Career-Boosting Qualities of NFL Coaching Legends

If you've been feeling the effects of football deprivation for months now, the long wait is almost over: On Sept. 7, the Kansas City Chiefs take on the New England Patriots, the reigning Super Bowl champs, (literally) kicking off the regular NFL season. That game, of course, will feature the man who is widely considered to be the best coach in the game, Bill Belichick of the Patriots. Belichick is obsessive when it comes to preparation, a much-valued trait in business as well as sports. Most celebrated coaches, in fact, command a wide range of characteristics and skills that organizations look for in their executives and managers. With this in mind, we've come up with the following breakdown of essential qualities of top NFL coaches—qualities that are also valued in business and government. They include current coaches such as Belichick, Ron Rivera of the Carolina Panthers and Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks, as well as legendary coaches of the past such as Joe Gibbs of the Washington Redskins, Bill Walsh of the San Francisco 49ers and Vince Lombardi of the Green Bay Packers. The range of decades represented here illustrates how certain leadership strengths—work ethic, people management and a commitment to innovation—have stood the test of time, whether on a football field or in an office building.