Steichen has had a couple of down years with Gardner Minshew and navigating the development of Anthony Richardson, but he’s had success with several different types of quarterbacks throughout his career, including helping Justin Herbert have one of the best rookie seasons of all time. He went from running a play-action-heavy, downfield passing attack to architecting the Eagles’ quarterback-run, RPO-style attack they still use.
“I think he’s caused more panic timeouts by defenses and opposing head coaches than almost anybody. He’s stolen more plays than a lot of people have,” an AFC defensive coach said.
From a play design standpoint, he’s one of the more creative coaches in the league, and some coaches believe the Colts offense would be one of the best if he had just good quarterback play. It’s understandable why he went with Daniel Jones if he believes he can “play the game through Jones” similarly to how McVay did with Goff in his early years with the Rams.
Honorable mentions: Kliff Kingsbury, Commanders; Mike McDaniel, Dolphins; Arthur Smith, Steelers; Drew Petzing, Cardinals; Greg Roman, Chargers; Joe Brady, Bills.