Each year, a handful of candidates emerge as the names to watch as somewhere around half a dozen teams enter the offseason with head coaching vacancies that will eventually be filled. These top-tier football minds often boast either a head coaching resume that serves as proof of concept, or a resume as a coordinator that indicates the best is yet to come.
Houston Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke falls into the latter category, as he's been the architect of a defense that has steadily improved over the last three years and emerged as the best unit in the NFL during the 2025 NFL season.