Chuck Noll's Place In History

The most recent episode of A Football Life aired last night on NFL Network. Former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Chuck Noll was the subject and it was excellent. Can anyone, or anything, match the success rate of NFL Films. Everything that the artists in Mt. Laurel, New Jersey do is fantastic. This episode was interconnected with Michael MacCambrige's recent book on Noll's life. A frequent talking point throughout was Chuck Noll's place among the great coaches in NFL history. MacCambridge and others debated the coach's frequent place below peers such as Don Shula and Tom Landry. I've never seen it that way. I always saw Noll as easily above Landry, four Super Bowl titles in fewer years easily outpaces two titles in more years, and about even with Shula.  

Here's the statistics of ten of the best to ever coach in the NFL

Coach	Years	Wins	Win %	Titles
Paul Brown	25	213	0.672	7 (4 AAFC)
George Halas	40	318	0.682	6
Vince Lombardi	10	96	0.738	5
Bill Belichick	22	231	0.668	4
Bill Walsh	11	92	0.609	3
Don Shula	33	328	0.677	2
Chuck Noll	23	193	0.566	4
Curly Lambeau	33	226	0.631	6
Tom Landry	29	250	0.607	2
Steve Owen	24	153	0.605	2

Noll's win percentage lags behind the rest. His final seven seasons really did a number on that statistic. That's where Shula scoots past him. Noll could've used his own Dan Marino to follow Terry Bradshaw. That second wave of success is the thing that truly separates the coaches that remained in one place for multiple decades. Shula was a consistent winner throughout his career. So much so that he had only two losing seasons in his 33 years. Maybe he's too low on my thrown together. But, this isn't about Shula. It's about Chuck Noll. If Noll had retired or moved on after ten years like Lombardi he'd probably be grouped with the legendary coaches at the top. Noll's first ten years in Pittsburgh were dynamite. A .637 win percentage and four titles. And he put an end to 37 years of consistent losing in Pittsburgh. 

When there's talk of all-time football greats there's often talk of "Mt. Rushmores." The four greatest at this or that for this or that team. The Mt. Rushmore of coaches was mentioned a few times on Noll's A Football Life. More accurately the mentions were of his place outside the top four. If it's an all-time coaching Mt. Rushmore, Noll is on the outside. An all-time group of four would have to include Paul Brown, George Halas, and some combination of Vince Lombardi, Bill Belichick and Bill Walsh. In my opinion. Some might have Don Shula, and that's hard to argue. I just feel that beyond the wins that they piled up, Walsh, Belichick and possibly Lombardi impacted the game more than Shula. Now, a Mt. Rushmore of the super-fun decade of the 1970s? That Mt. Rushmore probably starts with Chuck Noll. 

Chuck Noll

Don Shula

Tom Landry

John Madden

I'd sure like to force Bud Grant into that group but he's on the outside looking in. Losing three Super Bowls will do that to a coach. 

Chuck Noll's A Football Life was excellent. NFL Films creates nothing less. Beyond his coaching, and playing, career, Noll is one of the most interesting coaches and personalities the game has ever seen. One hour simply isn't enough. As a result, I'm really looking forward to reading Michael MacCambridge's book. Chuck Noll: His Life's Work. Like NFL Films, MacCambrige is terrific too.