RIP Don Shula. There have been many great coaches in the NFL but Don Shula is the winningest coach in history...
Shula, an NFL head coach for 33 years and coach of the Miami Dolphins for 26 of those seasons, was exactly four months past his 90th birthday. He is the winningest coach in NFL history with a regular-season record of 328-156-6 and a postseason record of 19-17.
His 347 career victories is 47 victories ahead of Bill Belichick, who is the closest active coach to Shula’s victory mark with 300 wins.
So Belichick, 68, would need four more 10-win seasons to get close to but still not surpass Shula’s victory milestone.
Shula coached 33 years with the final 26 of those on the Dolphins sideline. His teams made the playoffs 20 times in 33 years in a league that didn’t expand the playoff field to the present day format until after Shula retired.
Don Shula’s team suffered a losing season only twice in 33 years. The Dolphins either won or shared their division title 15 times in 26 years.
“He was the best of all time, simple as that,” Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino said.