2025-26 NFL Coach of the Year Odds Tracker: Vrabel Honored for Pats Turnaround

• Look back at the odds to win the 2025-26 NFL Coach of the Year award
• Mike Vrabel won the award after an incredible first season with the Patriots, but he was not favored until the second half of the season
• Looking for the latest NFL Coach of the Year odds?

Mike Vrabel won the 2025-26 NFL Coach of the Year award after the remarkable turnaround the Patriots experienced in his first year as head coach. Vrabel was one of the top contenders when odds opened, since he checked off the boxes of being a new coach and also taking over a bad team, but he did experience adversity early in the season, and was not seen as the favorite until much later in the season.

You can look back at how the Coach of the Year odds changed throughout the 2025-26 NFL season below.

2025-26 NFL Coach of the Year Odds

Top 3 All Contenders All

Vrabel had been lingering as a close second in the odds starting in October, as his Patriots had taken over the top spot in the AFC East, notably knocking off the Bills. New England’s Week 10 signature win over the Bucs was enough for sportsbooks to make Vrabel the favorite, and he has not looked back since. Vrabel remains the favorite in spite of losing to the Bills in Week 15.

In his first season at the helm, Vrabel turned a 4-13 Patriots team from a season ago into a 14-3 team who has a chance to make a run in the playoffs.

Mike Macdonald is given the second-best odds right now, as his Seahawks locked up the top seed in the NFC, finishing with an impressive 14-3 record.

The top NFL Coach of the Year contenders after Week 18 are:

1. Mike Vrabel, Patriots (-365 consensus odds)
2. Mike Macdonald, Seahawks (+405)
3. Liam Cohen, Jaguars (+775)
4. Ben Johnson, Bears (+7750)
5. Sean Payton, Broncos (+15000)

The coaches making the most notable rise up the NFL COY odds after Week 18 are:

• Liam Cohen: the Jaguars clinched their division title and get to play at home in the Wild Card round. In his first season as head coach, Cohen turned a 4-13 Jaguars team into a 13-4 team, and reminded the world why Trevor Lawrence was so highly touted coming out of college. Cohen’s odds to win Coach of the Year improved from +1200 to +775 after Week 18.

And the coaches who saw their odds fall most notably include:

• Kyle Shanahan: though Shanahan did a fantastic job navigating the 49ers through a rash of injuries this season, his Coach of the Year odds tanked after losing to the Seahawks in Week 18, which cost the 49ers the top seed in the NFC. Shanahan’s Coach of the Year odds faded from an average of +161 to +30000 after the loss.

Here are some notes on the 2025-26 Coach of the Year odds movement we have seen:

• [November 11] Though Steichen’s Colts also recorded a win in Week 10, it wasn’t as impressive as Mike Vrabel and the Patriots’ win over the Buccaneers, according to sportsbooks. This is what led to Vrabel taking over as the COY favorite following Week 10.
• [September 16] Shane Steichen took over as the new favorite after beating the Broncos, and helping Daniel Jones throw for 316 yards against what was believed to be a stingy Denver defense.
• [September 9] Liam Cohen became the new favorite to win Coach of the Year after his Jaguars put together a convincing win over the Panthers in Week 1.
• [August 29] Ben Johnson reclaimed the best odds to win Coach of the Year after the Bears’ starting offense put together some encouraging drives during the preseason.
• [August 15] Bettors had to be appreciating Jonathan Gannon, as the Cardinals’ coach saw his odds improve from an average of +2500 in late-June to +1700 in mid-August.
• [July 22] Mike Vrabel overtook Ben Johnson as the favorite to win NFL Coach of the Year. Neither saw their odds move much at this time, and it was likely just the result of money coming in on Vrabel.
• [March 14] After the Bears added three new starting offensive linemen during free agency, acquiring two of them via trades, as well as bolstering the interior of their defense, Ben Johnson’s NFL Coach of the Year odds improved from +700 to +550.
• [March 7] Pete Carroll was already among the COY favorites prior to the Raiders acquiring Geno Smith, but most sportsbooks did not adjust his odds after the trade. ESPN Bet, however, quickly moved Carroll from +1400 to +1000 after the former Seahawks head coach was reunited with his quarterback.
• [February 12] The opening 2025-26 NFL Coach of the Year odds favor Ben Johnson, who is a first-time head coach and accepted the Bears job. Sportsbooks obviously like the talent Johnson is inheriting in Chicago, and understand he would be a front-runner in the eyes of the voters if he was able to get Caleb Williams going after a rough rookie season.

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