NFL mock draft of head coaches: Who follows Andy Reid at No. 1?

Another day, another mock draft. But this one has a huge twist.

Instead of drafting NFL prospects, we're drafting head coaches. For the selection order, Yardbarker NFL writers used the 2024 NFL Draft order, but we gave Carolina, Cleveland and Houston their first-round picks back, so each team gets one selection to draft a head coach.

Along with active NFL HCs, college coaches and NFL coaches let go within the last year — Mike Vrabel in Tennessee, Bill Belichick in New England and others — were available.

So suspend reality. Enjoy this latest mock. Remember: The real NFL Draft is April 25-27 in Detroit.

Meanwhile, Carolina Panthers, you are on our clock... (2023 regular-season records are in parenthesis.)

1. CAROLINA PANTHERS (2-15) | Andy Reid | Going from a potential dynasty to the worst team in the league would be a jarring shift for Reid. But the three-time Super Bowl winner previously inherited Eagles and Chiefs teams that won a combined five games the season before his arrival and had both in the playoffs within two years. — Eric Smithling

2. WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (4-13) | Sean McVay | McVay spent seven years as an assistant coach in Washington (2010-16) and returns to D.C. with a pair of conference championships and a Super Bowl ring in his pocket. Widely considered one of the brightest minds in football, he’s perfect for a young quarterback like USC’s Caleb Williams or North Carolina’s Drake Maye, both of whom are on the Commanders' radar in the 2024 NFL Draft. — Bruce Ewing

3. NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (4-13) | Kyle Shanahan | With New England positioned to land a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft, bringing in an offensive-minded coach like Shanahan would be beneficial for the rookie's development and for the team's rebuilding process. In five of Shanahan's seven seasons as San Francisco's head coach, the offense ranked in the top 12 in yards, and by his third year in charge, the 49ers were in the Super Bowl. — Colum Dell

4. ARIZONA CARDINALS (4-13) | Mike Tomlin | Tomlin doesn't have a playoff win with the Steelers since the 2016 season, which is a concern and warrants criticism, but he would give the Cardinals something they have lacked for years: relevance. Tomlin has kept Pittsburgh in the playoff hunt despite having some of the league’s worst quarterback play the past three years and would get a huge upgrade at the position with a healthy Kyler Murray. — Adam Gretz

5. LOS ANGELES CHARGERS (5-12) | John Harbaugh | The Chargers recently hired his brother, Jim, but the Baltimore HC is an even better fit because he would absolutely solve L.A.’s defensive problems. Los Angeles finished 23rd in the league points allowed (23.4) while the Ravens finished first (16.2) in 2023. — Clark Dalton

6. NEW YORK GIANTS (6-11) | Jim Harbaugh | With 20 years of head-coaching experience in college and the pros, John’s little brother has a long list of accomplishments, including Michigan’s national championship in 2023. With a 118-46 record in college at Michigan and Stanford and a 44-19-1 regular-season record in the NFL, Harbaugh knows how to build a team and won’t be intimidated by the New York media. — Bruce Ewing

7. TENNESSEE TITANS (6-11) | Brian Callahan | This may come as a shock to many, but the Titans moved on from a proven winner in Mike Vrabel, a coach who took them to an AFC Championship Game and won two division titles in six years, because they wanted to set the bar higher. Callahan is GM Ran Carthon’s handpicked head coach, and it makes more sense to stay the course than be tempted by household names like Bill Belichick and Sean Payton. — Michael Gallagher

8. ATLANTA FALCONS (7-10) | Dan Campbell | The former NFL tight end successfully turned the Lions into a contender, and it’s easy to see his aggressive personality translating well in Atlanta. At the very least, we could expect Campbell to use the Falcons first-round running back Bijan Robinson in the red zone more often after the rookie finished the season with only 23 carries inside the 20-yard line as opposed to Lions 2023 first-rounder Jahmyr Gibbs, who led the team with 37 red-zone rush attempts. — Eric Smithling

9. CHICAGO BEARS (7-10)  | Matt LaFleur | Five seasons into his head-coaching career, 44-year-old LaFleur is still one of the best young minds in the NFL. With the Packers, he went from Hall of Fame QB Aaron Rodgers to Jordan Love without missing much of a beat, all while leading the youngest roster in NFL history to within a few breaks of an NFC Championship Game berth. — Mike Santa Barbara

