The odds for the NFL Coach of the Year have been updated, with a few familiar faces in new places near the top of the board.
Sportsbooks have installed Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell as the favorite after their 5-1 start. Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has closed the gap significantly of late, and now sits just behind O'Connell at +300 odds. Let's dive into the latest 2024 NFL Coach of the Year odds.
NFL Coach of the Year Odds
Odds as of Oct. 21
NFL Coach Of The Year Best Bet
Aside from the betting favorites for the Coach of the Year award, there are several value plays on the board that could land you a huge payday. Kevin O'Connell has done a wonderful job of guiding Sam Darnold and his Vikings to a 5-1 record. O'Connell's odds trending in the wrong direction does little to give us confidence. His odds are so juiced at +270, the real value lies elsewhere on the board.
Matt Lafleur +1200
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt Lafleur deserves his flowers for the monumental job of coaching his squad to a 2-0 record without the services of Jordan Love. Now, the Packers are on a three-game winning streak with their young gunslinger back under center. Lafleur's odds have now dropped from +2500 to +2000, all the way to +1200 over the last three-weeks. Jump on the Packers head honcho to win NFL Coach of the Year while there's still time.
Lafleur diversified his offensive approach and created a rushing attack so devastating it has defensive coordinators perplexed, even without his star quarterback.
The Packers head honcho also made the switch from the passive defense of former coordinator Joe Barry to the aggressive attacking unit of Jeff Hafley this off-season. That decision has already provided dividends, as the Packers lead the league with 17 total takeaways, and eight fumble recoveries.
Green Bay's impressive stretch has proven that coaching is a massive proponent of success in the National Football League. Lafleur is a prime example of that. The early success with a backup quarterback will be the springboard for a team that has Super Bowl goals this season. At +1200 odds, Lafleur is the best bet on the NFL Coach of the Year board.
NFL Coach Of The Year Betting Strategy
Since 1990, when Jimmy Johnson's Dallas Cowboys went 7-9 and he took home the NFL Coach of the Year award, no coach has won the award with fewer than 10 wins. Only three times since 2000 has a coach with fewer than 11 wins won.
That's as good a place to start as any when handicapping the NFL Coach of the Year award. Seven of the last eight coaches to win the award have been first-time winners. With Kevin Stefanski of the Cleveland Browns being the only coach to win twice in that time.
Unless a squad has a particularly dominant regular season such as the 15-1 2015 Carolina Panthers and Ron Rivera, or 2019 Baltimore Ravens and John Harbaugh, you'll want to target up-and-coming coaches. Look for the men who could defy expectations and lead a historically also-ran franchise into the postseason. Everybody loves a good underdog story, and nobody more than the NFL.
As far as NFL Coach of the Year betting trends, five of the last eight winners have been under the age of 50. While four of the last seven winners have been in their debut season with a new team. The award usually goes to a coach that has galvanized his squad through adversity or exceeded preseason expectations.