December 20

What a year it has been for NFL coaches! We have seen Colts' coach Tony Dungy bring his team to the brink of perfection. Even with the week 15 loss to San Diego, the Colts are still head and shoulders above every other team, and Dungy might be well on his way to the Hall of Fame. It has been the year for upstart coaches, including the Bengals' Marvin Lewis and the Bears' Lovie Smith, both of whose teams are primed for a run toward the Superbowl and boast one of the best offenses and defenses in the NFL.

The Seahawks' coach Mike Holmgren might have quietly been the most underrated NFL coach this season with his team battling for home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs and possessing all the weapons and discipline to make a run deep into January. Old veterans like Steelers' coach Bill Cower, and Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs have their teams playing at top level. We must not forget the coach of the champs three out of the past four years, the Patriots' Bill Belichick, whose players incurred so many injuries that the bench looked like an emergency room waiting area., had it easy; Belichick has the Pats playing like they did when they went all the way.