10. NEW YORK JETS (7-10) | Sean Payton | After ranking as a bottom-five scoring offense in each of the past five seasons, the Jets would benefit from having an offensive-minded coach like Payton, who can produce immediate results. The one-time Super Bowl champion led the Saints to nine top-five finishes in points per game during his tenure and turned a Broncos offense that scored the fewest points in 2022 into the 19th-ranked scoring offense this season. — Colum Dell

11. MINNESOTA VIKINGS (7-10) | Kevin O’Connell | The Vikings have shown promise under O'Connell, navigating through injuries and bad luck, so it's wise to stay the course. Minnesota has finished among the top 10 in offensive yards in each of his two seasons at the helm, and the 38-year-old won 20 games faster than any coach in team history. — Mike Santa Barbara

12. DENVER BRONCOS (8-9) | Mike McDaniel | The Broncos will probably release Russell Wilson and draft a replacement, so they need a QB whisperer. Tua Tagovailoa has flourished in two seasons under McDaniel, a Colorado native, and made his first Pro Bowl this season. — Clark Dalton

13. LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (8-9) | Bill Belichick | The six-time Super Bowl champion struggled in three of his past four seasons with New England, but he’s still one of the greatest coaches in league history. Las Vegas has better players, including Pro Bowl DE Maxx Crosby, who would thrive under the defensive mastermind. — Clark Dalton

14. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (9-8)  | Zac Taylor | From “Who Dey” to “Who Dat,” Taylor would be an excellent choice to resurrect this offense. He kept Cincinnati's offense from cratering with backup quarterback Jake Browning, finishing 2023 with a 9-8 record, the same as the Saints with starter Derek Carr playing all 17 regular-season games. — Eric Smithling

15. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS (9-8) | Nick Sirianni | Indy’s former offensive coordinator returns home to mentor 2023 No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson. Sirianni has helped Jalen Hurts develop into a top-10 passer (he finished runner-up in the MVP voting two seasons ago) with the Eagles, and he even got a 4,169-yard, 24-touchdown season out of a then-39-year-old Philip Rivers in 2020 with Indianapolis. He'd be the perfect guy to develop Richardson and build an offense suited to his strengths. — Michael Gallagher

16. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (9-8) | Mike Vrabel | The only thing more surprising than Tennessee parting ways with Vrabel is that nobody hired him for the 2024 season. He would be a perfect fit for a Seattle team that needs a defensive mind to not only improve a unit that has been 25th in the league two years in a row, but also has a talented young core that must be coached up. — Adam Gretz

17.  JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS (9-8) | Kevin Stefanski | The fact Stefanski has two 11-win seasons in four years with the Cleveland Browns proves the dude can coach. The Jags would be thrilled if Stefanski got the kind of production out of Trevor Lawrence as he got from Case Keenum in 2017 and Kirk Cousins in 2018 and 2019, when he was QB coach/offensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings. — Michael Gallagher

18. CINCINNATI BENGALS (9-8)  | Sean McDermott | Heading into his fifth season in 2024, QB Joe Burrow is about to enter the prime. McDermott would instantly improve the defense, which allowed the second-most total yards per game (374.6) in 2023, and make the Bengals one of the most complete teams in the NFL. — Aaron Becker

19. LOS ANGELES RAMS (10-7) | Raheem Morris | The Rams were ecstatic to see Morris get another head-coaching opportunity (Atlanta), so it is a natural fit given the available options. Morris is an innovative defensive mind who helped the Rams win a Super Bowl during the 2021 season and helped get them back to the playoffs in 2023. — Adam Gretz

20. PITTSBURGH STEELERS (10-7) | Shane Steichen | Whether the Steelers roll with Kenny Pickett or another quarterback next season, they need all the help they can get on offense. Steichen played a large role in the development of Chargers QB Justin Herbert and Eagles QB Jalen Hurts and could get the most out of Pittsburgh’s young and talented offense. — Aaron Becker

21. MIAMI DOLPHINS (11-6) | Antonio Pierce | Despite his limited NFL head-coaching experience with the Raiders (5-4 record), the former Giants linebacker is someone who players gravitate toward, and his leadership qualities would be invaluable for a talented Dolphins team aiming to get over the hump. Over the nine games under Pierce this season, the Raiders allowed the fewest points per game in that span (16). — Colum Dell

22. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (11-6) | Lincoln Riley | Quarterback Jalen Hurts looks broken, so who better to fix him than the man who coached him at Oklahoma in 2019, when Hurts threw for 32 touchdowns and 3,851 yards? Currently the head man at USC, Riley appeared on the sidelines for Philadelphia’s wild-card loss to Tampa Bay and, per Ed Kracz of si.com, the Eagles reached out to him before hiring Nick Sirianni in 2021.— Bruce Ewing

23. CLEVELAND BROWNS (11-6) | Dan Quinn | Quinn led one of the top defenses in the league during his stint as the Cowboys defensive coordinator (2021-23). He would follow suit with Cleveland’s defense by using DE Myles Garrett in a similar fashion to LB Micah Parsons, who has 40.5 sacks in three seasons.— Aaron Becker

24. DALLAS COWBOYS (12-5) | Mike McCarthy | Playoff futility aside, McCarthy has a .620 regular-season win percentage (167-102-2 overall) and is simply too good to ignore this late in the draft. With former DC Dan Quinn taking secondary coach/passing game coordinator Joe Witt Jr. with him to Washington (for real), the Cowboys could use some stability. — Bruce Ewing

25. GREEN BAY PACKERS (9-8) | Doug Pederson | The former Packers player and coach is a proven QB guru who has led two teams to the playoffs and one, the Philadelphia Eagles, to a Super Bowl title during the 2017 season. His experience and ties to the Packers make him a decent fit to lead the youngest team in the NFL. — Mike Santa Barbara

26. TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS (9-8) | DeMeco Ryans | The Associated Press Coach of the Year runner-up was phenomenal with the Texans and has too bright of a future to fall any farther in this mock. The former 49ers defensive coordinator is part of the in-vogue Kyle Shanahan coaching tree, making him even more of a slam-dunk hire. — Eric Smithling

27. HOUSTON TEXANS (10-7) | Pete Carroll | Despite being 72, Carroll is still one of the sharpest football minds in the league. His track record of turning Russell Wilson into an elite, Super Bowl-winning QB (before his Denver days) and taking 32-year-old journeyman Geno Smith and turning him into a two-time Pro Bowler will help C.J. Stroud’s development stay on track. — Michael Gallagher

28. BUFFALO BILLS (11-6) | Brian Daboll | Daboll, the 2022 Coach of the Year and former Bills offensive coordinator, has proven he can succeed with limited talent — and, more importantly, maximize QB Josh Allen's potential. Reuniting Daboll with Allen, who became an All-Pro under the 48-year-old's tutelage and has led the NFL in turnovers since his departure (41), would be a seamless transition for a Buffalo team with Super Bowl aspirations.— Colum Dell

29. DETROIT LIONS (12-5) | Robert Saleh | Saleh might not be the greatest fit for an offensive powerhouse like the Lions, but he would help shore up a leaky defense that ranked 23rd in points against this season. Over the past two years, Saleh has presided over the fifth- (2022) and third- (2023) best defenses in the NFL in yards against, and he'd likely produce a similar turnaround with Detroit's unit.— Mike Santa Barbara

30. BALTIMORE RAVENS (13-4) | Mike Macdonald |  Macdonald was one of the league’s hottest head-coaching candidates this offseason after leading the NFL’s top scoring defense in 2023. He’s been learning under John Harbaugh for almost a decade, holding several different positions on the Ravens defensive coaching staff, and can now pick up right where he left off as he takes Harbaugh's job. — Aaron Becker

31.  SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (12-5) | Todd Bowles | He did a great job handling the first year of the post-Tom Brady era in Tampa Bay by leading the Buccaneers to an NFC South title and helping to get Baker Mayfield's career back on track. A strong defensive coach whose defenses are typically in the top-10 in points allowed, he would be an excellent fit with the team's defensive personnel. — Adam Gretz

32. KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (11-6) | Dave Canales | Canales — whom the Panthers recently hired — is unproven as an HC, but he helped Baker Mayfield salvage his career while he served as Buccaneers OC. Imagine what he could do with two-time MVP Patrick Mahomes. — Clark Dalton