Most wins by NFL coach: Bill Belichick to pass Bears legend George Halas on list of NFL's winningest coaches

Jacob Camenker

Most wins by NFL coach: Bill Belichick to pass Bears legend George Halas on list of NFL's winningest coaches image

Bill Belichick has established himself as one of the best coaches in NFL history, and perhaps the greatest of all time. That said, he is still chasing accomplishments as his legendary career continues.

He will have a chance to achieve one when the Patriots play the Bears on "Monday Night Football" in NFL Week 7.

Belichick is tied for the second-most wins in NFL history. If New England can beat Chicago in Week 7, he will move to No. 2 alone and will be trailing Don Shula as the coach with the most wins in NFL history.

One interesting aspect is that the man Belichick can pass, George Halas, is a legendary figure for the Bears. Halas played for the Bears when they were the Decatur Staleys and eventually became the franchise's owner. He moved it to Chicago, named the team the Bears and turned them into one of the NFL's most iconic and recognizable teams during his four-decade span as head coach.

Passing Halas while playing the Bears would be a sweet moment for Belichick, a noted NFL historian. Just how many wins do the two men have, and how close is Belichick to breaking the NFL's all-time coaching wins record? Here's what to know about the major milestone.

MORE: What does GSH stand for? Bears jersey a nod to all-time great George Halas

How many wins does Bill Belichick have?

Bill Belichick has 324 career wins, counting playoffs, entering Week 7 of the 2022 NFL season. He earned No. 324 in the Patriots' 38-15 drubbing of his former team the Browns in Week 6.

That victory put Belichick into a tie for second-most in NFL history with Bears legend George Halas. He will have a chance to pass Papa Bear when the Pats play Chicago on "Monday Night Football."

Bill-Belichick-01172022-Getty-FTR

Bill Belichick coaching record

Belichick's overall coaching record is 324-157. That's a .671 winning percentage, which ranks seventh among the 104 NFL coaches who have won at least 50 regular-season games in their careers.

It's no surprise that Belichick is highly rated among NFL coaches. He has found success in both the regular and postseason during his career.

Bill Belichick regular-season record

Belichick is nearing 300 career regular season wins. He will become just the third coach to reach that mark if he decides to continue coaching. His 293 wins are the third-most all time behind only Shula and Halas.

Rank Coach Team(s) Regular season wins
1 Don Shula Colts, Dolphins 328
2 George Halas Bears 318
3 Bill Belichick Browns, Patriots 293
4 Tom Landry Cowboys 250
5 Andy Reid Eagles, Chiefs 237

Bill Belichick playoff record

Where Belichick really separates himself from the pack is his playoff performance. He is the NFL's most successful postseason coach by a wide margin.

Belichick has logged 31 career playoff victories; only one other coach, Tom Landry, has totaled 20 or more.

Rank Coach Team(s) Wins
1 Bill Belichick Browns, Patriots 31
2 Tom Landry Cowboys 20
T-3 Andy Reid Eagles, Chiefs 19
T-3 Don Shula Colts, Dolphins 19
5 Joe Gibbs Washington 17

It's also noteworthy that Belichick has a .705 playoff winning percentage. That ranks fifth-best all time among coaches with at least 10 postseason games played.

Belichick has posted a winning record in 21 of his 28 years as an NFL coach. He has won at least 10 games 20 times, he has made the playoffs in 19 of those 20 seasons and has won six Super Bowls as a coach.

Belichick's numbers compare well to the all-time NFL greats, including those of Halas.

MORE: Where Bill Belichick ranks among the NFL's oldest active coaches

Bill Belichick vs. George Halas, by the numbers

Belichick has coached 12 fewer seasons than Halas to this point. Halas helmed the Bears until he was 72 — with a couple of brief steps away from coaching mixed in — and is considered one of the greatest coaches in the early history of the NFL.

Belichick may not have the same longevity that Halas did, but by today's standards, Belichick has incredible job security. He has posted numbers similar to those of Halas despite coaching fewer seasons thanks, in part, to the NFL's expanded schedule.

Even still, the two have nearly identical winning percentages through nearly 500 games coached by each.

Below is a breakdown of how the duo compare, with Halas having more regular-season success and Belichick being the best postseason coach in NFL history.

Stat Halas Belichick
Seasons coached 40 28
Games coached 506 483
Total wins 324 324
Winning percentage 0.6709 0.6708
Regular-season wins 318 293
Playoff wins 6 31
NFL championships 6 6

Belichick has Halas beaten in terms of playoff wins by a wide margin, in part because the NFL used to employ a one-game postseason that featured the two regular-season division winners. That's also part of the reason Halas was able to win six NFL championships; the postseason wasn't as much of grind in those days.

Still, both coaches have remarkable career accomplishments. Halas is a Hall of Famer and Belichick will certainly be a first-ballot selection when his coaching career comes to an end.

MORE: How Belichick's friendship with Nick Saban created an Alabama-to-Patriots pipeline

Most wins by an NFL coach, including playoffs

Once Belichick passes Halas for second on the wins list, he will be behind only Shula, who famously led the 1972 Dolphins to the NFL's only undefeated season.

Shula posted 347 total wins in his career, including playoffs. Belichick needs 24 more victories to pass him.

The 20 coaches with the most wins in NFL history.

Rank Coach Team(s) Wins
1 Don Shula Colts, Dolphins 347
T-2 Bill Belichick Browns, Patriots 324
T-2 George Halas Bears 324
4 Tom Landry Cowboys 270
5 Andy Reid Eagles, Chiefs 259
6 Curly Lambeau Packers, Cardinals, Washington 229
7 Chuck Noll Steelers 209
8 Marty Schottenheimer Browns, Chiefs, Washington, Chargers 205
9 Dan Reeves Broncos, Giants, Falcons 201
10 Chuck Knox Rams, Bills, Seahawks 193
11 Bill Parcells Giants, Patriots, Jets, Cowboys 183
12 Tom Coughlin Jaguars, Giants 182
T-13 Jeff Fisher Titans, Rams 178
T-13 Mike Shanahan Raiders, Broncos, Washington 178
15 Mike Holmgren Packers, Seahawks 174
16 Joe Gibbs Washington 171
17 Bud Grant Vikings 168
T-18 Pete Carroll Jets, Patriots, Seahawks 166
T-18 Paul Brown Browns, Bengals 166
20 Mike Tomlin Steelers 164

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.