)
- Ron Rivera (+1200)
- Mike Tomlin (+1800)
- Andy Reid (+2000)
Sean McDermott (-130)
Heading into the final week of the season, McDermott’s Buffalo Bills are sitting 12-3 and could end up as the #2 seed in the AFC Playoffs if they beat the Dolphins in Week 17.
There is some debate on whether or not the Bills should rest their starters like the Steelers are doing. As of now, it appears the Bills are looking to get the #2 seed which means they will play Josh Allen and the rest of their top stars.
If Buffalo wins this game, McDermott’s odds will grow even more as he becomes the overwhelming betting favorite for this futures bet. If Buffalo rests their starters and the team loses, it would really open up Flores’ chances of winning this award.
For McDermott, his team won the AFC East and will make the Playoffs for the 3rd time in his four year tenure with the team. He’s completely changed the culture of this franchise and has become one of the top coaches in the league.
In fact, his embrace with Bill Belichick after Buffalo stomped the Patriots on MNF in Week 16 was a sign of respect from Belichick and a sign that McDermott has risen to the upper echelon of coaches.
Brian Flores (+140)
If you took McDermott out of the equation, Brian Flores would win this award hands down. What he’s done in Miami over the last year has been remarkable.
He took a losing franchise and turned it into a Playoff contender within one season. Additionally, the franchise is set up nicely for the future with multiple first round picks over the next few years.
Coach of the Year. https://t.co/ESlzf8LCGV
— The Phinsider (@thephinsider) December 23, 2020
Furthermore, they’ve become one of the best defenses in the NFL. Miami is 10-5 on the season, but 10-3 over their last 13 games. They’ve also gone 4-1 down the stretch and eliminated the Patriots and the Raiders from Playoff contention in consecutive weeks.
Miami is on the cusp of making the postseason. A win over Buffalo would cement their spot in the Playoffs and it would also cement Flores as the winner of the NFL COY award.
Kevin Stefanski (+850)
A few weeks ago, the Cleveland Browns were sitting at 10-3 and making a push for the AFC North divisional crown. Unfortunately, they dropped two straight games and are now 10-5 with a shot at missing the postseason.
The Browns need a win to get into the Playoffs and will play against their divisional the Steelers in Week 17. Pittsburgh has already said that they would rest starters like QB Ben Roethlisberger. That increases Cleveland’s chances of winning.
However, the Browns could make the Playoffs even if they lose as long as the Colts or Dolphins lose as well.
With that said, if the Browns miss the Playoffs then head coach Kevin Stefanski has no shot at this award. Yet, even as it stands right now, Stefanski’s odds seem to be overvalued considering the Browns just lost to the Jets.
An argument could be made that the Browns loss because they were missing most of their wide receivers due to covid. Yet, the gameplan against the Jets was very suspect considering the Browns came out throwing the ball instead of running with their top ranked rushing attack.
Regardless of what happens in Week 17, Stefanski will most likely fail to close the gap on McDermott and Flores.
Matt LaFleur (+1000)
It’s a little bit surprising to see Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur with odds this high. I do think there’s some value here as the Packers are on the cusp of becoming the #1 seed in the NFC Playoffs. They need to beat the Bears in Week 17 for this to happen.
If they do end up as the NFC’s top seed then I would expect LaFleur’s odds to close the gap on Flores and McDermott.
Packers’ Mark Murphy hits a ‘home run’ with Matt LaFleur, Brian Gutekunst hires https://t.co/yMjVHJUZTi pic.twitter.com/ZrnA2VM7En
— ESPN Milwaukee (@ESPNMilwaukee) December 26, 2020
However, LaFleur does have one thing working against him and that’s his QB Aaron Rodgers who is having an MVP season. It’s as if critics have dinged LaFleur for Rodgers excelling in his system and for the team meeting preseason expectations.
Nevertheless, LaFleur deserves more credit than he’s getting.
Ron Rivera (+1200)
If anyone deserves this award for adversity and perseverance then it’s clearly Ron Rivera. The WFT head coach continued to fulfill his coaching duties despite undergoing chemotherapy treatment for the first half of the season.
Additionally, he was also saddled with the worse QB situation of any coach on this list. That was clear when the team released their 2019 first round pick Dwayne Haskins after poor play, bad attitude, and off the field issues.
Rivera has the WFT in a position to make the Playoffs by winning the NFC East. If they can beat the Eagles in Week 17 then they will win the division.
Washington has exceeded all expectations this season and it’s largely due to Rivera and that defense. Unfortunately, WFT will finish with a 7-9 record at best. This will prevent Rivera from winning the COY award.
Mike Tomlin (+1800)
At 11-0, Mike Tomlin was the odds on favorite to win the Coach of the Year award. Unfortunately for Tomlin and the Steelers, they ended up losing three straight games. The first loss was to Rivera and the WFT. The second loss was to McDermott and the Bills.
The Pittsburgh Steelers almost dropped their 4th straight game, but rallied in the second half of their matchup against the Colts to pick up a huge win in Week 16. The victory guaranteed that the Steelers would finish no worse than 3rd in the AFC Playoff seeding.
💥 Be the type of person and player that your coach celebrates, not just tolerates.
“I’ll tolerate you until I can replace you.”
―Mike Tomlin #TheChampionsMind 🏆 #Character pic.twitter.com/TuN5FeVYg3— Dr. Jim Afremow (@goldmedalmind) December 27, 2020
However, losing three in a row, dropping a MNF game to the Bengals, and losing the top two seeds in the AFC has dropped Tomlin down to a longshot for this award.
Andy Reid (+2000)
Once again, Andy Reid has the Chiefs poised for another trip to the Super Bowl. The defending NFL Champs are 14-1 heading into the final game of the season and look like the best team in the league.
They’ve defeated teams like the Bills, Ravens, Dolphins, Buccaneers, and Saints to prove that they’re the cream of the crop.
Yet, Reid is a longshot to win this award because they have arguably the most talent on the best offense in the league. Additionally, they have Patrick Mahomes who’s a former NFL MVP and Super Bowl MVP. He’s viewed as the best QB in the league and it hurts Reid’s argument for winning this award.
Who Will Be the Coach of the Year?
Stefanski, Tomlin and Reid have all done a good job overall, but there are other candidates that have done better this year.
Although I admire what Ron Rivera did in 2020, it’s hard to give this award to a coach with a team that finished 7-9 regardless if they made the Playoffs.
The darkhorse for this award is Matt LaFleur. I believe his Green Bay Packers will finish 13-3 and clinch the top spot in the NFC. However, the Packers were expected to win the NFC North this year and LaFleur’s chances of winning the COY have been hurt by such high expectations.
Sean McDermott and Brian Flores have both exceeded all expectations. The Dolphins were picked to finish 8-8 at best and not have any chance at making the Playoffs. Yet, they’re now a win away from making the postseason for the first time since 2016.
“Sean McDermott doesn’t get the appreciation he deserves, but he should be heavily considered for Coach of the Year.”
🗣 @NateBurleson pic.twitter.com/dTZC52jSzI
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) December 21, 2020
What Flores has done in Miami is remarkable. In fact, if ever an award should have co-winners it would be this year’s COY award.
With that said, I have to go with Sean McDermott to win the COY and not because he coaches my favorite team. Rather, McDermott has transformed the culture, the franchise, and the city with his grinding process.
He’s a players’ coach who keeps everyone focused and on the right track. He’s also paired up with the best GM this season in Brandon Beane. These two have taken the Bills from a fringe Wild Card team to a Super Bowl contender.
If Buffalo decides to rest their starters in Week 17 then I still believe that McDermott deserves the award. The only way that Flores should win this COY award is if Miami beats the Bills in Buffalo when they played their starters the entire game.
As for now, circle the wagons and put your money on McDermott.
Who Wins Coach of the Year? –Sean McDermott (-130)
Rick Rockwell
As a longtime freelance writer, avid sports fan, former athlete, and experienced sports bettor, Rick Rockwell has risen up the ranks at GamblingSites.org to become the self-professed “King of the Blog” in his first year with the site. …
